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CONTENTS
Foreword IV
UNESCO Forum on Higher Education, Research and Knowledge
Heather Eggins, Editor; Mary-Louise Kearney, Director
•
Contents
II • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
FOREWORD
The UNESCO Forum on Higher Education, Knowledge and Research is pleased to publish
this Occasional Paper which develops certain research summaries presented at the Global
Research Seminar held in Paris, 28 to 29 November 2008, on the theme of Sharing Research
Agendas on Knowledge Systems. This Seminar gathered together some 100 researchers
from over 50 Member States as well as experts from UNESCO’s IGO and NGO partner
organizations such as OECD, WHO, FAO and NEPAD, which carry out work in this
important area.
First and foremost, it is appropriate to situate this publication in relation to the aims of
UNESCO Forum and, thus, to contextualize current issues related to systems of higher
education, research and innovation research (known as HERI). The UNESCO Forum
focuses on the role and status of research systems (whether national, regional or global)
and international trends in this domain in relation to the challenges posed by the
Knowledge Society of the twenty-first century. Located at UNESCO and supported by
the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida), the UNESCO Forum provides a
platform for researchers, policy-makers and relevant stakeholders to engage critically
with the key elements underpinning research systems: (i) policy trend; (ii) infrastructure;
(ii) human capacity; and (iv) investment. This project has assured follow-up action for
two major UNESCO conferences, the 1998 World Conference on Higher Education, “Higher
Education in the twenty-first century” and the 1999 World Conference on Science, “Science
for the twenty-first century”, and links closely to the intergovernmental programme for the
Management of Social Transformation (MOST), located in the Sector of Social and Human
Sciences (SHS), UNESCO.
Since 2001, the UNESCO Forum has consolidated its efforts to bridge research and policy
in a number of ways through facilitating and broadening the space for critical debate
and through revisiting the established and dominant views so as to reconceptualize
future directions. To date, its various components for attaining these goals: (i) mobilizing
experts; (ii) stimulating global and regional debate; (iii) producing and disseminating
research; (iv) promoting strategic partnerships; (v) facilitating communication, and
(vi) strengthening the systemic approach have yielded creditable results. The UNESCO
Forum believes that it is central to reaffirm the importance of research at the current
moment given the rapid developments since 2000 in knowledge production and
management and their ramifications for social change and progress. Research on research
has become, therefore, even more crucial and is now well recognized as a major field of
enquiry for international organizations, charged with advising their Member States about
the questions involved. In this regard, the World Bank, the OECD and other important
stakeholders are key partners of the UNESCO Forum.
• III
eye. Consequently, research may be more original, innovative and effective, thus leading
towards more sustainable human development.
Today, unprecedented emphasis is being placed on research as key motor for advancing
the knowledge society and its offspring, the knowledge economy. Consequently, “research
on the state of research” has moved high on the priority agendas for governments, for their
specialized agencies and bodies devoted to this area, and for higher education institutions.
Thus, mapping and analyzing their systems has become essential in order to acquire an
understanding of their functioning and, therefore, future requirements.
This systemic approach necessitates the study of specific issues arising from the various
areas involved. In this regard, the Global Research Seminar focused on three areas of
debate:
• Comparing methodologies for the study of knowledge systems.
• Case studies related to higher education (notably universities), to the mapping and
analysis of research systems.
• Specific dimensions of knowledge systems (inter alia, policies, governance,
infrastructure, human resources, research output, cooperation agreements and
emerging tensions and dynamics).
This Occasional Paper provides an opportunity for a more in-depth study of certain
aspects of HERI systems, thereby emphasizing the vastly different contexts and socio-
economic conditions in which higher education, research and innovation systems are
being constructed and the impact of these variables which may be political, social,
economic and cultural in character.
The UNESCO Forum expresses its gratitude to the authors of the papers in this collection.
IV • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Foreword
She was a Fulbright New Century Scholar in 2006, and a Visiting Scholar at Boston
College, Massachusetts, USA. Previous appointments have included the Editorship of
“Higher Education Quarterly” and the Directorship of an NGO of UNESCO, The Society for
Research into Higher Education (SRHE), London, UK.
Her research interests lie generally in the area of ‘Policy and Strategy in Higher
Education’, with a particular interest in access issues, governmental policy, leadership
and management, the academic profession and doctoral education. Her work as a
Fulbright Scholar was concerned with the theme of Higher Education in the twenty-first
century: Global Challenge and National Response. Recent publications include a chapter
on “The Changing Academic Profession: Implications for the Asia-Pacific Region”, 2008,
In: Competition, Collaboration and Change in the Academic Profession: Shaping Higher
Education’s Contribution to Knowledge and Research, Salazar-Clemeña, R.M. and Meek,
V.L. (eds.), UNESCO Forum on Higher Education, Research and Knowledge, Quezon City,
the Philippines.
The research of Professor Eggins, in relation to the Fulbright Scholarship, has resulted in
various conference presentations and a chapter with other authors, entitled “Comparative
Perspectives on Access and Equity”, 2007. In: Higher Education in the New Century,
Altbach, Ph. and McGill Peterson, P. (eds.), Sense Publishers, Rotterdam. She has a piece
on Professional Doctorates appearing in a forthcoming EUA Handbook (2009), and is
currently editing and contributing to a book entitled “Access and Equity: Comparative
Perspectives”.
Contact details:
Professor Heather Eggins,
Visiting Professor,
Institute for Education Policy Research (IEPR),
Staffordshire University,
Brindley Building,
Stoke-on-Trent ST4 2DF,
United Kingdom.
e-mail: h.eggins@staffs.ac.uk
1. Introduction
The advancement of science and technology is essential for economic growth and wealth
creation. The challenges facing countries are how to develop and sustain their science and
technology capacity that will contribute toward economic growth. Policy-makers in general
understand and acknowledge the critical role that Science, Technology and Innovation
(STI) can play in positively addressing the long-term economic and social issues. Adequate
investments in research and development (R&D), skilled human resources, scientific and
technical infrastructure and a good education system are essential to enhance economic
growth and improve the well-being of people. The formulation of policies that address
economic growth and ultimately wealth creation requires that policy-makers recognize
weaknesses and strengths as well as successes and failures of the economic and scientific
systems in their environment. The intensification of global competitiveness which compels
policy-makers to provide a balance between policies that take into account national needs
and those that enable the country to be competitive also has to be considered.
The South African Government is well aware of these facts and it is also in the process,
through the concerted efforts of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), other
government departments and research institutions, and the overall scientific community, of
developing and implementing policies that promote Science, Technology and Innovation.
Among these initiatives lies the need to measure R&D and innovation activities within the
country. Indicators gleaned from measuring the scale of R&D and innovation activities are
subsequently used for planning, monitoring, foresight and international benchmarking
purposes. This paper outlines the role of the Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation
Indicators (CeSTII) in assisting DST to plan its long-term strategic and operational activities
by collecting R&D and Innovation data on behalf of the department. The paper will attempt
to discuss the possible future role the centre could play in the provision of Science and
Technology (S&T) indicators for establishing the knowledge-based economy.
• Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 1
Measuring science and technology indicators in South Africa: Role of the Centre for Science, Technology
and Innovation Indicators (CeSTII)
This may not be the case for the developing world: there are some countries that still have
to quantify their levels of R&D and innovation activities. In the case of South Africa, the
dialogues on the direction of the science system started before the change of Government
in 1994 (IDRC, 1993). It emerged from these dialogues that the country was faced not only
with the task of building a single nation but with responsibility to completely overhaul
the past exclusive S&T policies that only catered for a small part of the population. The
Government embarked on rigorous policy changes and developments to address the legacy
of inequalities as well as campaigning for the return of foreign direct investments.
The publication of the White Paper on Science and Technology in 1996 (DACST, 1996)
and the adoption of the National System of Innovation (NSI) led to several initiatives
that reviewed the country’s S&T capacity: The National Research and Technology Audit
(DACST 1997a), the Science, Engineering and Technology Institutions review (DACST,
1997b) and the National Research and Technology Foresight Study (DACST, 1999). These
activities were coordinated and managed by the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and
Technology (DACST) which later in 2002 split into the Department of Arts and Culture
(DAC) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST).
DST continued with policy and strategy formulations and one of its most quoted
documents is the National Research and Experimental Development Strategy (NRDS, DST,
2002). The strategy highlighted weaknesses and deficiencies that should be addressed for
the concept of the National System of Innovation (NSI) to function. Limited expenditure
on R&D by both public and private sectors, the ageing and declining human resources
in S&T and fragmented governance structures in government were some of the issues
identified as hampering the performance of the NSI. The solutions proposed to meet the
deficiencies ranged from developing strategies to enhance innovation to transforming and
training human resources in S&T and to create an effective and integrated government
S&T system.
South Africa’s re-entry into the global markets required that the country not only focus
its efforts in stabilizing and growing the economy for the benefit of all but also be aware
of emerging and new trends in technologies that give countries their competitive edge.
A number of factors in South Africa make the task of identifying indicators to monitor
progress very difficult: the dependence on resources to grow the economy, the rampant
and significant ‘second’ economy, high levels of poverty and HIV/AIDS, low levels of
education and the attraction of scarce skilled personnel to advanced countries. To begin
to understand the impact of these issues requires the development of economic, social and
S&T indicators: South Africa has begun the process of identifying and collecting these
indicators.
The Department for Science and Technology (DST) coordinates the S&T indicators’ work
in South Africa. In its NRDS, the department outlined a set of indicators through which
the performance of the NSI could be measured – the enabling factors, which measure
human resources in S&T and investment, and outcomes, which focus on inputs and linked
outputs.
The main role of the Centre has been to establish a baseline set of indicators through the
annual R&D surveys and regular innovation surveys.
• Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 1
Measuring science and technology indicators in South Africa: Role of the Centre for Science, Technology
and Innovation Indicators (CeSTII)
The Minister of Science and Technology is the executive authority of the HSRC and is
also responsible for appointing the Council. The Council receives its Parliamentary
Grant through, and also reports to the Department of Science and Technology (DST).
In 2008 (31 March 2008), the Council reported a turnover of ZAR264 million and
received ZAR101 million through the Parliamentary grant.
During the same period the HSRC employed 483 staff members (permanent and
contract posts) of which 167 were researchers.
With the changes in S&T policies in South Africa came along the proposal by DST to
increase the R&D intensity to 1 per cent by 2008/09. This proposal required monitoring the
trends in R&D expenditure and thus prompted the department to institutionalize the R&D
survey.
• Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 1
Measuring science and technology indicators in South Africa: Role of the Centre for Science, Technology
and Innovation Indicators (CeSTII)
• Specific South African R&D questions. DST requested the collection of these data
for its planning purposes.
• Multi-disciplinary R&D:
• Biotechnology.
• Nanotechnology.
• R&D and National Priority Areas:
• New materials.
• Open source software.
• HIV/AIDS, TB, Malaria.
In 2003 CeSTII, with the backing of and funding by DST, began preparing for the
first officially commissioned innovation survey (Innovation Survey 2005), which was
compatible with CIS4. The results of this survey were released in 2007. The Innovation
Survey 2008 (compatible with CIS5) is currently in progress and the initial results are
expected in October 2009.
4. Methodologies
South Africa has observer status on the OECD science and technology policy committee
and CeSTII senior staff regularly attend these meetings organized by the National Experts
on Science and Technology Indicators (NESTI-OECD). This afforded CeSTII opportunities
to be involved in the OECD/Eurostat revision of the Oslo Manual as well as the OECD/
UNESCO process of developing an Annex to the Frascati Manual. Table 1 shows the
differences between the Innovation survey and R&D survey as conducted by CeSTII.
Based on guidelines of OECD Frascati Manual (2002) Based on guidelines of OECD/Eurostat Oslo Manual
(2005)
The survey follows the series of Community
Innovation Surveys (CIS)
Results comprise a census of R&D performers Results are extrapolated to represent the business
(Sometimes estimates are made) population
R&D is well understood and surveys are fairly Innovation is poorly understood and surveys are
standard still evolving
5. Major findings
• Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 1
Measuring science and technology indicators in South Africa: Role of the Centre for Science, Technology
and Innovation Indicators (CeSTII)
The 2006/07 survey results indicate that South Africa has 1.5 FTE researchers per 1000 total
in employment, the same as in 2005, although the number of FTE researchers has grown
by 7.6 per cent during the year. Compared to other countries this indicator of human
research potential is fairly low. This indicator needs to be monitored as the research
capacity of a country significantly influences its R&D output potential.
The data collected from the R&D survey allow for the analysis and quantification of the
following:
• Major contributors to R&D investments and the location of performance.
• Industries (e.g. manufacturing, services in Business sector) performing R&D.
• The nature of R&D expenditures (basic, applied etc.).
• Sources of funds and the percentage contribution of each source.
• The role of government as the performer and funder of research.
The three innovation surveys conducted in South Africa are not reliably comparable; the
first two surveys were not inclusive of all the industries in the business sector. However,
with the second officially commissioned Innovation survey in the field, CeSTII expects to
produce more qualitative and quantitative information to build on the existing data.
The results of surveys are reported as High-Level Key Results and produced in a booklet
format, followed by a more substantial report. The report is available in paper and
electronic versions. R&D data are also submitted to the OECD annually for publication in
CeSTII provides detailed data extracts on request from the general public and this is done
under the terms of an Access Protocol.
In terms of the R&D survey, problems include definitions of R&D where respondents
struggle to determine what should be counted as R&D. Examples of these are R&D in the
Social Sciences and Humanities and the R&D related to software development and clinical
trials.
Under or over counting of researchers and the actual R&D expenditure may result if the
following factors are not checked and verified:
• Outsourced R&D activities across sectors, which are sometimes mistakenly counted as
intramural R&D
• Less than 100 per cent coverage of R&D performers where potential R&D performers
are not all included in the survey especially in the business and Not-For-Profit sectors
• High staff turnover, which is conspicuous in the government sector
• Incorrect estimation of the Full Time Equivalents (FTEs) particularly in the higher
education sector.
The main challenge with the innovation surveys is dealing with the persistent low
response rates as the business sector complains that it is over-surveyed in South Africa.
Other general challenges faced by the unit are providing government and policy-makers
with specific and detailed R&D and innovation statistics that are usually beyond CeSTII’s
scope. The surveys collect aggregated data at higher levels than the users require. The
issues here are that CeSTII is a small unit conducting surveys nationally, assuming the
role of a national Statistic office and operating within a limited budget.
The challenges posed by human resources include finding and maintaining qualified
human resources who can do survey work (client-driven research) and still function
as researchers for other HSRC work (e.g. producing peer-reviewed journal articles).
Conducting R&D surveys requires people who find obtaining the results of surveys
interesting, challenging, and rewarding.
Finally, developing key research topics that could provide a focus for collaborative
research without deviating from the requirements of HSRC and DST needs to be
considered.
10 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 1
Measuring science and technology indicators in South Africa: Role of the Centre for Science, Technology
and Innovation Indicators (CeSTII)
8. Achievements of CeSTII
CeSTII has increased its operations since its inception and its profile has been rising
steadily. The challenge is how to maintain and sustain this status.
Some selected works performed by CeSTII and other colleagues are provided to illustrate
the relevance and importance of measuring R&D, innovation and related science and
technology activities in South Africa and other countries in The New Partnership
for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) so that national studies as well as international
comparisons and benchmarking become possible.
9. Future perspectives
• The recent development by DST is the 10-year plan entitled “Innovation Towards a
Knowledge-based Economy” which will consist of four elements:
• Human Capital Development.
• Knowledge generation and exploitation (R&D), and
• Enablers to address the innovation gap between research results and socio-
economic outcomes.
The 10-year plan will also rely on indicators and CeSTII may play a meaningful role
in the provision of R&D and innovation statistics as well as in the development of new
indicators, thus assisting the department to implement its plans over time.
• Dealing with the shortcomings of the R&D surveys and outlining possible areas of
collaboration including responding to the following issues:
• Are policy issues that are specific to South Africa sufficiently covered by the work
of CeSTII?
• If not, what kind of action is currently being taken to improve data collection
without diverging from the prescribed mechanisms currently in place?
• Do the surveys provide relevant and useful information for the business sector
(i.e. able to answer the typical business sector question of what is in it for us?).
• Is there a basis for future research provided by the case studies which might focus
on the following aspects, for example:
• Researchers in the workforce, making use of existing data to explore issues
such as research as a career in South Africa; what informs the research agendas
of R&D practitioners in South Africa; and what is the policy context?
• The location of R&D: benchmarking the South African provinces to try and
understand how R&D investments in each province affect regional performance
and the rate of economic development.
12 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 1
Measuring science and technology indicators in South Africa: Role of the Centre for Science, Technology
and Innovation Indicators (CeSTII)
A close analysis can be undertaken of the strengths and limitations of the business and
public R&D data that are currently being collected and an examination made of their uses.
The work of CesTII has contributed to a number of activities including policymaking and
analysis. Many countries are gearing themselves towards a knowledge-based economy and
the need to develop indicators present CeSTII with opportunities to contribute towards
these efforts.
Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology (DACST). 1996. White Paper on
Science and Technology, Pretoria: Department of Arts, Culture, Science and
Technology.
Department of Science and Technology (DST). 2002. The National Research and
Development, Strategy. Pretoria: Department of Science and Technology.
European Commission. 2005. Key Figures on Science, Technology and innovation towards
a European knowledge area.
Godin B. 2001. The Emergence of Science and Technology Indicators: Why did Governments
Supplement Statistics with Indicators. Paper No. 8.
______. 2005. Main Science and Technology Indicators 2005. Paris, OECD.
The author would like to acknowledge the following persons: Demetre Labadarios, William
Blankley, Natalie Vlotman, Julien Rumbelow, Cheryl Moses, Prudence Sotashe, Irma
Wilkinson, Saahir Parker, Mamela Siwendu, Anthony Burns, Tembu Sibindlana, Karen
Heath, Aeysha Semaar and Lezaan Muller.
Contact details:
Professor Neo Molotja,
Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators (CeSTII),
Human Sciences Research Council,
Private Bag X9182, Cape Town, 8000, South Africa.
Tel: +27 21 466 7818, Fax +27 21 461 1255
e-mail: nmolotja@hsrc.ac.za
14 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
PART
2
Case studies on knowledge systems:
higher education and universities
Chapter 2
Building research universities in Africa: the challenges
Mammo Muchie
Chapter 3
Towards inclusive systems of innovation and developmental
University systems: normative, empirical and policy perspectives
Claes Brundenius; Bengt-Aake Lundvall; Judith Sutz
Chapter 4
Innovative public policy to link science with development:
Bolivarian University of Venezuela (BUV)
Ana Julia Bozo de Carmona; María Cristina Parra-Sandoval;
Alicia Inciarte; Amalia Bohórquez
Chapter 5
Universities in national development: perspectives on a second
academic revolution linked to a third industrial revolution
David Cooper
Chapter 6
Needs-based knowledge processing through university-community
Partnerships: higher education inroads into rural community
Development in Zimbabwe
Nduduzo Phuthi; Paul D. M. Gundani;
Isaiah M. Sibanda; Stephen Matope; Champakh T. Parekh
Chapter 2
Building research universities in Africa: the challenges
Abstract
In this study it will be argued that research is critical for building productive power and the
creation of wealth. It is better to have at least one research university in every African country
than a national airline. If each country in Africa cannot afford to establish a research university
and sustain it as part of building knowledge in each country’s economy and society, there is
a need for each African region to establish a regional research university with the African
Union and NEPAD’s support and engagement to sustain the effort. Research universities
are key components of a country’s systems of political economy of production. Research is
neither a luxury nor is a research university a white elephant. If knowledge for augmenting
productive power is necessary, research is the ingredient and the institution that is best placed
to create researchers and research remains a university. Doubts about the need to set up
research universities in Africa should end and, instead, ways of making them effective pillars
for building Africa’s productive and innovative capabilities should be promoted, with an acute
awareness of much squandered time spent debating whether universities are necessary, instead
of establishing them as part of the core producer of Africa’s innovation systems.
16 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 2
Building research universities in Africa: the challenges
1. Introduction
African universities are still slowly emerging from the difficulties they faced in the
1980s. The American Chronicle of Higher Education recently stated that “African
universities’ capacity to educate new Ph.D. holders is eroding, raising deep concerns
about the continent’s ability to produce new generations of academics, and educators”
(The Chronicle of Higher Education, 2008). During 2000-2004 Africa produced only 1.8
per cent of the world’s publications. In comparison India produced 2.4 per cent and Latin
America 3.5 per cent of the world’s research (Pouris and Pouris, 2007). Moreover it has
been suggested that much of research is concentrated in only two African countries, South
Africa, and Egypt”. These two countries produce just above 50 per cent of the continent’s
publications and the top eight countries produce above 80 per cent of the continent’s
research” (ibid.).
Africa’s inventive profile also shows that the continent needs to catch up; it produces less
than one thousand of the world’s inventions, and 88 per cent of the continent’s inventive
activity is located in South Africa (ibid.). When it comes to knowledge, research and
higher education in Africa, the picture that emerges is unflattering regarding research and
training, at all levels from the local, to the regional to the continental.
It is clear that something must be done to change this unacceptable situation. Training,
research, knowledge, invention and innovation must be priorities. Africa cannot afford to
remain so far behind. It must catch up and it can catch up!
In the 1960s universities needed to develop specific skills for African development to
establish a civil service, build up the teaching profession and provide skilled manpower
for the economy. It is during the 60s that the concept of the developmental university was
developed. There was an emphasis on an applied curriculum and on ‘useful’ learning.
Higher education’s principal objective became manpower planning/human resource
development. During the 1970s doubts emerged due largely to the poor quality of output,
the mismatch of graduates to labour market demands, and to financial constraints owing
to the 1971 world economic crises that led to unsettled external funding. The World Bank
used narrow economic calculations to compare the economic return on investment in
higher education to primary education. It claimed to make the discovery that primary
education gave more value for money than investment in higher education. The economic
crises of the 70s and 80s helped to making the rate-of-return on investment in education
the assessment tool of choice for validating support for research, knowledge and training
in Africa.
Moreover, in the 1980s demands for student fees and privatization were legitimized and
external support for higher education declined drastically. The World Bank wrote four
major policy documents, one of which focused entirely on Africa, which offered a critique
of universities’ role in development. The universities reacted angrily and tried to defend
their position, and students rioted in many campuses in Africa. Many post-colonial
governments in Africa viewed knowledge and universities as threats. As a consequence,
support from governments also waned. Universities’ positive role was questioned: their
identity and value was compromised. Research became under-funded and downgraded;
universities lost their best brains; some became consultants; others set up NGOs doing
what came to be known as policy research, funded by external funders or donors. “What
we received from the partners [World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF)] has
been the Kiss of Death” (from a Gambian Minister of Education).
Overall in the 1980s, the positive effect to the economy from investment in higher
education came under question. In fact the negative impact of higher education on
economic development was stressed including an emphasis on graduates’ unemployability
18 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 2
Building research universities in Africa: the challenges
due to the low quality of graduates and the preponderance of students in social science
and humanities as opposed to science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
The problem with the World Bank’s approach to higher education in Africa is a reliance on
narrow economic accounting over broader considerations of the social and cultural impact
of education, learning and knowledge through a combination of research and training.
In the 1990s both as a result of taking an integrated or holistic view of education and
the ‘knowledge economy’ approach which argued for knowledge to emerge as a factor
of production, public support for higher education in Africa began to be advocated.
The World Bank also proposed funding universities, though it insisted student fees and
privatization must be retained.
The attack on the universities and the loss that accompanied this over twenty years from
the 1980s makes us wary that such attacks may re-occur unless the need for African
research is anchored in the economics of knowledge for releasing the productive power of
the individual, the nation and society, changing both the production system and creating
transformative and developmental capability. We suggest that the formation of an African
system of innovation will necessarily involve the acknowledgement that research is not
a luxury but the ingredient for promoting productive power or energy, and the research
university in Africa is not a white elephant. There is thus a need to strengthen the
argument that a core component of a system of innovation is knowledge, and the latter
is produced through research and universities even though there may be other ways of
producing knowledge through experience and the laboratory of life.
Finally there is now in the twenty-first century recognition of the value of research, higher
education and knowledge in Africa due in part to the knowledge economy discourse and
the World Bank’s change of attitude. There is the UNESCO Forum on Higher Education,
Research and Knowledge which has been pivotal in promoting national research systems,
research capacity and research training.
Whilst there is no longer a major ideological barrier, the reality on the ground for African
universities is still difficult with a lack of concentration of talent, resources and acute
governance crises. In addition, as late as November 2008 reports suggest that African
universities still face a looming shortage of Ph.D’s. (The Chronicle of Higher Education,
2008).
South Africa has a ten year innovation plan (2008-2018) put in place by the national
leadership which has understood the importance of research and knowledge. Since 1994
the country has managed to double the science budget. The Government has planned to
create 210 research chairs by 2010 and 500 by 2018. It has plans to produce 600 Ph.D’s.,
300 of whom will be in science, technology and engineering, by 2018. It hopes to increase
its rate of publication by 1.5 per cent from 0.5 per cent in 2006. Patent applications are
expected to grow from 418 in 2004 to 2,100 by 2018. South Africa’s own patent office aims
to expand from 4,721 patents in 2002 to 24,000 in 2018. South Africa intends to have five
research universities recognized by international rating and eight Nobel laureates by that
date (DST, 2008).
Thus we have in South Africa an important knowledge and research resource. The
challenge is how to create research and researcher mobility to link this energy from
South Africa to benefit other African countries in order to build up their research and
researchers.
Whilst South Africa has its problems, it remains an inspiration in relation to much of
Africa. The unacceptable research situation of Africa as a whole must change. It means
training, and research must be put in place; and knowledge, invention and innovation
must remain priorities. Africa cannot remain far behind after fifty years of colonial
freedom.
We would propose that research, universities and knowledge are conceptualized in terms
of the economics of productive power and systems of innovation frameworks. In doing
so we argue against the use of the economics of circulation or exchange value-based
allocation that has been behind much of the justification to frame narrowly whether Africa
needs universities or not.
20 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 2
Building research universities in Africa: the challenges
The rate-of-return on investment is likely to be negative in the short run when investing
in building research universities but the broader impact on education, learning and
knowledge may be large in the medium to long term, even calculated in narrow economic
and investment terms. But there are a host of other benefits that a research culture based
in Africa can generate in the making of and the strengthening of the African system of
innovation.
The economic theory that informed such narrow calculations is neo-classical, based on
circulation or exchange-value allocative (Price is equal to marginal cost) economics.
What we propose here is productive power or energy-based economics. The conceptual
approach of this lays stress on the notion that what creates or makes the causes of wealth
is something totally different from wealth itself. The ability to produce wealth, found in
the form of raw materials and mineral commodities, is more important than circulating
existing wealth. Wealth creation depends on knowledge, and knowledge depends on
research and training. Thus research is a form of productive power or energy. It can drive
the process of economic development and wealth creation. For example, research on a
unified field theory in physics led by serendipity to the creation of the world-wide web.
Now there is a huge global economy based on various ventures and transactions through
the www.com economy.
Another important reason why research, knowledge and building research universities is
necessary is related to the choice or need to absorb already innovated products elsewhere
or establish or embed systems of innovation policies, institutions, and incentives to create
new knowledge and innovation in the local and national context. There is a marked
difference between the suppliers of innovations and those who demand innovation.
Those who supply always become front runners. Those who demand are latecomers. How
can the latecomers become also front runners? That depends on the national systems of
The most interesting perspective regarding the hybridization of both the creation and
absorption potential not only in the developed countries but also in the developing
countries has come from the Globelics research community – the first Globelics
Conference was launched in Rio in 2003. (Muchie, et al., 2003). This community, though
heterogeneous, has attempted to construct a synthesis where the spectrum of innovative
potential does not exclude poor African countries from being innovators themselves, as
well as absorbers, by interacting with the industrialized technology producers. In other
words in the view of Globelics, the spectrum from creation to absorption can exist at
the same time though perhaps in different leading sectors. Poor African countries can
combine being innovators and producers of new technologies and also be adopters of
innovations produced at the world’s science, technology and innovation frontiers. In fact,
being innovators facilitates absorption of new technologies, and conversely absorption
of new technologies can strengthen institutions and their practices, thus encouraging
internal innovation creation. Both are linked and mutually reinforcing.
For example, African countries have rare resources in agriculture and health which they
often sell in raw form. If they can add value by converting raw material into manufactured
goods through innovative potential, they will gain much for development. It is important
not to allow institutions to establish a development policy which only makes use of
new technology. They need to build institutions and practices which generate their own
innovation capability without closing off learning from outside.
Thus countries that plan to develop their national innovation systems will differ if they
plan to be innovation producers and absorbers or mainly absorbers and not innovation
creators. This has an impact on their practices, plans, policies and institutions to produce
or absorb knowledge through appropriate incentive systems.
The creation of innovation requires that a country must have at least one research
university or specialized research institute. The researchers require resources, other
researchers, experience, knowledge, ideas, creativity, skills, equipment, and materials and
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active creative networks. Their research output can be produced for either commercial
or non-commercial purposes. If they are products, services and processes they may be
commercialized. If the research produces knowledge for capability, theories, discoveries,
or new methods, it may be used for further research and training. Even knowledge
that appears in patents and publications may not be commercialized. Institutional
arrangements that facilitate a research system equipped with research inputs to create
research outputs, and research outcomes, and to impact on the economy is essential
for sustaining a transformation process capable of transition to the level of industrial
economies.
The problem is that building internal research capacity, spending R&D and other
resources for creating innovation is more expensive than the resources that may be
needed to absorb and procure new technology. This may also be related to the possible
deployment of human resources to learn what others have created rather than to deploy
resources for creating new technologies. An easier route may be to apply acquired
technology to stimulate endogenous innovation.
Since there is no free new technology market, it may not be easy for poorer economies to
acquire technologies which may enable them to create indigenized innovation systems.
Poor African countries have to aim to create innovation and not be mere recipients
through donor and foreign direct investment of technology transfer.
Africa needs innovation systems which offer both endogenous and absorptive capabilities
to generate a development strategy where the value of research is embedded and not
externalized. Something like an African National Innovation, Learning and Development
Systems (ANILDS) that combines innovation creation inside and innovation absorption
from outside is necessary to establish a knowledge foundation and infrastructure for
Africa’s sustained development and transformation. (See Graph 1).
The value of this new concept is to integrate innovation creation with the capacity for
innovation absorption and emphasize that productive power and the capital of the mind is
critical to both innovation creation and absorption and wealth creation and development
in Africa and for Africa. It is on this foundation that the structural transformation of poor
African countries can occur, to realize the full benefit of integration with world technology
leaders on the basis of autonomy and a specific African national economy’s own expressed
agency.
Innovation creators and innovation absorbers in the context of a poor African country
require different institutions, networks, policies, actors, human resources, incentives
and capabilities. Innovation creators can absorb new technologies, as has been evidenced
in a number of countries. In the case of African economies, the innovation absorbers
from outside may or may not become innovation creators unless internally embedded
knowledge production through rigorous research and human resources is also provided.
4. Conclusion
The economics of Smithian exchange value has dominated research, knowledge and the
production of researchers. The damage to Africa has been severe. This view of economics
is still dominant and may be re-applied to make Africa a non-creator of African research
universities. The danger is real. It is thus critical to conceptualise, locate and protect
Africa’s needs to create research from the point of view of the theory of productive power.
Research universities create research that is also productive power, thus positioning
research, research systems and researchers as part of Africa’s innovation system. It is
necessary to appreciate the economic value of research and researchers with a broader
social rate of return rather than a narrow economic rate-of-return.
In Africa both research and the African research university are key components of
the making of African national systems of innovation. The appreciation of research as
productive power, a necessity and not a luxury is critical for progress. Research and
researchers constitute part and parcel of the efforts to generate a functioning science,
technology and innovation system within African borders.
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Africans should continue to combine policy, resources and talent in order to stimulate
productive power to create sustainable research. Neither is research a luxury, nor is
a research university a white elephant: that is the starting point to build research as
productive power to fuel Africa’s sustainable transformation.
References
Coleman, J.S. 1994. The Idea of the Developmental University. In: Coleman, J.S.
Nationalism and Development in Africa: Selected Essays, Sklar, R.L. (ed.),
Berkeley: University of California Press (UCP).
Department of Science and Technology (DST). 2008. South African Ten Year Innovation
Plan (2008-2018), Pretoria, South Africa.
Lindow, M. 2008. African Universities Face a Looming Shortage of Ph.D.’s. In: The
Chronicle of Higher Education.
Muchie, M.; Lundvall, B.-Å. and Gammeltoft, P. (eds.). 2003. Putting Africa First: The
Making of African Innovation Systems. Rio: Publisher: Aalborg University.
Pouris, A. and Pouris, A. 2007. The State of Science and Technology in Africa (2000-2004), A
Scientometric Assessment 79, 2009. International Journal of Scientometrics. In
Proceedings ISSI 2007.
World Bank. 2008. Accelerating Catch Up: Teritiary Education for Growth in sub-Saharan
Africa. Publisher: World Bank.
Contact details:
Professor Mammo Muchie
Director,
Research Centre on Development and International Political Economy,
NRF/DST Research Chair on Innovation, IERT, TUT and Aalborg University,
Fibigerstræde 2 - 8a,
DK-9220 Aalborg Ø,
Denmark.
e-mail: mammo@ihis.aau.dk
Introduction
It has become almost trivial to assert that in the information society, the knowledge
society or the learning economy, universities are very important institutions. This
consensus notwithstanding, questions such as “In what sense are those institutions
important?” and “For whom are they important?” are far from receiving unanimous
answers. Should the major function be to promote higher education in order to serve all
sectors of society or should the emphasis be to engage in research and to examine what the
relationships are between the two types of activities? And what should a ‘third mission’
encompass: a broad interaction with society or just an interaction with the business sector
aiming at promoting technical innovation in high technology? Nobody argues in favour of
‘ivory towers’ but the relative autonomy of universities may be seen as a prerequisite for
universities to function as ‘central banks’ that validate knowledge in the knowledge-based
society.
The purpose of this paper is to help clarify the debate. In Section 1 we present results
from the UniDev-project demonstrating differences and similarities between university
systems in more or less developed economies. In Section 2 we point to inequality as a
major barrier for economic development in the knowledge-based economy, and in Section
3 we take a fresh look at the ‘third mission’ seen from this perspective. On the basis of the
empirical, analytical and normative analysis, Sections 4 and 5 outline the contours of a
developmental university system.
Section 1.
The UniDev project – A synthesis of project results
By examining the changing role of academic institutions within the context of innovation
and economic growth and development, the project establishes a new and important
conceptual and policy link between the work of development agencies, and the
methodologies and approaches of national innovation policy and innovation agencies. The
project has been working with national teams in twelve countries (Brazil, China, Cuba,
Denmark, Germany, Latvia, Russian Federation, South Africa, Sweden, Tanzania, Uruguay
and, Viet Nam). It is interesting that in spite of different economic systems (ranging from
liberal market economies to socialist economies), different levels of development and
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different roles in national innovation systems, the role of higher education (and especially
that of universities) is a hot topic in all the countries (Brundenius-Göransson, 2009).
The project has two major components: (i) a mapping of the current situation and role
of higher education in the national innovation system, and (ii) a special in-depth survey
of the so called ‘Third Mission’ of universities, and how various stakeholders view this
mission in the twelve countries. We will here provide a summary of the results based on
the country reports. Some basic quantitative data are shown in Table 1 below.
The UniDev countries are listed by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita level Parity
Purchasing Power (PPP). The data in Table 1 gives some idea about differences with
respect to the Human Development Index (HDI) and the public commitment to education
in general and to tertiary (higher) education in particular. HDI follows grosso modo the
GDP ranking with the exception of South Africa (falling from 5th to 11th position) and Cuba
(rising from 9th to 6th position). UniDev has three countries with high GDP per capita levels
of living (HICs) (Denmark, Germany and Sweden), three with upper medium-income levels
(UMICs) (Latvia, Russia, South Africa), four with medium-income levels (MICs) (Brazil,
China, Cuba and Uruguay,), and two low-income countries (LICs) (Tanzania and Viet
Nam). The first group of countries also stands out as regards expenditure on education
with one exception. Cuba has the highest spending of the UniDev countries on education
in general as a percentage of GDP, and has also a high percentage of spending with respect
to higher education (5th place). China also has a relatively high ranking with respect to
education in general.
Table 1. Some basic data for the UniDev countries around 2005
Country GDP per Human Government Government Government Private
(ranked after capita (PPP) development expenditure expenditure expenditure expenditures
GDP/cap. index on education on education on tertiary on tertiary
level) as % of GDP per capita education per education
(PPP) capita (PPP) (% of total)
Denmark 33 973 (1) 0.95 (2) 8.5 (2) 2 888 (1) 866 (1) 11.1
Sweden 32 525 (2) 0.96 (1) 7.4 (3) 2 407 (2) 647 (2) 5.3
Germany 29 461 (3) 0.94 (3) 4.6 (7) 1 355 (3) 325 (3) 9.1
Latvia 13 646 (4) 0.86 (4) 5.4 (5) 723 (4) (80) (6) 53.8
South Africa 11 110 (5) 0.67 (11) 5.4 (4) 600 (6) 96 (5) n.a.
Russia 10 845 (6) 0.80 (7) 3.6 (9) 390 (7) (76) (7) 12.2*
Uruguay 9 962 (7) 0.85 (5) 2.6 (10) 259 (10) 52 (9) 9.8
Brazil 8 402 (8) 0.80 (8) 4.4 (8) 370 (8) 37 (10) 70.3
Cuba 6 800 (9) 0.84 (6) 9.8 (1) 666 (5) 147 (4) 0.0
China 6 757 (10) 0.78 (9) 5.3 (6) 358 (9) 75 (8) n.a.
Viet Nam 3 071 (11) 0.73 (10) 1.8 (12) 55 (11) 15 (11) 10.4*
Tanzania 744 (12) 0.67 (12) 2.2 (11) 16 (12) 5 (12) 12.9*
Data on the role of private financing of higher education are not so easy to get, partly due
to the rather imprecise definition of what private higher institutions comprise. The data in
the seventh column should therefore be read with some caution, and the data do in some
instances refer to share of enrolments, and not share of expenditures and are thus not
necessarily comparable.
Table 2 compares tertiary enrolment ratios and the role of universities in research. These
data can give some indication of the importance of universities in the national systems
of innovation. Gross enrolment ratios (GER) are high, or very high, in Denmark, Latvia,
Russia, Sweden and Cuba; moderately high in Germany and Uruguay; low in Brazil,
China, South Africa and Viet Nam and very low in Tanzania. If we look at GERD (Gross
Expenditure on R&D), we see a quite similar pattern with public expenditure on education
(Table 4). GERD as a percentage of GDP ranges from 3.86 in Sweden to 0.1 percent in
Tanzania. China, however, has an exceptionally high GERD (1.34 per cent) in relation to its
income level. The Chinese exception becomes especially noteworthy when we look at BERD
(Business Expenditure on R&D), which accounts for 71 per cent of all R&D in China, and
places China in company with Sweden, Denmark, Germany and Russia.
Table 2. UniDev: Tertiary enrolments and the role of university R&D around 2005
Country Tertiary GERD as % BERD as % University GERD per University
(ranked after Enrolment of GDP of GERD R&D as % of capita (PPP) R&D per
GDP per Ratios (GER) GERD capita (PPP)
capita)
Denmark 80 (2) 2.45 (3) 67.0 (4) 26.3 (5) 822 (2) 216 (2)
Sweden 82 (1) 3.86 (1) 74.9 (1) 20.5 (7) 1239 (1) 254 (1)
Germany 50 (6) 2.51 (2) 69.6 (3) 16.5 (9) 764 (3) 126 (3)
Latvia 74 (3) 0.57 (8) 40.5 (8) 41.5 (1) 74 (8) 30 (4)
South Africa 15 (11) 0.87 (7) 58.1 (6) 21.6 (6) 97 (5) 21 (6)
Russia 71 (4) 1.07 (5) 66.4 (5) 6.3 (11) 128 (4) 8 (7)
Uruguay 41 (7) 0.26 (10) 48.0 (7) 32.0 (4) 25 (10) 8 (7)
Brazil 24 (8) 0.92 (6) 40.3 (9) 39.0 (2) 77 (7) 30 (5)
Cuba 61 (5) 0.56 (9) 29.4 (10) 35.3 (3) 34 (9) 8 (7)
China 20 (9) 1.34 (4) 70.9 (2) 9.1 (10) 91 (6) 8 (7)
Viet Nam 16 (10) 0.19 (11) 20.0 (11) 21.0 5 (11) 1 (11)
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Interesting new patterns appear when we look at University R&D (5th column). Here the
situation is in many instances the reverse. For instance Brazil, Cuba, Latvia and Uruguay
all have higher shares of University R&D (as percentage of GERD) than the more developed
countries, even if the causal relationship is far from clear. It might be that governments
in many of the developing UniDev countries give high priority to university research
– often as a means of building bridges to industry: on the other hand this perhaps rather
reflects the weak BERD sector of these countries. University R&D is in contrast quite
weak in Russia and China – both in relative terms and in terms of PPP per capita. The
weak university research sector in these countries is a reflection of the past (centrally
planned) system, where most research was carried out in specialized government research
institutes.
At the top of the list in all countries is, not surprisingly, financing. Finance of higher
education usually comes from the public budget and there are competing priorities,
especially in developing countries. There are thus pressures on universities both to prove
their social relevance and to prove their cost-efficiency for education as well as research.
The question of privatizing higher education institutions has in some instances been
an option and establishing university-industry links has been another. Privatization,
however, does not seem to be a big issue any longer, except in Denmark, Tanzania and
Uruguay. In Uruguay there is only one public university and that might explain the
interest in private complements.
The second hottest issue is not surprisingly the relevance of university research. This is a
topic heatedly discussed in all parts of the UniDev spectrum: from Sweden and Germany
to Russia, Brazil, Uruguay and Viet Nam. It is interesting to note that this does appear to
be a big issue in Cuba and Latvia – two countries with the highest share of University R&D
(see aforementioned Table 2).
The quality of education is the third hottest topic, ranging from Sweden to Cuba, Viet
Nam, Tanzania and South Africa. In Cuba the quality of education has lately become of
increasing concern to the government. One reason is the consequences of the massive
surge in university enrolments since the beginning of 2000 in a drive towards the
‘universalization of higher education’. There is, understandably, a serious lack of qualified
university teachers in the initial period – before the system can supply a sufficient number
of qualified teachers.
Denmark
Viet Nam
Germany
Tanzania
Uruguay
S. Africa
Sweden
Russia
Latvia
Brazil
China
Cuba
Major issues
Funding X X X X X X X X X X X X
Allocation of resources X X X
Governance X X X
Low salaries X X X
Gender/minorities X X X*
Quality X X X X X
Integration of universities X
with research
Low salaries may be related to the issue of quality of education since it might be difficult
to recruit good university teachers and university researchers if salary levels are low (in
relation to other occupations). This is at least the case in Cuba, Russia and Uruguay.
The social inclusion and social relevance of universities is an issue that is being debated
in Sweden, Brazil, Uruguay and China. However, it should be emphasized that ‘social
inclusion’ can be interpreted in different ways. For some people it refers to university
enrolment policies; in other words it is almost synonymous with access to higher
education. This might explain the difference in this context between Sweden and
Denmark. The same goes for gender/minorities that can also be interpreted in terms of
inclusion/exclusion. The South African answer is interesting: social inclusion/exclusion is
not a minority problem it is a problem for the (non-white) majorities!
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Section 2.
A key starting point that challenges the orientation of
knowledge production
The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) proposed
twenty years ago an ambitious programme to put the region on the high road of
development: “Productive Transformation with Equity”. Whether the region as a whole
underwent a productive transformation of the scope proposed by ECLAC, that is, enabling
it to join the ‘knowledge based and innovation driven economy’ is a moot point; as is
also whether some of the countries of the region underwent such a transformation. What
is unmistakably true is that in no case was it a transformation ‘with equity’, but ‘with
inequity’. ECLAC recently recognized the fact that even if productive transformations took
place, (and in some countries poverty reduction underwent impressive gains), ‘inequality
defeated us’.
The following map, showing the Gini Index for several countries, underlines this. The
lower the Gini indexes, the lower the inequality: few developing countries are in the range
of Gini Indexes’ values between forty and forty-five; most them have values above fifty,
indicating severe levels of inequality. Latin America appears as the most unequal region of
the world.
There are powerful reasons to be worried about the inequalities that add new challenges
to the overwhelmingly complex and pressing problem of poverty. The arguments require
clarification, because it is they which lie behind the proposal to foster developmental
university systems.
The question of inequality is not a new one. What is perhaps more pressing nowadays is
the relation between knowledge, as a main driver of economic and social transformation,
and inequality. The market-driven policies for economic growth fuelled inequality, being
one of the worst consequences of the so called ‘Washington Consensus’ recommendations
for developing countries. Science, technology, innovation and higher education played
almost no role in these recommendations. However, emphasis solely on economic growth
to achieve trickle-down consequences for the rest of the developmental issues, including
inequality, led to the conceptualization of knowledge mainly as a tool for such growth and
as part of the positive trickle-down process.
When the social disaster that followed the application of the ‘Washington Consensus’
recommendations became apparent, social policies were put in place to try to redress
the situation, but the combination between almost unchanged policies for growth and
policies to redress the negative social effects of such growth policies, at least in terms
of equality, was far from successful. Knowledge, innovation and higher education, got
trapped in the ‘old’ trickle-down hypothesis, continuing to be seen mainly as an economic
tool. Moreover, the impact of some types of innovations on inequality was not seriously
acknowledged, even if such impacts were well documented (Rogers, 1995). We suggest that
to achieve developmental goals, and to further equality, universities, need to get rid of the
trickle-down hypothesis and address the goals of knowledge and innovation in a fairly
direct way. This leads us to propose that ‘inclusive knowledge systems’ are needed as well
as developmental university systems.
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Section 3.
A fresh look at the ‘Third Mission’ of universities
The knowledge economy is not without qualification: in fact it is a capitalist knowledge
economy (Arocena and Sutz, 2003). Some scholars, looking particularly into the evolution
of American universities, have even coined the expression ‘academic capitalism’. So the
question of the feasibility of counter tendencies is a thorny one: what are the chances of
fostering inclusive knowledge systems and developmental university systems in the midst
of the current capitalist knowledge economy and the marked trend towards academic
capitalism?
. In that paper, the concept of ‘capitalist knowledge economy’ is referred to the definition of capitalism provided
by Michael Mann: “Following Marx, I define capitalism in the following terms: 1. Commodity production. Every factor
of production, including labor, is treated as a means, not an end in itself, is given exchange value, and is exchangeable
against any other factor. Thus capitalism is a diffuse form of economic power…” (Mann, 1993: 23-24).
The example of the vaccine against Haemophilus Influenza Type b is a particularly telling
example, given that is an efficient solution to stop children under five years to suffer from
pneumonia, meningitis and different kinds of sepsis; its success in the developed world
was extraordinary. However, at a cost of US$100 a dose, it was in fact a ‘non-existent’
solution for countries where the whole scheme of infant vaccination is around a few
dollars a year. A Cuban university team, led by Vicente Vérez-Bencomo, in cooperation
with a Canadian University, developed, after fifteen years’ research, a synthetic vaccine,
the first of this type in the world, delivering a very cheap manufacturing procedure (Vérez-
Bencomo, et al. 2004). This is an example of a research agenda driven by a concern for
social inclusion.
Section 4.
The developmental university in socially inclusive systems
of innovation
Universities are central institutions of National Systems of Innovation (NSI). They have
been relatively neglected for some time in NSI’s approaches, overshadowed by the weight
of macro-institutional (policies) and micro-institutional (firms) analytical concerns.
Nowadays, however, they have fully entered the realm of theoretical as well as empirical
work within the NSI’s approach. What universities can achieve is framed by the system
of innovation in which they are immersed. So, a university third mission oriented by
social concern can only flourish if the whole national system of innovation is geared, at
least partially, to achieve knowledge-based innovative solutions for the problems of the
less favoured population. Knowledge-based innovative solutions include intensive R&D
as well as smart design: knowledge, even of diverse types, is present in both types of
solutions. Isolated developmental universities cannot survive for long; their developmental
inspiration needs to be nurtured by putting the achieved results into practice. This
requires ‘inclusive innovation systems’.
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for solutions derived from social needs is required to allow an inclusive university third
mission to expand.
However, this requires not only ‘internal’ university policies, but national policies as well.
Innovation policies conceived in part as social policies are required, having as part of the
mandate for fostering innovation the requirement to solve social problems. We are not
proposing that the whole innovation policy or the whole social policy should be geared
to socio-innovative concern. What we do suggest is that without such concerns, a third
mission of social concern for universities cannot be expected to flourish.
Section 5.
Difficulties and opportunities for developmental
university systems
The road ahead towards developmental universities or developmental university systems
– a term that tries to convey the idea of different types of universities fulfilling different
profiles but all concerned primarily with developmental problems – is not simple. We
can mention four types of difficulties facing the deployment of such types of university
systems.
These difficulties are not only complicated to solve; it is even complex to acknowledge
their existence. The opportunities to recognize and to address them, lies first of all in
the social commitment of researchers all over the world, from all disciplines. A feeling
of uneasiness, of absurdity in the face of the huge gap between the might of knowledge
and the unresolved problems such knowledge does not even address, is affecting a
steadily growing part of the academic community. Another opportunity relates to the
intellectual challenge involved: solving complex problems differently can provide the kind
of excitement every true researcher is looking for. Finally, there is a new global awareness
about the need to put every effort into making use of science and into looking for new
science to find answers to very old problems – as well as to new problems. This opens
opportunities to legitimize developmentally inspired research and teaching agendas.
Once the aim is stated, the difficulties to fulfill it identified, and the opportunities to
overcome these difficulties outlined, the task ahead seems to be clearer. Research around
these issues can now follow new empirical paths, taking specific contexts into account and
refining questions as well as provisional answers.
References
Arocena, R. and Sutz, J. 2003. Knowledge, Innovation and Learning: Systems and Policies
in the North and in the South. In: Cassiolato, J., Lastres, H. and Maciel, M.
(eds.) Systems of Innovation and Development, Edward Elgar Publishing.
Brundenius, C.; Göransson, B. and Ågren, J. 2008. The Role of Academic Institutions in the
National System of Innovation in Sweden. UniDev Discussion Paper No. 6.
Brundenius, C. and Göransson, B. 2009. The UniDev Project: A Synthesis of Main Results,
UniDev Discussion Paper (forthcoming).
Mann, M. 1993. The Sources of Social Power, Volume II, New York, Cambridge University
Press (CUP).
Rogers, E.M. 1995. Diffusion of Innovations, New York: Fourth edition, Free Press.
36 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
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Towards inclusive systems of innovation and developmental university systems: normative, empirical and policy perspectives
Sen, A. 2000. Social Exclusion: Concept, Application and Scrutiny. Social Development
Papers No. 1. Office of Environment and Social Development, Asian
Development Bank (ADB).
______. 2000. Real Science. What it is, and What it Means. Cambridge, Cambridge
University Press (CUP).
Contact details:
Professor Claes Brundenius,
Research Policy Institute (RPI)
Lund University
Box 117, 221 00
Lund, Sweden
e-mail: claes.brundenius@fpi.lu.se4.
1. Introduction
Since 1998, the Venezuelan State has undertaken a set of measures intended to break with
the institutional framework existing in the country since 1958, including, in this process,
Higher Education (HE). Such changes have a political basis in, among others, the theory
of endogenous and sustainable development or development from within (Sunkel, 1995).
Endogenous development, according to the National Plan for Science, Technology and
Innovation 2005-2030 is a model of integrated development which values the people’s own
realities and capacities, with an emphasis on communities, local areas and actual conditions.
This meets the criteria of making use of local advantages and community leadership to
achieve the implementation of the model (Gobierno Bolivariano de Venezuela, Ministerio del
Poder Popular para la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación, 2005).
Based on such principles, the new university appears fundamentally different in concept and
internal dynamic from pre-existing universities in Venezuela. While the latter are concerned
with scientific knowledge production which is part of mainstream scientific standards, the
UBV works with un-systematized social knowledge that constitutes part of more complex
social practices, carried out by those outside academia (participants in social movements,
indigenous ethnic groups). It explores ancestral ‘knowings’ or instinctive knowledge, rejected
by conventional universities as ‘impure’ or ‘hybrid’.
On the other hand, UBV is developing what they call ‘the university-going-to-the-village
model’ whereby HE is offered in small and distant villages where people would otherwise
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never have the opportunity to study at a university. This practice should improve the
development of the country’s marginal areas.
The present pattern followed by UBV and several universities in the South aims to
transform the so-called developmental universities into becoming the main source of
knowledge production for their countries. (Sutz, 2006; Arocena et al., 2008; Juma, 2006;
Delali, 2008). This study deals with two consequences of such a tendency: first, the conflict
with or lack of suitability of the Science and Technology (S&T) indicators applied in the
main stream of science for evaluating universities in the South and, second, the risk
involved in such a tendency which, it will be argued, are tantamount to the ‘trivialization’
of Higher Education.
In 1998, the current Government came into power; from its inception, it proposed the
reorganization of institutions and a new legal and administrative structure. The goal
of these public policies is endogenous development based on a change in the country’s
productive system, so that each region will be able to transform its natural resources
into goods and services that expand employment opportunities and social well-being,
and guarantee the quality of life for people and the environment, without affecting the
development capacity of future generations.
This implied that, in line with institutional reorganization and to advance the success
of the revolutionary and socialist political process, the Venezuelan Higher Education
system sought to overcome their characteristic weaknesses and failings, which were
considered genuine obstacles to achieving endogenous development. These obstacles were
expressed in several features: the exclusion of less economically favoured sectors, such
as populations living in communities far from large cities; the ignorance in universities
of ‘other knowings’ which go hand in hand with the demand for socially useful science
and knowledge; and professional training which has little or no impact on the local or the
regional.
The project has as its central goal the aim of describing the UBV model as a new form of
university in the South and examining whether there actually are differences between
the UBV and the pre-existent university model represented in Venezuela by the public
universities.
The aim of this contribution is, first, to sketch the main features that the UBV model
introduces to break the prevalent university model in Venezuela; second, to provide an
overview of how the UBV contributes to the production and distribution of knowledge,
of which a key factor is to promote development; third, to address the most recent
controversies suggested by the notion of developmental universities.
4. Methodological issues
The project case study included four (4) national universities:
• Universidad Central de Venezuela (UCV) [Central University of Venezuela].
• Universidad del Zulia (LUZ) [University of Zulia].
• Universidad Simón Bolívar (USB) [Simon Bolivar University] and,
• Universidad Bolivariana de Venezuela (UBV) [Bolivarian University of Venezuela].
Year Enrolment
Name Acronym Founded 2008
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Innovative public policy to link science with development: Bolivarian university of Venezuela (BUV)
The selection of these universities was based on the fact that the UCV and LUZ are the
largest and oldest official, autonomous universities in the country, while the USB is official
but experimental. These three are institutions that all emphasize scientific research
plus training in their mission. The selected institutions are outstanding in Venezuela, if
the quality of graduates, research budgets, publications and other conventional Higher
Education indicators are compared on a national level.
The research makes use of quantitative and qualitative techniques to collect data. The
quantitative techniques use some conventional indicators exhibited in Table 2.
This qualitative data is crucial to the present project, due to the fact that the quantitative
indicators proved to be insufficient for clearly designating the UBV model, though the
qualitative data is still in process.
Therefore, a shift was introduced in the methodology in order to design and develop
a theoretical research model that makes it possible to think about, to discuss, and to
produce theories and analyses which refer meaningfully to two separate entities: that
of the Bolivarian University of Venezuela and that of the pre-existent universities in the
country. This toolbox – the theoretical model – built as a project outcome consists of four
thematic axes, each of them consisting of essential aspects and discernment keys which
provide us with alternative analytical concepts for defining and contrasting different
models of universities and knowledge production systems. It is important to state that,
from our current epistemological position (developed from interaction with the UBV and
the rest of the universities in the study) we accepted and expected the possibility that new
conceptual elements might arise that we had not considered in this systematization.
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Innovative public policy to link science with development: Bolivarian university of Venezuela (BUV)
Training model
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Innovative public policy to link science with development: Bolivarian university of Venezuela (BUV)
A feature of the UBV project is that it supports the emergence of a new university model
in Venezuela, distinct from that of the pre-existent universities. Documents generated by
the university express the view that “advance of the project as a means of breaking away
from the traditional university is a politically correct reading of our times” (Universidad
Bolivariana de Venezuela, 2008b: 25).
On the other hand, research leading to scientific and technological innovation demands a
significant budget that is not reflected in the budgetary distribution of the UBV. It can be
observed that the UBV takes care of a much greater number of students with one-third of
the budget used by the rest of the universities. This proportion makes it impossible for the
UBV to attract sufficient resources for innovative scientific and technological research.
160.000
140.000
120.000 LUZ
UCV
100.000 61.805 USB
80.000 47.593 UBV
60.000
11.436
40.000
20.000
0
UNIVERSITIES
Sources: Ana Julia Bozo de Carmona et al.,
800.000 711.887
700.000
522.150
600.000
500.000 LUZ
UCV
BsF 400.000
250.389 USB
300.000
169.129 UBV
200.000
100.000
0
UNIVERSITIES
Sources: Ana Julia Bozo de Carmona, et al.,
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Nevertheless, it is important to emphasise that the research performed at the UBV through
the community project has developed the capacity to incorporate daily life and its actors
as co-authors in the processes of investigation and transformation of the same. “When we
refer to ‘daily life’ we are thinking about issues associated with health, nutrition, habitat,
transportation, communications, ways of learning, available information, modes of
participation to which there is access. In general terms, for the researchers, it is not easy to
incorporate these issues from the direct perspective of the people ... The distance between
daily life and the reality of research is great and applications derived from knowledge
production will have more probabilities of occurring the closer the researcher is to the
user” (Arocena, et al., 2008: pp.135-136).
Built in 2007 8
Built in 2008 13
Under construction 26
Total 1844
Table 5. Programme, enrolment and degrees bestowed by the UBV through the Sucre
Mission, University villages
** Full university undergraduate degree corresponds to Bachelor’s degree in USA; in Venezuela it traditionally implies five
years of university studies. Higher Technician (TSU) is usually a three-year degree.
Source: Gobierno Bolivariano de Venezuela. Ministerio del Poder Popular para la Educación Superior (2008)
The process of municipalising Higher Education has generated a significant impact and
social mobilisation among population groups that live segregated from any educational
activity. As can be observed in Table 6, there is significant participation of students from
less economically favoured social classes, as well as from citizens of diverse ages who due
to their circumstances, had been prevented from obtaining a place in HE.
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Gender of the
Age group of the
Average ages Socio-economic groups beneficiaries
beneficiaries
of the beneficiaries (Percentage of persons) (Percentage of
(Percentage of persons)
persons)
Our concept is inspired by the work of Judith Sutz (2006) and others (Arocena, Bortagaray
and Sutz, 2008): She argued that a ‘Developmental University’ is concerned with knowledge
production in order to achieve environmental sustainability and the improvement of
the quality of human life through either the research performed to the standards of the
scientific mainstream or through a research approach which incorporates daily ‘knowings’
and dialogues with extra-academic actors.
The challenge for our countries is to find the way to guarantee the rigour and validity
of knowledge produced in the South based on the construction of indicators that will
withstand the same rigour and validity as the indicators of the North, but at the same
time, will recognize the wealth of cultural diversity and “popular wisdom.” For this,
reference does not necessarily have to be to western science but rather the measure by
which the knowledge produced in this way contributes to development.
The theoretical model proposed in this study attempts to overcome the “tyranny of
indicators: insufficiency of the existing set of indicators to describe the diversity of
research outputs that are necessary for robust research systems” (Jacob, 2008) through a
model which presents and represents the whole set of innovative practices that are being
constructed in developing countries.
50 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
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References
Arocena, R.; Bortagaray, I. y Sutz, J. 2008. Reforma Universitaria y Desarrollo. Uruguay:
Tradinco.
D’Elia,Y. (Coordinadora), Torres, C.; Pérez, M.; Giménez, C.; Maingón, T.; Lacruz, T. and
Torres, O. 2006. Las Misiones Sociales en Venezuela: Una aproximación a su
comprensión y análisis. Caracas: Instituto Latinoamericano de Investigaciones
Sociales (ILDIS). In: www.ildis.org.ve/website/administrador/uploads/
DocumentoMisiones.pdf [Consulted 28 July, 2008].
______. Ministerio del Poder Popular para la Educación Superior (2008).La Revolución
Bolivariana en La Educación Superior, Algunas Cifras Fundamentales. In:
http://www.mes.gov.ve/mes/documentos/boletin/pdf17-10-2008_17:54:25.pdf
(Consulted 23 November, 2008)
______. Ministerio del Poder Popular para la Educación Superior (s/f), Aldea Universitaria
San Sebastián,, Web site Fund@sanse, Aragua. Coordinador: Prof. José Correa
In: http://www.sansebastianeros.com/aldea/aldeasanse.html (Consulted July
27 2008).
Jacob, M. 2008. Problematising Global Research Systems. Final Report GRS UNESCO,
Higher Education Forum. In: http://portal.unesco.org/education/es/files/
58371/12284942665Final_Report.pdf/Final per cent2BReport.pdf
Sutz, Judith 2006. Developmental Universities: A Changing Role for Universities in the
South. IDRC Call for Proposals by Research on Knowledge Systems (ROKS).
Innovation, Policy and Sciences Program Area, Canada. In: http://www.idrc.
ca/uploads/user-S/11461443851103470_CFP-Full_English.pdf
______. 2008ª. UBV XXI. Voces Colectivas. Proyecto Como Medio Articulador Social y Eje
de la Geometría del Poder In: http://www.ubv.edu.ve/ubvxxi/UBVXXI.pdf
(Consulted, 25 October, 2008)
______. 2008b. Jornada de Reflexión UBV XXI, Momento II, Proyecto como eje articulador
social y eje de la geometría del poder. Colección Cuadrenillos para el debate.
Ed. Del Rectorado de la UBV, Caracas.
NB: This chapter has been prepared for the UNESCO Forum Global Research Seminar:
Occasional Paper No.16. It presents the preliminary results of the IDRC Project Grant
Number: 103470-011 entitled: “Bolivarian University of Venezuela: An Innovative Public
Policy to Link Science with Development?”
52 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
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Innovative public policy to link science with development: Bolivarian university of Venezuela (BUV)
Contact details:
Ana Julia Bozo de Carmona
Coordinator of Postdoctoral Program on Higher
Education Management,
Rafael Belloso Chacín University,
Maracaibo,
Venezuela.
e-mail: anabozo@hotmail.com; abozoa@gmail.com
Amalia Bohórquez,
Health System,
Zulia State Government,
Venezuela.
e-mail: amaboho@yahoo.com
Introduction: Context
For a number of years I have been tracking the development of eleven research groups at
South African universities in the Western Cape. This investigation has taken place in the
new, post-1994 South Africa, which has moved from a closed to an open economy, from a state
of siege to a constitutional democracy. These massive shifts have occurred in the context
of what I term (see below) a global Third Capitalist Industrial Revolution, which has been
unfolding since the 1970s. They take on a special character in South Africa given its legacy
of racial division, deliberate class stratification and underdevelopment of certain sectors of
society.
Science, technology, and innovation, linked to new forms of capital and labour, are becoming
major drivers of international economic growth and well-being. In this context of global
scaffolding of the South African research system, my research has, since 2000, focused on the
role of ‘use-inspired research’ (also below) by universities in enhancing the socio-economic-
cultural development of our society, i.e. my research has been mapping knowledge in relation
to what might be termed the social responsiveness role of universities.
My analysis focuses on four sets of ideas, which I have found fundamental in facilitating an
understanding of these eleven research groupings during the period 2000-2008. During nearly
a decade of research tracing the trajectories of these eleven groupings, I have developed a
number of theoretical perspectives – essentially ‘grounded theory’ linked to the analysis of
the cases – in order to make sense of my data. Thus the discussion below concentrates on four
central concepts, which emerged as valuable during the analysis phase:
• Use-Inspired Basic Research.
• Second Academic Revolution.
• Third Capitalist Industrial Revolution, and
• Fourth Helix.
. Hence the subtitle of my forthcoming book (Cooper, 2009), “Case Studies of Research Groups at Universities of the
Western Cape, South Africa”.
. The first part of the forthcoming book discusses these and other concepts, and international trends in university research,
in considerable detail; the second part undertakes a detailed analysis of each respective case study, followed by conclusions
about general issues and trends pertaining to the case studies as a whole. Empirical findings emerging from the case study
analysis are not the focus here; however, some preliminary findings up to the period 2004 can be found in Cooper (2005).
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My data collection methods have been based on rich case study data, derived from in-
depth semi-structured interviews and document collection with respect to the eleven
research groupings, spread across the universities in the Western Cape and including
universities of technology, and collected over a period of seven years from 2000. The mode
of data collection is fairly unusual for qualitative case studies: the original interviews,
with a director and some researchers of each research centre or unit, were undertaken
in 2000 with my research funded by the Trade and Industrial Policy Secretariat (TIPS) of
South Africa in association with the International Development Research Centre (IDRC)
of Canada. Then, as part of a follow-up project funded by the Knowledge Systems Group
of the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) of South Africa, each of the research
centres/units was re-interviewed early in 2005, and again revisited for interviews and
documentary updates early in 2007. This fascinating material, unlike most qualitative
studies, thus provides a historical profile of the changing nature of these eleven research
groupings over the period 2000-2005-2007 – showing how, usually quite unexpectedly,
some research centres and units significantly enhanced their research activities, while
others experienced serious problems. Moreover, this study across time provides valuable
insight into the factors that are blocking (or sometimes enhancing) the development of
use-inspired research at our South African universities.
I define ‘use-inspired’ research as a combination of what Donald Stokes (1997) terms ‘pure
applied research’ (PAR) and ‘use-inspired basic research’ (UIBR), i.e. PAR+UIBR. It is
pertinent to turn to the concept of UIBR, before exploring the other three central concepts
that follow – though, as will be observed at the end, the four as a whole are interconnected
and their meaning is constructed partly in relation to each other.
. My investigation covered the three universities and two universities of technology (termed ‘technikons’ until 2004),
of the Western Cape. Unless otherwise specified, I utilise the term ‘universities’ throughout to refer to both types of
universities.
This idea of UIBR helped me to deal with a puzzle in relation to the eleven cases I was
investigating. Only one case was selected as an illustration of pure basic research, or of
what I termed ‘curiosity-oriented research’. The other ten were selected, at the start of
the research in 2000, as an illustration of what I termed ‘application-oriented research’.
However, as my research unfolded, I increasingly had to confront the fact that most of
these ten selected research groups were not only undertaking applied research (PAR, in
terms of Stokes’s definition) but also a form of research that, for want of a better term, I
called ‘fundamental-applied’ (see Cooper, 2005 for an early use of this concept). This was
because I observed that some of their research combined, in a complex unity, fundamental
research work with applied work. Stumbling onto Stokes’s insightful work later in 2005
helped me enormously to crystallise these ideas around the concept of UIBR (a sharper
concept than ‘fundamental-applied’). Moreover, the concept of UIBR also seemed much
sharper and more useful than the idea of ‘strategic research’, which was in vogue in
South Africa (and elsewhere) at the time. But most importantly, it helped me to begin to
theorise another empirical finding, which had emerged from the data: that, especially
at the research-intensive universities of the Western Cape (e.g. Universities of Cape
Town and Stellenbosch), it was often UIBR that industry and government bodies sought
most from research centres/units located at the universities, while industrial and other
external organizations primarily sought PAR from the two Universities of Technology
(Cape Technikon and Peninsula Technikon in 2000).This suggested that what was most
valued especially by industry, with respect to research-intensive universities, was not
applied research in general but, more specifically, Use-Inspired Basic Research. But this
merely opened up a further puzzling question: what was happening in South Africa, and
internationally, which was creating a much greater interest in the ‘output’ of UIBR from
our universities, especially those with internationally-rated researchers?
. As noted earlier, by 2004 the technikons throughout South Africa had been renamed ‘universities of technology’; in
the Western Cape, moreover, these two technikons merged into CPUT, the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, after
2005 – with a dichotomy emerging between research-intensive universities centred on UIBR and universities of technology
centered on PAR.
. In my own work (2009), I raise a set of problems and issues with respect to the ideas and concepts of Etzkowitz and
his colleagues, especially around the idea of the Triple Helix and also the extent and uniformity of the Second Academic
Revolution globally. Nonetheless, as is argued here, the fruitfulness of the latter concept in particular, is not disputed.
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the nineteenth century we saw the emergence of a First Academic Revolution, which linked
the earlier (feudal) 1st Mission of teaching to a new 2nd Mission of research (focusing on
PBR, I would add). And now, since the last quarter of the twentieth century, he argues that
we have been witnessing the emergence of a Second Academic Revolution in universities
globally – in other words, the addition to the 1st/2nd Missions, of a new 3rd Mission, research
contributing to societal development. I would assert moreover, that this new 3rd Mission is
itself a combination of UIBR+PAR, i.e. what I have defined as ‘use-inspired research’, with
varying mixtures of UIBR and PAR, depending on the context.
Importantly with regard to my study, the empirical data from the eleven cases strongly
supports the hypothesis of such a Second Academic Revolution: our Western Cape
universities are showing evidence of an increasing orientation towards use-inspired
research since the 1980s, albeit in complicated and diverse ways. Moreover, ‘clients’ for
this research are coming mainly from industry and national government. In addition, my
data suggests that the 3rd Mission at our universities is very strongly supported by industry
funding in South Africa (even more strongly, relatively speaking, than at universities in
the USA and Europe); national government funding still provides around 60 per cent of
expenditure in South Africa of Higher Education Research and Development (HERD, see
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD] 2007:92), but such
government funding (compared to industry) is proportionately weaker than in OECD
Member countries (OECD 2007:192). This suggests also that core funding for South African
university research by government is insufficient, leading to much fragility and fracturing
of the research enterprises of the eleven research groupings, which I investigated. In other
words, at our South African universities over the past three decades we have certainly
seen a mushrooming of new forms of use-inspired research centres and units and so-
called ‘centres/networks of excellence’, oriented towards a 3rd Mission of socioeconomic
development. But most research groups suffer from ‘chaos alongside their creativity’
(Cooper, 2001), with the lack of sufficient funding, especially from government, a major
factor in effecting such relative ‘chaos’.
The above discussion leads to a further question: if there has been a significant rise in the
‘weight’ of the 3rd Mission at universities globally as well as in South Africa during the last
quarter of the twentieth century, and if this has also been linked to a rise in the relative
importance of industry funding for university research, why has such a shift occurred?
In relation to the empirical data from the Western Cape case studies, and with regard to
data of university trends internationally pertaining to the expansion of a 3rd Mission, I
suggest that an important part of the answer relates to the emergence of a Third Capitalist
Industrial Revolution since the 1970s.
. In my book (2009) I analyse how evidence suggests a general rise, after the 1970s, in the proportion of industry-based
funding (i.e. the proportion of industry funding of HERD) for research-intensive universities in the USA and Europe
(though even more strongly in South Africa), linked also to the increase in forms of university research based on research
centres and units and ‘centres/networks of excellence’.
. The empirical evidence for the expansion, internationally, of the 3rd Mission at universities and of (i) the parallel
rise of industry funding as a proportion of expenditure within HERD and (ii) the concomitant mushrooming of new
forms of university research centres and units and centres/networks of excellence involved in use-inspired research
internationally, is discussed in the first part of my book (Cooper 2009). Here the focus is only on the theoretical element,
viz. the emergence of a Third Capitalist Industrial Revolution in the last quarter of the twentieth century.
. In my construction of Figure 2, I have used the analysis by Dicken (2003: 88) of a series of fifty-year economic growth
cycles (1780-1830-1880-1930-1980), known to economists as Kondratiev long-waves, but I have ‘joined up’ each pair of 50
year cycles, making three nodes with ‘very long’ – 100 year – waves. I refer to each of these nodes or ‘moments’ as First,
Second and Third capitalist industrial revolutions. These revolutions are each crucially shaped by what I term different
‘capitalist forms of economic organization’, namely the small family firm, the national share-holding corporation, and the
transnational corporation-cum-networks – again as shown in Figure 2. I have found Dicken’s technological descriptions
(2003: 87–89) for each Kondratiev cycle to be valuable, and the most important technologies listed by him for each period
have been included in Figure 2.
. See especially Dicken (2003: 238-273) for a discussion of TNCs and how they are linked to a complex network of
smaller firms – what he calls ‘webs of enterprise: the geography of transnational production networks’.
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Major
Capitalist Capitalist form
technologies
industrial of economic
(‘technological
revolution organization
regime’)
Initially textile
machinery, iron
working, water
First (1770s/1780s)
power, pottery, etc. Small family firm
(led by Britain)
Later (from 1830s)
steam engines, First
railways, etc. academic revolution
(early 1800s till
Initially electricity, early 1900s)
chemicals, steel, etc.
Second
Later (from 1920s) National share-
(1870s/1880s)
automobiles, holding corporation
(led by Germany)
aircraft, synthetic
materials etc.
Initially ICT,
biotechnology,
Second
optical fibres, Transnational
Third (1970s/1980s) academic revolution
material science, corporation-cum-
(led by USA) (takes off from
nanotechnology, networks
1980s)
etc.
Later ?
But this then posed a further question: why were research links of University research
groups with Civil Society (CS) organizations – defined as local community and labour and
women’s organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), provincial government
and municipal bodies etc. – so much weaker than the Triple Helix U-I-G linkages? It was
puzzling therefore why, amongst the eleven cases of Western Cape research groups, I found
generally weak U-CS research links; only 2-3 cases demonstrated any significant research
work for bodies outside the Triple Helix.
There thus seems to be relatively little reference to what I am calling the Fourth Helix, of
University-Civil Society (U-CS) research relations. The concept of the Triple Helix in effect
relegates the idea of the Fourth Helix to the periphery.
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Figure 3. The ‘orphan’ U-CS link, alongside the U-I-G Triple Helix.
UNIVERSITIES
(U)
INDUSTRY GOVERNMENT
(I) (G)
CIVIL SOCIETY
(CS)
Interestingly, when debate about a possible Fourth Helix emerged quite explicitly at the
Fifth Triple Helix Conference of 2005 (in Turin)11, Etzkowitz and Zhou (2006) in their
article a year later did acknowledge that “various categories have been suggested [with
reference to a Fourth Helix, by a few delegates to the 2005 Conference] including labour,
venture capital, civil society and the informal sector” (2006: 79). However, Etzkowitz and
Zhou (2006) did not move in the direction of the idea I have proposed above, of the Fourth
Helix as an analytical category comprising university research linkages with civil society
structures, such as labour and civic organizations, NGOs, local government bodies etc.
Rather, their article considered what they saw as a missing dimension of ‘sustainability’
in the Triple Helix model. They argued in favour of a mechanism for ensuring that the
innovation produced by the U-I-G triad does not produce negative or harmful effects.
They therefore proposed yet another helix – of university-public-government relations – to
prevent such innovation from producing unsustainable effects: “The two helices operate
in tandem. The university-industry-government Triple Helix works to promote innovation
and economic growth, while the university-government-public one serves as a balance
wheel to ensure that innovation and growth take place in ways that will not be harmful to
the environment and health…” (2006: 80).
11. The first Triple Helix Conference of U-I-G relations was held in 1996 in Amsterdam, followed by New York (1998), Rio
de Janeiro (2000) and Copenhagen (2002). Further conferences have been organized after Turin (2005) as well. See also the
beginnings of discussion by Leydesdorff and Etzkowitz (2003) about the idea of a Fourth Helix, after the 2002 conference.
In this regard it can be noted that issues pertaining to University-Civil Society research
relations have recently begun to emerge more strongly in public debates about the role of
university research in South Africa – about ‘our universities and the public good’ – with
respect to how research might serve the needs of the mass of poor people within civil
society (Singh, 2001). And it should also be mentioned that, historically during the anti-
apartheid struggle years of the 1970s and 1980s, and also later in the policy engagement
years of democratic transition in the 1990s – numerous university research groups, along
with individual academics, became involved in substantial social responsiveness research
relationships. These were mainly with groups within trade union and civic organizations,
with local government bodies and even with political organizations. Thus university-based
scholars undertook various forms of research and other scholarly support services – the
teaching of off-campus courses, advice on policy documents, workshops on environmental
issues and so on – for a range of formal organizations (e.g. of labour, women, civics) and
also for informal groupings12. It would be interesting to investigate the extent to which such
South African developments over the past three decades have been paralleled by similar
forms of ‘scholarship of engagement’ of academics based at universities in other Third
World Countries (see below).
It should also be noted that debates about such scholarship of engagement with civil
society organizations are not entirely absent in ‘Northern’ countries either. Following
the 1960s/70s student protests in Europe ‘science shops’ emerged which sought to
enable universities to serve broader communities with research and other educational
work (Farkas, 1999). Leydesdorff has recently evaluated the historical development
of a collection of such science shops, and shown that, while they have never become
mainstream in European universities with respect to research activities, they nonetheless
continue to function (Leydesdorff and Ward, 2005). More recently in the USA itself,
there have been attempts by some groups of academics to garner support for stronger
recognition of the ‘scholarship of engagement’ with broader communities and civic
organizations. For example, Campus Compact (2006, 2007), a coalition of more than
a thousand USA colleges and university presidents dedicated to campus-based civic
engagement, held a 2007 conference focusing specifically on the role of research-intensive
universities. This conference resolved to pursue community-engaged scholarship more
12. Perhaps the best insight into these activities can be gleaned from the journal, the South African Labour Bulletin
(SALB), from the 1970s until the present day. The SALB was itself an initiative of (mainly) university academics working in
relation to the emerging trade union movement, with its first issue in April 1974 (see SALB, 2004, special edition entitled
“30 Years On”).
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vigorously, with the following definitions emerging from its deliberations: “Community-
engaged scholarship: scholarship that involves the faculty member in a mutually beneficial
partnership with the community … [and] Community engagement: the application of
[university] institutional resources to address and solve challenges facing communities
through collaboration with communities …” (Campus Compact Conference Report
2007:6). In addition, the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU),
representing hundreds of state colleges and universities across the USA, has been driving
a call for ‘stepping forward as stewards of place’ through its publication of a guide, under
this name, for ‘leading public engagement at state colleges and universities’ (AASCU 2002).
AASCU seeks to highlight the leading role of higher education institutions as ‘stewards of
place’: a university or college having a leadership and facilitating function in enhancing
public engagement with the ‘place’ in which it is located – “inextricably linked with the
communities and regions in which they are located”.
(AASCU 2002: 9).
Perhaps one of the most significant thrusts for change around the idea of a Fourth Helix,in
relation to local regional development, may be coming from the OECD organisation
itself. This organisation has historically played a major role in the spread of the concept
of National Systems of Innovations (NSIs), since the 1980s), itself linked, as noted above,
to ideas about the centrality of U-I-G research relationships with respect to driving
‘innovation’13. Yet over the past decade, there has emerged within the OECD a new stress
on ‘regional systems of innovation’ (OECD, 1999). Concepts associated with this, such
as ‘learning economy’ and ‘learning region’, have begun to gain currency too. Linked to
this, the university is increasingly being viewed as a ‘regional animator’, playing a vital
brokerage role in facilitating the transfer of skills and knowledge across networks of actors
in the region, and also serving as “a conduit through which research of an international
and national nature is transferred” into the region (Gunasekara, 2006: 142). While much
of the literature on regional systems of innovation views the university’s regional role
primarily in economic terms, Gunasekara suggests that a more encompassing literature
around university engagement sees the university “making a broad range of contributions
to civil society, for example in cultural and community development” (2006: 142).
Not only has as powerful a global organisation as the OECD begun to take seriously the
role of U-CS research relations, but even elite research universities in the Boston region
are now explicitly directing some of their attention to the regional role of universities. For
example, in 2003 the group of eight powerful research-intensive universities in the Boston
region (Harvard, MIT, Boston College, Boston University, Brandeis, Northeastern, Tufts
and the University of Massachusetts in Boston) commissioned their own impact study, to
explore how this concentration of elite universities might enhance the “economic vitality
of the Boston region” (Simha, 2005: 270). Underpinning this investigation was the concern
of these universities and their communities that the Boston region should “remain
competitive with other regions, including major centres in California, North Carolina, the
EU and Asia” (2005: 276).
Thus, support for my idea of U-CS relations, especially at the local regional level, and
indirectly for the idea of a Third Capitalist Industrial Revolution, which is driving this
process via international competitive pressures for continuous (knowledge-based)
13. See especially Sharif (2006) for a discussion of the historical emergence of the ‘NSI concept’ from the 1980s and its
influence on OECD organizational thinking.
References
American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU). 2002. Stepping Forward
as Stewards of Place. AASCU: Washington. Retrieved 28 February 2008 (http://
www.aascu.org).
Campus Compact Conference Report. 2006. New Times Demand New Scholarship. Research
Universities and Civic Engagement: A Leadership Agenda. (Writer/Editor
Gibson, C.). Retrieved 28 February, 2008.
(http://www.compact.org/resources/research_universities).
Campus Compact Conference Report. 2007. New Times Demand New Scholarship. Research
Universities and Civic Engagement: Opportunities and Challenges. (Writer/
Editor Stanton, T.K., Stanford University). Retrieved 28 February, 2008.
(http://www.compact.org/resources/research_universities).
Cooper, D. 2001. Creativity and Chaos: Preliminary Report on the Anatomy of Research
Centres/Units at Higher Education Institutions in the Western Cape. University
of the Western Cape Papers in Education: 1 December, pp. 46-55.
______. 2005. Applied Research Centres at South African Universities: the Relationship
between ‘Base’ Internal Structures and Network ‘Superstructures. In: Industry
& Higher Education 19(2): pp. 143-153.
Research. Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) Press: Cape Town (forthcoming).
Dicken, P. 2003. Global Shift. Reshaping the Global Economic Map in the 21st Century.
London: The Guildford Press.
Etzkowitz, H. 2002. MIT and the Rise of Entrepreneurial Science. New York: Routledge.
Etzkowitz, H. and Leydesdorff, L. 1999. Whose Triple Helix? In: Science and Public Policy
26(2): pp. 138-39.
64 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
Chapter 5
Universities in national development: perspectives on a second academic revolution linked to a third industrial revolution
Etzkowitz, H. and Chunyan Z. 2006. Triple Helix Twins: Innovation and Sustainability. In:
Science and Public Policy 33(1): pp. 77-83.
Farkas, N. 1999. Dutch Science Shops: Matching Community Needs with University R&D.
In: Science Studies 12(2): pp. 33-47.
Leydesdorff, L. and Etzkowitz, H. 2003. Can ‘the Public’ be Considered as a Fourth Helix in
University-Industry-Government Relations? Report on the Fourth Triple Helix
Conference 2002. In: Science and Public Policy 30(1): pp. 55-61.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). 1999. IMHE Report:
The Response of Higher Education Institutions to Regional Needs. Retrieved 28
February 2008. (http://www.oecd.org).
www.sourceoecd.org/scienceIT/9789264038233
Sharif, N. 2006. Emergence and Development of the National Innovation Systems Concept.
In: Research Policy 35: pp. 745-66.
Simha, O. R. 2005. The Economic Impact of Eight Research Universities in the Boston
Region. In: Tertiary Education and Management 11: pp. 269-78.
Singh, M. 2001. Reinserting the ‘Public Good’ into Higher Education Transformation.
Kagisano Higher Education Discussion Series No. 1. Council for Higher
Education (CHE): Pretoria.
South African Labour Bulletin. 2004. 30 Years On. Special edition, commemoration of 30
years of the SALB publication. 28(6).
Stokes, D.E. 1997. Pasteur’s Quadrant. Basic Science and Technological Innovation.
Washington: Brookings Institution Press.
Contact details:
Associate Professor David Cooper,
Sociology Department,
University of Cape Town,
Private Bag,
Rondebosch 7700,
South Africa.
e-mail: david.cooper@uct.ac.za
1. Introduction
Knowledge, the ultimate competitive advantage for any modern community or organization,
gives its possessor a unique and inherently protected commodity for survival and
development. Today’s universities are among those organizations credited for spearheading
and sustaining the on-going knowledge revolution. In developing countries, universities have
come to play a key role within their own societies in a wide range of developmental issues
even though they often find themselves acutely outclassed in the competitive international
knowledge network (Altbach, 1998). Notably, many universities need sensitization for them
to prioritize the integration of local and alien knowledge that should address broader
sustainable development needs as perceived by the affected communities. Comparatively,
the superior military, economic, intellectual and technological accomplishments of
industrialized countries give some of their universities extensive, jealously-guarded power,
prompting them to assert themselves as ‘central’ institutions within their countries and in
the global knowledge arena. The third world universities remain ‘peripheral’, tending to
copy developments from abroad, producing little that is original, and generally not at the
frontiers of knowledge. Within developing countries, the Western-sourced education, science,
technology and Western human development models appear to perpetrate a socio-economic
and knowledge gap among citizens, creating a conservative traditional culture alongside a
neo-Western one.
Despite improvements in education and other social lessons from history, the continuing
prevalence of mass poverty, ignorance, disease, hunger, wars and social strife in developing
countries is proof of failure in the management of ‘possessed’ knowledge, whether local or
foreign, old or new. Programmes meant to maximize the beneficial integration of indigenous
knowledge with that acquired from alien cultures in areas such as agriculture, health, water,
land management and education continue to be embarked upon even when they produce
limited success. Leveraging development initiatives on needs-based knowledge is more likely
to be acceptable to marginalised and poor communities.
This study explores some perspectives of knowledge processing that can be enhanced by
university-community partnerships. The paper reports on a portion of an on-going study
involving a university and a rural community engaged in a broad-based partnership in
Zimbabwe. The target community’s felt needs for tertiary and higher education as a vehicle
for socio-economic development serve as the stimulus for the systematic and scientific
mobilization of both indigenous and alien knowledge to the community’s advantage. The
outcomes of the study show that lack of a determined strategy to manage and disseminate
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Needs-based knowledge processing through university-community partnerships:
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available knowledge may delay achievement of goals and perpetrate social mishaps which
have long been conquered by other nations of the world.
People-centred and needs-based sustainable development addresses the real needs of the
very people seeking development who must be involved fully and genuinely engaged in
their identified mission, using methods such as ‘circles of knowledge’ and ‘knowledge
integration’. A circle of knowledge, according to Ranganathan (2007) is a relevant and
expanding body of knowledge identified by the members of a community such as in a
village or district. The existing knowledge and the needs of a village on critical spheres
such as health, agriculture and water management could be captured using a variety of
traditional means of documentation and propagation such as stories, songs and skits. Such
circles start local, but they expand outwards into district, provincial, national and even
the international scene, a form of ‘bottom-up’ approach. ‘Knowledge integration’ is an act
of reconciling past and present knowledge (the existing knowledge base) with emerging
knowledge. Notably, failure to process and integrate new information with inherited
wisdom would erode the grounding in one’s own knowledge system and deepen the
dependence on an alien one (Ranganathan, 2007).
3. Knowledge processing
The tradition in the largely rural communities in developing countries is that a large
proportion of useful local knowledge remains tacit rather than explicit in the brains
of a few custodians (Kothuri, 2002). Transferability in such cases is curtailed since it
must often involve personal contact rather than public mediated communication. The
efficiency and effectiveness of knowledge transfer are observable when plans, processes
and outcomes are accomplished with reasonable precision and within time-frames, such
as happens in military academies or even schools. Rural communities find occasion for
formal knowledge transfer through meetings, traditional gatherings such as weddings,
games, shows, rituals, festivals, various ceremonies and even funerals. In Figure 1 below,
the processing of knowledge is depicted as a cycle involving knowledge acquisition or
creation, comprehension, categorisation or organization (incorporating knowledge
ACQUISITION Comprehension
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The knowledge life cycle (KLC) model (Figure 2) by Firestone and McElroy (2003) provides
a strategy to study the processing of knowledge in progressive organizations and
communities. A deliberate process of knowledge production is embarked on to produce
organizational knowledge (OK), with which the community seeks to establish its unique
identity or mission. The activities of knowledge production involve learning, claim
formulation and evaluation, and information acquisition. Organizational knowledge
gets integrated with other incoming and outgoing knowledge to produce a distributed
organizational knowledge base (DOKB), which then promotes a business processing
environment facilitating easy interface with clients, friends, and the rest of the world.
An organization thus uses knowledge for its daily operations as well as for its long-term
survival.
Much of organizational knowledge (OK) starts off as tacit, that is, experiential and
intuitive, and residing in the brain. Transforming this knowledge into explicit knowledge
(documented and communicable information and skills) is a step towards competitive
advantage. It is increasingly important for a greater amount of information to reside
within the physical domains of organizations rather than in the minds of people (Kothuri,
2002). Traditional methods of transmission such as rituals, stories, drama, sport, song and
dance are effective but only for person to person communication, and direct contact lasts
only as long as the event. Functional knowledge is best when it is collective, cumulative
Figure 2. The knowledge life cycle (adapted from Firestone and McElroy, 2003)
4. University-community partnerships
Third world universities face a paradox. They are minnows in the international league of
world-class institutions and are dependent on foreign counterparts in many respects, yet
they are quite central to their own local societies (Altbach, 1998). A university in a third
world country produces skilled human resources (HR), offers employment and business
to citizens, contributes to national leadership and policy, and other functions. Yet, by and
large, these universities remain elitist, using foreign languages, and tend to be mainly
urban institutions separated both physically and intellectually from the large rural
majorities.
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6. Methodology
The operational structure of the partnership was set as shown in Figure 3. The
coordinators of the partnership consisted of the research team (academics from the
university) and community representatives (parents, teachers, and students). The
coordinators would then interact with the rest of the community members for wider
information gathering and participation in the project. The coordinators initially
engaged among themselves in participatory dialogue in a series of meetings and
discussions to gain mutual confidence and to brainstorm the general needs of both
partners. From an interpretation of the community needs, the research team developed
a research undertaking to establish what knowledge the rural people in the community
had on: (a) the structure and operation of the higher and tertiary education system in
the country; (b) the personal and public importance of higher and tertiary education;
(c) the application of existing knowledge in planning the education of their children;
(d) how they passed the knowledge to children and future generations; (e) the community’s
past successes and challenges in preparing their high school students for university and
college education. Interviews were held with systematically selected members of the wider
community including local leaders, local administration officials, parents, teachers,
education officials, students and school leavers. Reviews of documents and other records
on high school students’ preparation for higher education and training in the districts
were made.
PARTNERSHIP COORDINATORS
UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY
Research Team Representatives
COMMUNITY MEMBERS
Local leadership, parents, teachers, current
and former students, civil servants, education
officials, businesspeople, etc.
It was acknowledged that many school-going children in the community missed classes
to participate in tasks such as tending livestock, working in the fields and guarding crops
and homesteads. When asked what they considered as more valuable between (higher)
education and physical wealth such as livestock, seasonal crops, and the household
possessions, more parents thought education was more important but the problem was the
delays and uncertainties of the anticipated benefits. An education beyond the basic literacy
level would confer benefits to the individual, the family and the community, albeit in the
very long term. Other views obtained from discussion sessions and interviews included
the following:
• College and university keep bright youths away from aimless roaming in the villages
where they indulge in drug and alcohol abuse, crime, and other misbehaviour which
derailed their orientation to ‘good’ life both in the traditional and modern sense.
• For girls, gender-related stereotypes were reduced, and early pregnancies were often
avoided.
• Whereas in the past, people with a little education could prosper or get into positions
of leadership locally and nationally, it was becoming difficult nowadays.
• Monetary wealth, property, cattle and family businesses were no longer a reliable form
of family ineritance.
Additionally, it was acknowledged that colleges and universities in the past had produced
role models who became an inspiration to other children in the community. However,
these role models were very few in number and most went on to reside and work outside
their parent communities after adopting better lifestyles, thereby ceasing to be visible.
News of successful children, however, spread around very quickly. Tertiary and higher
education were perceived to be able to identify intellectuals and potential experts
especially females among the community who would otherwise be denied a chance to
establish a lifestyle of their own choice. The advocates for traditional culture disagreed
with this. They felt that traditional systems required intellectuals in areas such as healing,
and schools and western ways of living were now claiming many of them, .
On the basis of knowledge that education was a potential social emancipator, parents and
leaders in the community were expected to put up strategies to maximise progression
of their children through the various levels of the education ladder. However, the
knowledge was not processed and used scientifically, as in the case of extended families
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that cooperated in many family rituals but failed to pull together resources to support
the education of one bright child among them. Parents and community leaders were
sceptical of the benefits of prolonged education, citing how teachers, nurses, junior civil
servants employed on the bases of standard qualifications were experiencing severe
economic hardships compared to school dropouts who opted to skip the borders to work
as labourers on farms, in mines, as domestic workers or other menial jobs. Many parents
were adamant that in their experience, academic education beyond functional literacy
had not rewarded them or their children. The homesteads of families with ‘less educated’
members in the diaspora were quickly transformed into more modern and decent
structures compared to many of those with ‘educated’ family members.
Knowledge of the present and future needs of students by parents revealed both a
generation and a perception gap. Many parents were not clear on the specific study needs
of their children, e.g. amount of time, supporting resources, and the necessary emotional
environment. Very little deliberate effort was thus given for the provision of time for study
at home to secondary school children who would be preparing for entry into tertiary and
higher education. Moreover, few families put up long term financial plans to prepare to
send their children to college or university.
The districts relied on central government and donors for funds for infrastructure
that supports schooling such as classrooms, staff houses, roads, telecommunications,
transport, health and other facilities. External assistance in financial, material and skills
was identified as crucial in mobilising initial mass support for developmental projects
which would employ highly trained local personnel. The administrators were keen to see
the community weaned from external donors in the shortest possible time so as to exercise
their own empowerment. The officials expressed concern at the settlement patterns
which tended to scatter homesteads, pastures, fields, business services, spacing of schools
which resulted in school children having to travel long distances. Service provision and
monitoring were also affected. The district officials had long identified the need for
upgrading tertiary education within the district as well as access to higher and tertiary
education in national institutions outside the districts. Indeed, proposals had been made
for the twin districts to consider establishing a polytechnic and a university.
Parents in general were not getting all the necessary information about educational
matters, much more so if they did not regularly attend school functions or contact
school staff on matters affecting their children. The generation and education gap also
aggravated the situation, such that many parents could not check on their children’s
school work, let alone assist them. The research team identified the possible use of
publications and more publicity events from outside as a solution.
On passing on the skills of survival, parents indicated they had less and less time with
their children than they had previously so they depended on the school to fill the gap.
There was an ever-widening generation gap and parents could not fulfil their role of
lifelong mentors. Thus children seemed to satisfy their quest for knowledge by picking
up views and ideas from around rather than through the family structures. Parents
with property, wealth and education appeared to have a better chance of passing their
knowledge to their children. In line with Firestone and McElroy’s (2003) knowledge life
cycle (KLC) model, the knowledge production phase which requires a collective community
effort to source and create a knowledge base was not evident in this community, as parents
Although the community had a variety of secondary and high schools including boarding
and day, government, mission, and community, concerned members of the community
lamented the lack of resources, unstable staffing situation and the subsequent comparative
academic performance of high schools and their students compared to other similar
communities, indicating that much has to be done to realize self-determined community
aspirations. In essence the schools within the community were not meeting their
expectations of producing sufficient students for proceeding to colleges and universities.
Data on current performance of students in high schools was still being collected and
verified with the education officials.
8. Conclusion
As the third world pushes towards technological advancement and economic prosperity,
individual countries are aware that they need to transform large sections of their
societies, especially the rural communities. The requisite for sustainable development
in these areas is best approached through a heritage of documentable and transferable
knowledge that responds to the prevalence of poverty on one hand, and to the destructive
and consumptive tendencies of advancing technology that threatens our planet on the
other. Ideal knowledge processing for developing countries involves integrating existing
cultural and community-specific knowledge with other knowledge accruing through the
experiences of a people. The erstwhile motivation for wholesale acquisition of western
knowledge is no longer encouraged.
Individuals and groups with common goals and interests possess and acquire knowledge
for their welfare and survival. Sometimes the poorest communities require advanced and
well-researched solutions to their problems, but these are seldom available to them, or, if
available, are not systematically coordinated, due to administrative red tape. Institutions
of higher and tertiary education have existed for many years in the country, yet knowledge
about them and their operations is scarce among communities, or, if available, is not
being utilised fully, remaining in the minds of a few people who do not transfer it to
other potential users. Lack of facilities, resources and strategies retards the systematic
processing of available knowledge.
This study has advocated the promotion of knowledge processing approaches and
strategies in an organization’s operations and growth. The reported study in progress
undertaken by a university in partnership with a rural community in Zimbabwe reinforces
the need for determined knowledge acquisition and deployment. While further data
collection is under way on knowledge processing in the area of tertiary and higher
education, it is anticipated to extend the study theme on knowledge acquisition, creation
and processing to include the integration of western science and technology with local
indigenous knowledge on issues pertinent to rural communities such as water and
sanitation, health, food, livestock, crop production, and entertainment. The whole project
is intended to touch as many members in the community as possible, shaping their world
views, improving their lifestyles, and unlocking some of their valuable ‘hidden’ knowledge
to their advantage and for possible documentation and publication.
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References
Ahmed, P.K.; Kok, L.K. and Loh, A.Y.E. 2002. Learning through Knowledge Management.
Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford.
Altbach, P.G. 1998. Comparative Higher Education: Knowledge, the University, and
Development. Ablex. USA.
Firestone, J. M. and McElroy, M. W. 2003. Key Issues in the New Knowledge Management.
Butterworth-Heinemann, USA.
Gamble, P.R. and Blackwell, J. 2001. Knowledge Management: A State of the Art Guide.
Kogan Page, UK and USA.
Hand, J.R.M. and Baruch, L. 2003. Intangible Assets: Values, Measures and Risks. OUP, UK.
Kelleher, D. 2003. Organizational Learning: A borrowed Toolbox? In: Laura Roper, L.; Pettit,
J. and Eade, D. (eds.), Development and the Learning Organization. Oxfam, UK.
Kermally, S. 1997. Total Management Thinking: Ideas that are Transforming Management.
REPP, Oxford.
Ranganathan, A. 2007. Using ICT to place Indigenous Knowledge Systems at the heart of
Education for Sustainable Development.
http://www.ceeindia.org/esf/download/paper47.pdf
Paul D. M. Gundani,
Department of Sport Science & Coaching,
National University of Science and Technology,
e-mail: pgundani@nust.ac.zw
Isaiah M. Sibanda,
Department of Technical Teacher Education,
National University of Science and Technology,
e-mail: isibanda@nust.ac.zw
Stephen Matope
National University of Science and Technology,
Zimbabwe.
e-mail: smatope@sun.ac.za
Champakh T. Parekh,
National University of Science and Technology,
Zimbabwe.
76 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
PART
3
Case studies on knowledge systems:
mapping, analyzing and measuring
research capacities and
human resources
Chapter 7
Scientific mobility and international research collaboration:
case of China
Koen Jonkers
Chapter 8
Analytical and comparative study of the Palestinian research
knowledge national system
Labib Arafeh
Chapter 7
Scientific mobility and international research collaboration:
Case of China
Abstract
This paper explores the effects of scientific mobility on international research collaboration
in China. Two phenomena which are related to scientific mobility are explored. The first
is the research collaboration in which Chinese researchers with foreign work experience
engage after their return to China. The second is the research collaboration in which overseas
Chinese researchers engage with researchers in mainland China. Both phenomena influence
the global balance of international co-publications between China and its main partner
countries.
1. Introduction
This chapter discusses the relationship between scientific mobility and international
collaboration. The main empirical basis is formed by a study of the impact of scientific
mobility on the transformation and internationalization of the Chinese public sector research
system with a particular focus on the life sciences which was conducted in the framework of
a doctoral thesis defended in February 2008 at the European University Institute in Florence,
Italy (Jonkers, 2008a). More detailed discussion of these findings can be found in several
recent and forthcoming publications (Jonkers and Tijssen, 2008, Jonkers, 2009a). The thesis is
currently being reworked in the context of a book project (Jonkers, 2009b).
Scientists have always been among the most internationally mobile professionals. Over the
past decades the international mobility of students and scientists has increased rapidly
worldwide. This mobility occurs among scientists from research systems in Western Europe
and North America. In the past three decades the in-coming flows of students and scientists
from developing and emerging countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America have also become
increasingly important features of the development of scientific manpower in European and
American research systems as well.
Since students and scientists often do not have fixed plans to move to a host country on
a permanent basis, and because they tend to remain internationally mobile after having
studied or worked in their (first) host country the movement of members of these groups tend
to be referred to as ‘international mobility’ rather than ‘migration’. Of increasing interest, to
both migration scholars and scholars of higher education, science, technology and innovation
in developing countries, are the return flows of researchers (and entrepreneurs) to their home
country as well as the circulation of highly-skilled professionals between host and home
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Scientific mobility and international research collaboration: case of China
country. These trends, even if small in scope in relative terms, can off-set some of the
perceived disadvantages traditionally ascribed to the so-called ‘brain drain’ which refers
to the loss of human capital (HC) experienced by the sending country when students and
highly- skilled professionals leave. Another factor that can help alleviate some of these
perceived disadvantages is the role which overseas scientists can play in the development
of their home system. Both factors, which are (primarily) the result of the international
mobility of students and scientists from developing countries to countries in the ‘centre’ of
higher education and scientific research, will be discussed in this study.
There are a wide variety of reasons for researchers to collaborate (internationally) (see a.o.
Katz and Martin, 1997; Beaver, 2001). These motivations include potential gains in time
efficiency, the access to cognitive resources; research ideas, knowledge and skills, access
to material resources; research funding, research materials, research infrastructure, and
the access to symbolic resources, because the collaboration with eminent scientists can
increase the visibility of a knowledge claim and hence the symbolic capital of the co-
authors. During the past decades governmental and intermediary organizations worldwide
have stressed the value of (international) research collaboration and implemented schemes
to offer support to this activity (Katz and Martin, 1997).
The strengthening of scientific ties between emerging research systems and research
systems in North America and Western Europe is not only of interest to the first group
of countries. Over the past ten years governmental and intermediary organizations in
the latter, ‘central’, research systems have been pursuing strategies that aim to foster
the formation of international collaborative ties with emerging research systems which
play an increasingly prominent role in the production of scientific knowledge (Zhou
and Leydesdorff, 2006, Jonkers, 2009a). The country which receives the largest degree of
attention from these initiatives is the emerging research system of China.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the “Cultural Revolution” had played a strong role
in diminishing the existing research capacity of the Chinese research system. This
period negatively affected the available research infrastructure as well as the presence
of qualified researchers who were needed to rebuild China’s research capabilities in the
following decades. Since 1978, after a period of isolation from the international scientific
community, the Chinese research system has embarked on a process of ‘opening up’ to
the outside world. Since then, the research system underwent a transformation from a
centrally planned research system which shared many features with the Soviet system to a
In order to meet the ambitious national goals set out in 1978 and the early 1980s, an
important priority was to rebuild the stocks of scientific human resources. A central
element of the strategy to achieve this aim was to send Chinese students and researchers
abroad to study and work in more advanced research and higher education systems. Upon
their return these researchers were expected to help rebuild Chinese research capacity.
Where initially the students and researchers who were sent overseas were all sponsored by
the national government, at a later stage research organizations were also allowed to send
out their students and staff and finally students were allowed to go abroad independently.
The return rates were much lower than was initially expected. In the first years of its
open door policies, the Chinese leadership stated that it would not be a problem if a small
percentage of researchers did not return: however, it was confronted with a situation in
which only a small percentage did (Zweig and Rosen, 2003). Faced with criticism over
the perceived brain drain from China the Chinese leadership maintained its strategy of
allowing and promoting overseas study (Zweig and Rosen, 2003; Cao, 2004).
During the past thirty years the Chinese research system underwent a considerable
institutional and organizational transformation. Slowly many features of the centrally
planned research system were replaced by institutional features which also characterize
research systems in Western Europe and North America. Examples of these features
include the distribution of project-based funding by a national research council, a relative
increase in the role of research universities as performers of scientific research, new
research intensive subunits in universities and research institutes, and output-based
evaluation and promotion structures.
2. Methodology
The methodological approach used for the broader project which is briefly discussed
in this paper consisted of several elements. Some of these elements are introduced
in this section. The study of the institutional and organizational changes which the
Chinese research system underwent in the past decades is based primarily on a study of
existing scholarly literature as well as on a wealth of grey literature, newspaper articles,
government reports and statistics, expert interviews, etc. Similar sources have also
been used for a study of trends in the outbound flows of students and researchers, the
policy response to these trends and the programmes set up to foster the temporary and
permanent return of overseas Chinese scientists (Jonkers, 2008b; Cao, 2004; Zweig, 2006).
The study of the trends in international visibility of various life science subfields
and the trends in international research collaboration are based on publication and
citation analyses. International co-publications are an imperfect measure for research
collaboration (Katz and Martin, 1997), but remain among the best quantifiable indicators
available. For this reason they have been used frequently as an indicator for the intensity
of international collaboration. For reviews about research collaboration and the study of
international co-publications see Katz and Martin (1997) and Glänzel and Schubert (2005).
The assessment of the relative size of overseas Chinese scientific communities is based
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Scientific mobility and international research collaboration: case of China
on a bibliometric indicator which was compiled by making use of Chinese surnames (See
among others Jin et al., 2007, Jonkers 2009a).
The assessment of the relative number of returned scientists was restricted to high
quality plant molecular life science research organizations in Beijing and Shanghai. It
thus represents only a small segment of the Chinese research system. The study of the
publication and international co-publication behaviour of these researchers was based on
a combination of data relating to mobility history and publication data. Again this study
was restricted to a narrow sample of researchers. Without further study its results should,
therefore, not be extrapolated for the Chinese research system as a whole (Jonkers and
Tijssen, 2008).
3. Results
Over the last ten years the international visibility of the Chinese research system has
increased very rapidly (Zhou and Leydesdorff, 2006). The development of the international
visibility of China’s research in various life science fields (relative to the global average)
shows considerable differences (among others Jonkers, 2009a). While China’s share in the
plant molecular life sciences (Jonkers and Tijssen, 2008) was around 10 per cent in 2005,
China’s share of, for example, the total number of cell biology articles lags far behind
(Jonkers, 2009a). The same holds for another indicator: the number of citations per paper,
relative to the average number of citations which a paper, published anywhere in the
world, receives (Moed et al., 1995). Again, the Chinese research system scores high in the
plant molecular life sciences. In this subfield, when adopting a two year citation window,
the Chinese research system was at the global average in 2003. And again, the other life
science subfields score considerably lower on this indicator (Jonkers and Tijssen, 2008,
Jonkers, 2009a). These differences can be explained with reference to the priorities of
Chinese research policies, international developments, and differences in the manpower
situation in the different fields.
The growth in the number of overseas students was particularly large in the 1990s (Zhang
and Li, 2001) before stabilizing at around 120,000 students leaving China annually in the
first years of this century. According to assessments by government officials, the number
of students leaving China for overseas study will grow further to around 200,000 in 2010
(Anonymous, 2006). An assessment of trends in the geographical spread of students is
based on data collected by UNESCO (2008). This data, shown in Figure 1, reveals that,
while the USA was for a long time the main destination country for Chinese students, the
Member States of the European Union (EU) have collectively overtaken the USA in recent
years. The United Kingdom (UK), especially, saw a rapid increase in its inflow of Chinese
students since the turn of the century. Over the past decades, the average return rate from
120.000
100.000
80.000
Japan
60.000 EU-15, Switzerland and Norway
United States
40.000
20.000
0
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
This UNESCO data concerns students rather than scientists. The OECD (2004) provides an
alternative data source on highly-skilled professionals. However, the statistics collected
by national governments and international organizations do not provide a very fine
grained picture of the size of communities of overseas (Chinese) scientists. A bibliometric
assessment provides an alternative indicator for the growing contribution of this group
of researchers in the research output of research systems in North America and Western
Europe. The approach taken allows one to make such an assessment for specific subfields
of research (Jonkers, 2009a). Overseas Chinese researchers are considered to play an
increasingly important role as collaborative partners for researchers in mainland China
(Jin et al., 2007). In doing so, they thus contribute to the performance of the Chinese
research system while remaining abroad. What is more, they influence the relative share
of China’s international co-publications with its various partner countries; in recent years
countries with a large overseas Chinese scientific community co-publish a relatively large
number of co-publications with researchers in mainland China (Jonkers, 2009a). Jonkers
(2009c) explores the study of transnational research collaboration, and international
research collaboration between researchers with a shared ethnic or cultural background,
in more depth.
Apart from engaging in formal research collaboration with their mainland counterparts,
overseas Chinese researchers also engage in many other forms of scientific cooperation.
In addition, overseas Chinese scientists play other roles which are important for the
functioning of the Chinese science system. For example, overseas Chinese researchers
have been engaged in the review of research proposals submitted to the Chinese national
research council, the NSFC. Overseas Chinese researchers also take part in evaluating the
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Scientific mobility and international research collaboration: case of China
performance of research institutes of the Chinese Academy of Science. Finally, there are
examples of researchers who head laboratories or entire research institutes in mainland
China while maintaining their professional position abroad (in the USA).
Since the early 1990s, Chinese governmental and intermediary organizations have
implemented a broad range of programmes to stimulate the short term and permanent
return of overseas Chinese scientists. In the ‘temporary return migration programmes’,
overseas Chinese researchers come to mainland China for a short period of time to
teach or engage in joint research. Several manpower development programme target
researchers who return from overseas. These programmes include the one hundred
talent programme of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). This programme offers
researchers in CAS institutes US$200,000 to US$300,000 to set up their laboratories
and establish their research. China’s national research council, the NSFC, established a
separate programme, the ‘excellent young scientist award’, which has a similar objective
to the hundred talent programme and is open to researchers from both the universities
and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Jonkers (2008b) provides an overview of return
migration programmes in China and other large ‘sending countries’. For other sources of
information on the Chinese case the reader can also refer to Zweig (2006) and Cao (2004).
At present, over 60 per cent of the senior researchers in top level plant molecular life
science research organizations in Beijing and Shanghai have worked abroad. Jonkers and
Tijssen (2008) showed that these researchers have, apart from a higher publication and
international co-publication rate, a relatively high tendency to co-publish with researchers
in their former host country. This latter finding indicates that scientific social capital
also has an influence on scientific human capital. While the number of international co-
publications is influenced by both scientific human capital and scientific social capital, the
fact that a large share of these co-publications are made with researchers in former host
countries is only affected by scientific social capital. The network of professional contacts
with foreign researchers is accumulated during the period in which they worked abroad.
Returned researchers have played an important role in raising the international visibility
of the Chinese research system in the life sciences during the past decade. Most, in fact
almost all, publications in high impact life science journals, for example, are made by
researchers who have spent some time abroad. As was discussed in the previous section,
the returned researchers also tend to engage in a higher degree of international co-
publication.
The institutional support for collaboration between mainland Chinese researchers and
their colleagues in North America and Western Europe, which is offered by Chinese and
‘Western’ intermediary organizations, has grown considerably over the past decade. Some
of this support is specifically targeted at maximising the benefits of scientific mobility for
international research collaboration. In the case of Chinese intermediary organizations,
the national research council (NSFC) has set up programmes which specifically
target overseas Chinese researchers to encourage collaboration with their mainland
counterparts. European intermediary bodies meanwhile engage in some attempts to
support researchers who were trained in their research system to establish themselves
upon return to China and to support collaboration with researchers in their former host
system. One of the strategies used to achieve this aim is through the establishment of
international joint laboratories. The German Max Planck Gesellschaft, for example, has
Returnees not only bring back scientific knowledge and skills, but also maintain their
contacts with foreign peers after returning. These existing contacts allow them to continue
to collaborate with foreign peers and in doing so continue to engage in the interactive
learning process which is central to modern scientific practice.
Researchers who have not returned to China permanently continue to play important roles
in the further development and internationalisation of the Chinese research system. The
many roles they perform include collaboration with researchers in mainland China. This
effect appears to be so large that it influences the balance of international co-publications
between China and its main partner countries. Those countries with a relatively large
overseas Chinese scientific community have also developed stronger collaborative ties
with mainland China.
Further studies are required to test whether the exploratory findings relating to the
international co-publication behaviour of Chinese researchers with researchers in
their former host systems can be generalised to the entire Chinese research system. A
comparative study of returnees in other main sending countries would help to clarify
whether this relationship is China specific or not. The approach used to study the
role of overseas scientific communities cannot be applied to researchers from every
country. However, it may be used for researchers from some other countries and, for
other countries this relationship can be explored through alternative methodological
approaches.
84 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
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Scientific mobility and international research collaboration: case of China
and its increasing international visibility. While this study focused on China, follow up
studies could explore the development of research capacity in other emerging research
systems in Asia and Latin America to compare the relative performance and to explore
the factors which enable the research system in specific fields of research to become world
class.
References
Anonymous. 2006. Official: Students Overseas to Double by 2010; In: China Daily, 17
October 2006. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2006-10/17/content_
709813.htm
Beaver, D. 2001. Reflections on Scientific Collaboration (and its study): Past, Present, and
Future. In: Scientometrics, 52 (3): pp.365-377.
Cao, C. 2004. China’s Efforts at Turning ‘Brain Drain” into ‘Brain Gain’. EAI Background
Briefs, Singapore East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore.
Jin, B.H.; Rousseau, R.; Suttmeier, R.P.; Cao, C. 2007. The Role of Ethnic ties in International
Collaboration: the Overseas Chinese Phenomenon. In: Tores-Salinas, D.;
Ores-Salinas, D.; Moed, H.F. (eds.), 11th International Conference of the
International Society for Scientometrics and Informetrics, CSIC, Madrid, Spain.
Jonkers, K. 2008a. Scientific Mobility and the Internationalisation of the Chinese Research
System. Ph.D. thesis defended at the European University Institute, San
Domenico di Fiesole, Italy.
Jonkers, K. 2008b. A Comparative Study of Return Migration Policies Targeting the Highly
Skilled in Four Major Sending Countries. In: MIREM Analytical Report,
AR2008-05, RSCAS/EUI, Florence.
Jonkers, K., 2009b, Tides of Change, Scientific Mobility and the Development of China’s
Research System (forthcoming).
Katz, J. S.; Martin, B. R. 1997. What is Research Collaboration? In: Research Policy, 26: pp.
1-18.
UNESCO. 2008. Table 18. entitled: International flows of mobile students at the tertiary
level (ISCED 5 and 6) available online at: http://stats.uis.unesco.org/
ReportFolders/reportFolders.aspx
Wagner, C. S.; Leydesdorff, L. 2005. Network Structure, Self-Organization, and the Growth
of International Collaboration in Science. In: Research Policy, 34: pp.1608-1618.
Zhang, G.C. 2003. Migration of Highly Skilled Chinese to Europe: Trends and Perspective.
In: International Migration, 41, pp. 73-97.
Zhang, G.C. and Li, WJ. 2002. International Mobility of China’s Resources in Science and
Technology and its Impact. Chapter 11: International Mobility of the Highly
Skilled, Paris, OECD.
Zhou, P. and Leydesdorff, L. 2006. The Emergence of China as a Leading Nation in Science,
In: Research Policy, 35: pp. 83-104.
Zweig, D. 2006. Learning to Compete: China’s Strategies to Create a ‘Reverse Brain Drain’.
In: Kuptsch, C. and Pang, E.F. (eds.), Competing for Global Talent, International
Labour Organization (ILO), 2006, pp.187-213.
Zweig, D.; Rosen, S. 2003. How China Trained a New Generation Abroad, SCIDEV.NET
22 May 2003, http://www.scidev.net/en/features/how-china-trained-a-new-
generation-abroad.html
Contact details
Koen Jonkers
CSIC Institute of Public Goods and Policies (IPP-CCHS),
Systems and Policies for Research and Innovation (SPRI_SCIMAGO),
Madrid, Spain.
e-mail: kjonkers@eui.eu
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Chapter 8
Analytical and comparative study of the Palestinian research
knowledge national system
1. Executive summary
This is a brief analytical and comparative study of the Palestinian Research Knowledge
National System. The various sources of information include websites, publications, and
personal communications. There are several names for Palestine including Palestinian
Authority (PA), Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT), West Bank & Gaza (WB&G), etc. In
this study we will adopt the name the OPT to refer to Palestine.
OPT has a population of less than four million inhabitants, with a low per capita GDP
(US$1,178), a high unemployment rate of 33.4 per cent, and a poverty level which reached
56.6 per cent in 2008, according to the latest statistics. OPT has not yet reached the status of
an independent country, but, rather, is under occupation. OPT thus suffers from unstable
political, social, and economic conditions.
Historically speaking, the national system of research knowledge was established around
thirty-five years ago. Research was, and still is, performed mainly at universities and other
organizations that focus on specific fields. With the establishment of the Council of Scientific
Research at the Ministry of Higher Education, research centres and faculties were organized
and coordinated, establishing, in turn, a national research vision, priorities and strategic
plans. However, the Council of Scientific Research was inactive for several reasons.
The OPT’s main contributors to research include thirteen universities, and several specialist
organizations. Three universities were considered in this study due to the availability of
sufficient data. In addition, the main Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) that focus on
research as their objective were also considered in this study.
The Palestinian national research system is a fragmented one, with separate research
centres and faculties that are urged to work together in order to produce sufficient
professional research resources and a research environment that otherwise is not feasible.
Thus, the author urges all national research stakeholders to bridge the gaps between them
and coordinate their efforts in a complementary rather than a competitive spirit. These
stakeholders include all research centres and faculties in public and private public sectors.
It has to be stated that the main findings of this brief study need further investigation in
order to analyse more deeply the research knowledge system at the OPT, and accordingly
propose a new feasible national system for a framework of research and knowledge.
2. Background
The Palestinian Authority that includes the Gaza Strip and West Bank or Occupied
Palestinian Territories (OPT), nomenclature used by some of the international
organizations including the International Labor Organization (ILO), in reality still
exists under military occupation, and has not achieved its national independence. Staff,
students and people in general are unable to move around at will, and the labour force is
confined to particular areas. In addition to the collapse of many economic sectors, there is
skyrocketing unemployment, and poverty.
According to ILO standards [1], the employment rate decreased in the Palestinian Territory
to 41.4 per cent in the 4th quarter of 2008 (PCBS) [2]. In addition, according to the ILO
standards, the percentage of persons who do not work, but are seeking jobs increased to
27.9 per cent in the 4th quarter of 2008 (PCBS) [2]. Furthermore, the unemployment rate
reached 33.4 per cent in the 4th quarter of 2008 (PCBS) [2]. The unemployment rate among
young people (15 to 29) reached 50 per cent in Gaza and 30 per cent in the West Bank
(ILO) [3] in 2008. The poverty levels reached 56.6 per cent in 2008 (ILO) [3] and extreme
poverty reached a level of 40 per cent in Gaza and 19 per cent in the West Bank (ILO) [3].
Furthermore, per capita GDP stabilized in 2007 at the low level of at US$1,178 (ILO) [3].
This situation restricts national planning, which is subject to outside interference and is
complicated by social, economic, and political relations with other nations.
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Analytical and comparative study of the Palestinian research knowledge national system
Currently, owing to the instability of the political situation, CSR’s activity is very limited.
90 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
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Analytical and comparative study of the Palestinian research knowledge national system
Table 1 presents this collected data and shows the calculated ratios in the three
universities.
One can notice from Table 1 that major research contributions were published in
international Journals by the three universities (92 per cent, 90 per cent, and 42 per cent
respectively; with an average of 73 per cent). Although 70 per cent of the universities’
enrolled students and graduates are in the fields of Humanities, Arts, Education, and
Business [15] faculty members from those fields produce only 10 per cent, 31 per cent, and
29 per cent respectively with an average of 26 per cent. Comparing Research Production
Ratios (RPR) with other regional and international countries, the RPR for the three
Universities considered was calculated as 0.19, 0.23, and 0.22, respectively with an average
of 0.21. These figures are well above other similar countries including Argentina that has
0.129 and Arab Countries that range between 0.019 – 0.172, with an average of 0.052 [21].
It is clear from the foregoing that Palestinian scientific research is as yet underdeveloped.
Several reasons can be identified. These include political instability, lack of funding
resources for research, lack of Ph.D. and post-doctoral programmes and lack of guidance
and strategic direction from a national research effort. Indeed, one of the reasons for the
lack of funding is precisely this lack of top-level commitment.
The national research knowledge system is a fragmented one, with no specific strategy for
research being available at most of the universities and research institutions, as well as
at the level of other research stakeholders. In addition, research priorities are not clearly
identified by the Universities’ Research faculties. A small portion of the academics is
intensely active in research, and regularly produce results. Their contributions to national
development need to be investigated. Some initiatives and scattered projects are available
at most universities and research centres. However, they are neither part of a programme
nor coordinated with their national counterparts. Furthermore, there are no national
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Analytical and comparative study of the Palestinian research knowledge national system
agencies or foundations whose specific aim is to provide funding and coordination, and
to bridge the gap between research stakeholders, or to attract foreign research and the
interest of international R&D firms. The cooperation between research stakeholders
might be considered very weak. It can be demonstrated that international cooperation
plays a major role in supporting research (equipment and funding, access to up to date
laboratories, documentation, and scientific databases; in addition it supports the mobility
of staff and students. These were demonstrated by the involvement of the university in
programmes including Tempus [23], Erasmus Mundus [24], etc.
6. Future direction
On a national level, the Palestinian Ministry of Planning (MOP) [25] has recently published
a strategy for implementing a vision of the future Palestinian state: “A Knowledge-based
economy”. CSR should have the mandate to assess the strategic priorities for conducting
research in Palestinian universities that should relate to Palestine’s needs. In addition, CSR
must develop policies to encourage such research to take place and to provide funding to
support such research from government and donors. Furthermore, CSR should establish
and strengthen industry-university cooperation.
On a university Level, the university should consider research as a major function and
set aside a fixed budget for scientific research. A university research board or similar
body needs to be established, to foster, improve, and monitor the university research
environment.
The various scientific fields that should be addressed as national research priorities
include: (i) Information Technology; (ii) Agriculture; (iii) the Environment; (iv) Water
Resources, and (v) Alternative Energy.
Contacts websites:
[1] www.ILO.org
[2] www.pcbs.gov.ps
[3] http://www.ilo.org/global/Regions/Arab_states/lang--en/index.htm (Report of the
Director-General on the situation of workers of the occupied Arab Territories, 2008).
[4] www.moe.gov.ps
[5] www.palestineacademy.org
[6] www.palestineacademy.org
[7] www.palestineacademy.org/publications
[8] www.pal-econ.org
[9] www.arij.org
[10] ARIJ 2007-2008 annual report.
[11] www.lrcj.org
[12] www.orienthouse.org
[13] www.passia.org
[14] www.pcbs.gov.ps
[15] www.aqac.mohe.gov.ps
Contact details:
Arafeh Labib
Associate Professor,
Computer Engineering Department,
Engineering Faculty,
Al-Quds University,
P.O. Box 20002,
Abu Dies, Jerusalem,
Israel.
e-mail : larafeh@eng.alquds.edu
94 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
PART
4
Dimensions of knowledge systems:
policies, governance, infrastructure,
human resources, research output,
cooperation agreements,
tensions and dynamics
Chapter 9
Building a knowledge economy: issues on financing higher education
Winston Dookeran
Chapter 10
Rethinking governance – trends, policies, policy options
Irena Kuzmanoska; Zoran Popovski
Chapter 11
Impact of temporary labour migration on the demand for education:
implications for human resource development in the Philippines
Tereso Tullao; John Paolo Rivera
Chapter 9
Building a knowledge economy:
Issues on financing higher education
Abstract
This study looks at building knowledge economies and examines the role of higher education
in building such societies in today’s globally competitive environment. It explores the
external benefits (externalities) of education in a macro setting and the shift in the state’s
role from central control to the provision of financial incentives. It argues for a reform
programme for higher education, an enabling regulatory framework and the need for new
models of financing of higher education. The paper looks at worldwide trends in the finance
of higher education, and findings of an OECD/UNESCO study (2002) on developing countries.
Various financing proposals are identified in the search for more accessibility to tertiary
education, and the paper discusses issues of political governance and challenges to academic
values as the university competes in the marketplace.
1. Introduction
Knowledge is today a major driving force in development, fueled by changes in the globalized
economy and the new information era. The building of a knowledge economy has become
possible due to the creation of knowledge via research and advances in technology,
investments in education and a new openness to innovation. At the heart of this impetus
is the search for competitiveness and sustainable development. Investment in knowledge
infrastructure, including human capital (HC), offers a new wave in economic restructuring,
with ‘higher value added products with closer customer linkages’ (World Bank Institute,
2007). Finland was able to transform from a natural base economy into a knowledge-
based economy in a short period, ranking recently as N° 1 in the World Economic Forum’s
competitive index. Investments in education and information systems have been credited
with this progress.
Higher education is now at the centre stage of strategies for sustained growth and inclusive
development. Coupled with a regime for innovation and Information and Communications
Technologies (ICT) infrastructure, investment in human capital has high ‘development
dividends’ as it prepares an economy to meet the challenges of competition in today’s
integrated global economy. In an aggregate sense, education influences the macroeconomy
through its impact on productivity and technical change as it affects economic growth.
Changes in the competitive structure increase the development’s potential, while the
adaptation to an innovative system advances social cohesion in inclusiveness in the well-
being of society.
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Chapter 9
Building a knowledge economy: issues on financing higher education
A recent World Bank publication argues that a country’s competitive advantage in the
global economy is linked to the converging impacts of globalization, knowledge as a
main driver of growth and the information revolution: “The proportion of goods in
international trade with a medium-high or high level of technology content rose from 33
per cent in 1976 to 54 per cent in 1996” (World Bank, 2002, p.8).
Opportunities are emerging from these challenges. Knowledge has become a primary
factor of production. Building knowledge societies requires a sound incentive-based
macroeconomic regime, a modern Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
infrastructure, a competitive innovation system and a high quality of its human resources.
The contribution of tertiary education is vital to the emergence of innovation systems and
to the development of human resources.
One of the main messages of the World Bank report cited above is that “the state has a
responsibility to put in place an enabling framework that encourages tertiary institutions
to be more innovative and more responsive to the needs of a globally competitive
knowledge economy and the changing labour market requirements for advanced human
capital”. Three arguments that justify a government’s support for funding universities are
the existence of externalities from tertiary education, equity issues and the connective role
of tertiary education in the education system as a whole.
Apart from its contribution to economic growth, higher education has broad economic,
fiscal and labour market effects. There are linkages and spillover effects from the
clustering of human capital alongside leading technology firms as exemplified by
technology intensive groups in Silicon Valley in California, Bangalore in India, Shanghai
in China, Campinas in São Paulo, Brazil and in similar groupings in East Asia and Finland.
There are various studies that have measured the positive correlation between increases in
educational levels and consumption, tax base and the reduced dependence on medical and
social welfare services. There are also non-economic externalities in promoting greater
social cohesion, and appreciation of diversity in societies. The World Bank UNESCO
publication, Higher Education in Developing Countries: Peril and Promise concluded that
“tertiary education is important in building capacity and reducing poverty” (Global Joint
Task Force, 2000).
According to Nobel Laureate (2001) Joseph E. Stiglitz (Nobel Prize lecture, 2001), “there are
no prescriptions for how a country creates such a culture ‘of knowledge’…but government
does have a role – a role in education, in encouraging the kind of creativity and risk that
the scientific entrepreneurship requires, in creating the institutions that facilitate ideas
being brought into fruition, and a regulatory and tax environment that rewards this kind
of activity”. This is a new challenge – a challenge of offering financial incentives in higher
PG
Source: The World Bank, Constructing Knowledge Societies: New Challenges for Tertiary Education, 2002 modified by the
author to include in the vortex, Political Governance (PG)
An initial step is to define a reform programme within a coherent policy framework. Such
a higher education development strategy should comprise answers to what type of system
that will contribute to growth in a knowledge-based economy, what are the roles of the
institutions within the higher education system, and how could the new technologies be
harnessed by individuals and enterprises? Several countries have attempted this exercise
including New Zealand (The Tertiary Education Green Paper - 1998); France (Plan for
the University of the Third Millennium - 2000); South Africa (Report on the Council
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Chapter 9
Building a knowledge economy: issues on financing higher education
of Higher Education - 2001) and India (India as a Knowledge Superpower: Strategy for
Transformation - 2001).
Steps to design an enabling regulatory framework will require, in most cases, legislative
measures, consensus building mechanisms on cost sharing, quality assurance
mechanisms and financial rules and controls. In this context, government funding will
remain the major source of financing for higher education in developing countries.
‘Negotiated’ budgets based on historical trends may now be replaced with financial
incentive formulae that steer higher education institutions toward compliance with
quality, cutting edge research, and efficiency and equity goals. Funding may be linked to
performance, but it may also be linked to the mobilization of additional resources through
increased cost sharing.
The OECD/UNESCO, 2002 report provides an analysis of the World Education Indicators
(WEI) programme that was launched by UNESCO, OECD and the World Bank in 1997.
The countries in the programme were Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Egypt, India, Indonesia,
Jamaica, Jordan, Malaysia, Paraguay, Peru, the Philippines, the Russian Federation,
Tunisia, Thailand, Uruguay and Zimbabwe. In its Introduction, the report affirms
“education is an investment in the collective future of societies and nations, rather than
simply the future success of individuals”. Comparing the growth patterns between WEI
and OECD countries, the findings support the hypothesis that, in the early stages of
industrialization, investment in capital is important, but as development deepens the role
of human capital as a strong driver of economic growth takes over.
There is a wide array of mechanisms used in WEI countries for financing education. The
following table from the OECD report succinctly describes the situation.
The issue of financing of higher education is linked to the issue of governance. State
financial support for private education varies, ranging from 4 per cent in the United States
of America (USA) to 12 per cent in France. Among WEI countries, governments in Chile
and India are the biggest supporters of non-state education provision, although only about
10 per cent of that support goes to tertiary level institutions. Since the cost of tertiary
level education can skyrocket, it has been argued that fees are justifiable for this level of
education but the level of private costs and the potential for excluding qualified students
are important and sensitive policy concerns.
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Mechanisms for public financing of education in WEI countries
Community grants /community Promote equity. Improve Concerns about sustainability. Brazil, China, Zimbabwe.
franchising management capacity.
Grants / scholarships Promote equity. Targeting costs and difficulties. Brazil, Chile, China, Jordan,
School may increase fee or Malaysia, Zimbabwe.
charge other fees.
Targeted bursaries / school Promote access and equity. May not reach target Chile, China, India, Paraguay.
improvement funds Support local decision making. population. Social
stratification. May be
disincentive to schools.
Matching grants / social funds Promote equity. Improve May have negative impact on Brazil, China, India,
Chapter 9
management capacity. poor students. Philippines.
Source: OECD / UNESCO -Financing Education-Investment and Returns Analysis of World Economic Indicators, (2002 edition)
• 101
Small states warrant different priorities. Partnerships with neighbouring small states
have seen the establishment of a ‘network’ university. Strategic choices as to offerings are
influenced by the countries’ critical human skill requirements. Partnerships with external
providers of tertiary education, including distance education, have been on the traditional
model. This approach is being overtaken by market developments, as cost incentives push
foreign universities to locate special faculties in distant places that could be attractive
to students and faculty. At the same time, franchise partnerships are being developed
between local private providers of university training and marketing arms of established
institutions.
These agenda issues provide a framework that can be used to do empirical work for
educational planning.
In a Keynote Address at the Salzburg Seminar, November 2002, on The Funding of Higher
Education Johnstone elaborated further on certain trends in higher education worldwide:
rising costs, institutional austerity, overcrowding, rising tuition fees, deterioration of
quality, limitations on capacity and on accessibility, deterioration of faculty morale and
diminished confidence in government by the public (Johnstone, 2002). The per student
cost of higher education increases in response to high enrolment pressures, the move
towards ‘massification’, and the surge in faculty ambition. This means that there will be
higher frontiers in the production possibility curve in education. Is there any innovation
that will lower production costs in higher education? Information technology, yet to be
fully explored, may have the potential. For now, higher education costs are to be met by
revenue increases from taxpayers, parents, students, donors (philanthropists), clients,
entrepreneurs, business and consumers.
Technological change has posed a real danger of a growing digital gap among and between
nations. This new ‘divide’ was clearly illustrated in the World Bank study as follows:
“sub- Saharan African countries together have one internet user per 5,000 populations;
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in Europe and North America this proportion is one user for every six inhabitants”.
Within countries, access to Internet is heavily skewed in favour of high-income families
and there may even be a ‘digital gender gap’. A well functioning ICT system could reduce
administrative and management cost, improve the quality of instruction and learning, and
reap the economic gains to better access information cross-campus and across the globe.
This is an opportunity for future funding by forging new university partnerships with
business, manufacturing and the extractive industries. Long-term finance instruments,
either through the capital market or multilateral financial institutions can be employed
for capital funding. In which case, the state takes on the burden of such repayments and
such finance programs are assessed from a national and regional perspective. In light
of the finance limitations of the state, multinational corporations with a stake and long-
term interest in countries may be approached to be partners in the long term financing
of higher education. Since 1994, the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) has
included higher education on the list of services to be privatized.
In striving for financial viability, policy strategies are required. For instance, one must
either work towards greater efficiency and/or supplement public revenue with non-
governmental revenues. The introduction of revenue supplementation, also known as ‘cost
sharing’ can take a variety of forms such as: charging/raising tuition fees, increasing other
fees, and freezing grants and other subsidies. Scotland has replaced tuition with loans to
be repaid after graduation as a contribution to an endowment fund; Australia has adopted
a higher education contribution scheme to be repaid after graduation (students may get 25
per cent reduction if they pay upfront – which gives the appearance of a discount to those
who can pay – or it may be seen as an incentive). Makarere University in Uganda has been
heralded as witnessing a ‘quiet revolution’ where student enrolment expanded, quality
standards prevailed and tuition fees have been systematically introduced.
The issue of tuition fees and cost sharing is not value free or politically neutral. Those
promoting it claim equity or fairness, (with parallel loans and grants), greater capacity
hence more equity, improved quality of teaching and sustainability of finances. Finances
will be volatile during public finance cycles. Those in opposition argue a loss of equality,
the absence of a level playing field (some students have to earn incomes while studying),
loss of public control and a sub-ideal state. In order to be acceptable, tuition fees must
supplement, not supplant, public revenue or the increase in enrolments may not happen,
and financial assistance programmes must run in parallel. Also, increases in fees should
be modest and regular. Some institutions have linked increases in fees to productivity
The design of a tuition fee policy is an inexact science. Should students bear the cost of
research or only teaching? What proportion of one income (or foregone income) should be
spent on fees? The OECD report states “in a majority of countries, the minimum tuition
fee falls below 10 per cent per capita, although it reaches one quarter in Chile and Uruguay
and about half of GDP per capita in Thailand. How are selections for grants and loans to
be made? In today’s multi-institution scenario (private, public, corporate, levels of higher
education institutions) do financial support systems and credentials need to be portable?
What are the goals of tuition fee policy: increase university budgets, increase educational
opportunities, widen the participation, improve accountability and quality of institutions,
promote responsibility of students, and build closer links between the universities and the
labour market? Is tuition fee a tax deduction and/or public support? Must tuition fee be
abolished at all levels?
Endowment and pension funds provide financial resources that need to be managed.
Foundations and university endowments have traditionally been invested in government
securities and equity holdings. In the USA, investment portfolios aim to ‘shoot for profits
even in bad times’ by investing in hedge funds. Universities appoint fund managers to
implement a strategy for investment. Such managers determine the level of exposure and
risk profile of the portfolio of investments. The returns to these investments represent
an income stream, and the university must have the expertise to assess performance and
advice on preferred investment strategy.
Philanthropy is big business in the USA, prompting higher education leaders to emulate
the USA experience which provides another avenue to supplement public funds. Such
contributions have thrived on favourable tax treatment but the driving force is the
existence of a culture of philanthropy. In many cases alumni associations provide the
organizational platform for university fundraising activities. Such activities help in the
expansion of capital programmes, although there has been a recent trend to fund major
areas of socially desirable research in areas like medicine, genetic engineering and
biotechnology.
The reform of higher education financing was alluded to earlier in this chapter. Such
reforms would include performance and incentive budgeting, expenditure reforms
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In addressing these issues – the distribution of power and the equilibrium between
‘winners and losers’ among the stakeholders – matters of politics come to the fore. The
forces for change in tertiary education, mentioned previously in this chapter, describe
the links between regulations and incentives, participation and partnership and societal
pressures. At the vortex is the issue of political governance as the core process that shapes
the environment.
Economic growth and development are structurally linked to the knowledge economy, as
merit-based, equitable and efficient education is essential to economic transformation.
Inevitably, decisions on these matters are made in the political process that has become
more complex in today’s world. (Dookeran and Malaki, 2009, Chapter 3).
Derek Bok, former President of Harvard University, is the author of a book entitled
Universities in the Market Place in which he suggested that “universities show signs of
excessive commercialism in every aspect of their work” but he is hopeful that the trend is
not yet irreversible (Bok, 2003). He is probably right when he stated, “In higher education,
the cards are stacked against any institution that lacks an established reputation and a lot
of money”. Bok sees a major conflict between the commercialization of higher education
and the need to protect the integrity of research and to preserve educational values.
Several scholars, he claims, have linked ‘the recent growth of money-making activity to a
lack of purpose in the university’. Bok does not agree: rather he argues “that a university
must have a clear sense of values needed to pursue its goals with a high degree of quality
and integrity”.
The rise of market forces in higher education has opened up the doors for additional cost
sharing avenues, but at a cost of turning universities into ‘knowledge factories’. According
to Stanley Aronowitz, “… the learning enterprise has become subject to the growing
power of administration, which more and more responds not to faculty and students,
except at the margin, but to political and market forces that claim sovereignty over higher
education” (Aronowitz, 2000). The marketplace is now encroaching on the work of the
The values of the university, reform in social justice, social equity, preservation and
promotion of cultural values, generation of new knowledge must not falter on the mantra
of commercialization.
National Objectives
Our Connectivity Agenda will:
• Provide all citizens in our country with affordable Internet access.
• Focus on the development of our children, and adult skills to ensure a sustainable
solution and a vibrant future.
• Promote citizen trust, access, and interaction through good governance.
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• Maximize the potential within all of our citizens, and accelerate innovation, to
develop a knowledge-based society
Connected - Committed - Competitive - Creative - Caring - Community.
References
Amaral, A.; Jones, G.A. and Karseth, B. 2006. Governing Higher Education: National
Perspectives on Institutional Governance. Springer 2006.
Aronowitz, S. 2000. The Knowledge Factory: Dismantling the Corporate University and
Creating the Higher Learning. Boston: Beacon Press.
Cheng, Y.C. 2000. Beyond Economics. In: Special Issue on Education: The Last Frontier for
Profit, 37. November.
Court, D. 1999. Financing Higher Education in Africa: Makarere: the Quiet Revolution.
Washington, DC: The World Bank. September, 1999.
Dookeran, W.; Malaki, A. 2009. Leadership and Governance in Small States. Published by
VDM Verlag Dr Muller Aktiengesellschaft & Co. KG, 2009.
Global Joint Task Force. 2000. Higher Education in Developing Countries: Peril and
Promise. Washington, D.C: The World Bank.
Johnstone, D.B. 2002. Worldwide Trends in the Financing and Management of Higher
Education. Keynote address, Salzburg Seminar. November, 2002.
Johnstone, D. B.; Arora, A.; and Experton, W. 1998. The Financing and Management of
Higher Education: A Status Report on World Wide Reforms. Washington, DC:
The World Bank.
Muller, A. and Murtagh, T. (eds.), Higher Education for Sale. In: Education Today, the
Newsletter of UNESCO’s Education Sector, October-December 2002. Paris,
UNESCO.
Salzburg Seminar. 2002. The Funding of Higher Education: A Record of Universities Project
Symposium. 20-24 November 2002.
World Bank. 2002. Constructing Knowledge Societies: New Challenges for Tertiary
Education. Washington, D.C: The World Bank. p. 8.
World Bank Institute 2006. Finland as a Knowledge Economy. Elements of Success and Lessons
Learnt. Dahlman, C.; Routti, J. and Ylä-Anttila, P. (eds.), Washington, DC.
Contact details:
Winston Dookeran, Development Economist,
Visiting Scholar,
United Nations University,
World Institute for Development
Economics Research, (UNU WIDER),
Helsinki Finland.
e-mail: winston@wider.unu.edu
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Cerich and Sabatier (1986) have discussed the question of the difficulty of implementing
higher education reforms in comparison with other sectors in society. This finding is relevant
for the Macedonian context. Ambiguous and multiple goals, a bottom-heavy sub-system,
and new functions to be addressed, are all specific policy objectives which are often disputed
and contested. The implementation of reforms in higher education and research policy
can be characterized as ‘a moving target’, caught up in the ‘top-down’ versus ‘bottom-up’
perspective, with an awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of each approach, and of the
efforts to create a synthesis. The areas for discussion range from negotiation of policies, to
understanding what can be labeled as ‘democratic’ and ‘not democratic’, to consideration of
the core and the periphery of the policy recommendations (Gornitzka et al., 2005). However,
the level of participation of academics in the development of structural changes is unclear,
as is the interaction of the mechanisms which establish the key policies at system level.
The debate between those who wish to reform from the ‘top down’ and those who argue for
a ‘bottom-up’ approach is still ongoing and further delays the establishment of a unified
approach, although it may create alternative hybrid approaches.
The change in social and economic reality over time is another hampering factor. National
higher education policy is not isolated from other national policies, and is affected by public
Amaral et al., (2002) assert that broad system-level reforms of higher education,
particularly the reforms which change the relationship between higher education and the
state have direct implications for institutional governance. These have frequently involved
state-imposed reforms of governance arrangements. These governance structures impact
upon the current and future outlook of the institutions and alter the relationships between
academics, students, and external interests.
The study comprised an analysis of the policy process based on a framework addressing a
broad set of factors deemed important for different aspects of policy-making in the higher
education, science and research area.
Changes in the co-ordination of the public sector, in particular the external and internal
governance of higher education sector and research, indicate the shift “from government
to governance” (de Boer et al., 2007). The analysis of the higher education and research
governance system, and the changes, utilizes Clarks’ triangle as a point of departure. In
relation to the triangle of coordination where “the extreme of one form and a minimum
of the other two, and locations within the triangle represent combinations of the three
elements in different degrees” (Clark, 1983:142), the model provides insights into the power
balance of the state, the universities and the market. Clark’s triangle of coordination
particularly highlights the growth in influence of the market. Cries for “more market
and less government” have had the effect of increasing the institutional autonomy of the
universities and have increased sensitivity to stakeholders’ demands through market
mechanisms (Orr, 2005). On the other hand, as Meek (2002:69) affirms, market orientation
and centralized state control have proved to be not mutually exclusive, but rather to be
the opposite ends of a continuum of higher education coordination. It should be noted,
however, that the infusion of the market reconstitutes the relationship between the state
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and the universities rather than having the free market as a final goal. The introduction
of the market principle as a type of intervention contributes to the enhancement of state
coordination.
Questions arose concerning the level of intervention in public authorities, and how far they
can be seen as regulative, centralizing, decentralizing, facilitative, active or passive (Kogan
and Marton 2000:93). The changing role of the state and its actual involvement in higher
education is further analyzed through the ‘facilitatory state’ and the ‘interventionary
state’ (Neave and Van Vugh, 1991, Goedegebuure et al., 1994). According to Goedegebuure
et al., (1994:5), this concept of ‘facilitatory state’ refers to a government underwriting
higher education as an opportunity for those who are qualified to gain access to higher
learning, without actually directing policies at the heart of academia, such as in patterns
of participation, internal governance, academic programme development and authority.
On the other hand, the ‘interventionary state-concept’ refers to a government, which is
actively involved in student output, the internal affairs of the higher education institution
and in the relationship between the institution and its environment.
Our understanding of the relationship between the state and the universities has been
greatly shaped by Neave’s framing and naming of the ‘remote steering’ activities of the
‘evaluative state’ (Neave, 1988; Neave and van Vught, 1991). Neave has directed attention
to the strengthened middle layers between ministries and university faculties which fit in
the interstices between the state, the academic oligarchy, and the market forces of Clark’s
(1983) triangle model. The later addition of the “managerial or hierarchical self-guidance
and the stakeholderism” (Enders, 2002:76) mechanisms extend the list of forces and actors
in the governance regime beyond Clark’s triangle.
How does the university system of the former Yugoslavia and now Macedonia, which
was organized in the past on a self-governance model placing it somewhere between a
voluntary association and a confederation (Clark, 1983; Clark, 2004) respond to the winds
of change?
Macedonia has been struggling with this high degree of independence of faculties while
making attempts to build a governance structure capable of developing and implementing
policy reforms. As a signatory to the Bologna Declaration in 2003, the country became
committed to the myriad of policy and structural dimensions, while at the same time
having to deal with the highly fragmented governance system.
The 2002 World Bank Report on the education strategy for the twenty-first century
suggested two alternative policies for the “highly fragmented and unevenly governed,
managed, and monitored system of higher education in Macedonia: a decentralized or
centralized and coordinated system”.
The first alternative deals with the issue of restructuring: “Instead of maintaining the
practical monopoly of one big university and a smaller institution, it would be reasonable
to restructure higher education into a more competitive system of six to eight institutions.
This change could encourage more competitiveness, innovation, and flexibility, which are
needed to modernize academic institutions” (World Bank, 2002:33).
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issue degrees and diplomas (based on external accreditation), receive and allocate
public funds, regulate the reception and use of non-public funds (tuition fees, contract
work, etc.), establish human resource and personnel management and personnel
contracts, and set up strategy and management of intellectual property rights for the
entire institution; faculties would remain in control of the curriculums, examination
systems, performance assessments, quality assurance and research”
(World Bank, 2002:34).
The focus of the debate concentrated on whether the Macedonian Government should
retain control of the regulatory role with very limited funding, or take up a facilitative
role. The other question concerned who would take the leading role in regard to the higher
education reforms, the Ministry or the university. In effect, the new legislation places an
emphasis on increasing the efficiency of governance and management and on creating de
facto higher education institutions: the university as a real institution rather than as a
loose federation of individual faculties. The Law on Higher Education (2008) stipulates the
‘functional integration’ at Rector’s level as a model offering a compromise solution for the
university and the faculties. The ‘functional integration’ is a transitional phase meeting
the Bologna requirements for an integrated university.
The evolving social and economic demands for knowledge and educated labour, and
the new mechanisms for steering higher education, often involve a new regulatory
environment and the introduction of instruments designed to create market-like
competition within the sector (Amaral et al., 2002). These have brought about significant
changes in higher education and research. The introduction of market mechanisms and
competition is a novelty as a steering concept. The Macedonian Government started
moving beyond public service rhetoric by introducing quasi-market arrangements in
higher education by setting out its support for the establishment of private universities
and espousing the economic potential of encouraging world-renowned universities to open
branches in the country. What is the rationale for private providers of higher education
and the meaning of privatization in higher education? There is a Western pattern with a
long history and tradition, but a small share of enrolments, and a Central and South East
European new pattern, defined by ‘after the 1989’ changes, with exploding enrolments
in the private sector. According to Dima (2004), in Western Europe, privatization has
meant diversification of funding sources and increased competition among institutions
associated with the development of the so-called quasi-market structures for higher
education. On the other hand, in Central and South East Europe, privatization means
mainly the growth or the dramatic increase in numbers of private higher education
institutions. The emergence of entrepreneurial behaviour in higher education traditions
and management in the transitional countries of ‘New Europe’ also indicates: (a)
entrepreneurialism or (b) lack of entrepreneurial sense in the public universities
(Kuzmanoska, 2008).
The scarcity of finance and the situation of doing more with less have forced the
government to initiate new methods of funding. More mixed funding arrangements involve
greater institutional entrepreneurialism and a review of the demand and supply side of
funding. This provides another insight into the domination paradigm of the privatization
of higher education in terms of establishing private higher education institutions.
Given the trend towards fiscal austerity and the need for revenue diversification,
financial stringency seems to be both unavoidable and indispensable. Until recently,
political thinking was not convinced of the social return of the public R&D expenditure,
and consequently the Macedonian scientific world and other interested groups had to
develop more practical approaches in relation to scientific research and technological
advancement. Policy measures included:
(a)An increase in investment in R&D – different ministries were encouraged to adopt the
goal of investing 1 per cent of the GDP in R&D till 2010 (Ministry of Education and Science,
2006; Government of Macedonia, 2007).
(b)Budgetary funds provided for R&D which would benefit the private sector.
(c)Encouragement and support for science through fiscal policy – the Ministry of Finance
has to facilitate the process of implementation of a new taxation regime for SME that will
foster the R&D investments (Ministry of Education and Science, 2006; Government of
Macedonia, 2007).
A debate has developed as to what extent Macedonian higher education and science are
expected to change their modes of knowledge production. This underlines the importance
of ‘problem solving’ approaches linked to the greater dissemination of knowledge
capacity throughout the economy and society, and has brought into the spotlight the
blurred boundaries between fundamental research, applied research and development.
The supposedly established boundaries between public and private research, between
public institutions and industry and other knowledge producers in society are called
into question. The specific conditions under which knowledge is generated within public-
sector research and transferred to other sectors of society are also being questioned. The
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convergence and crossing-over of three worlds which were once very much separate, has
brought into play the “Triple Helix” model of interaction between industry, government
and universities.
The model has the common objective of trying to realize an innovative environment “…
consisting of university spin-off firms, trilateral initiatives for knowledge-based economic
development, and strategic alliances among enterprises (large and small, operating in
different areas, and with different levels of technology), government laboratories, and
academic research groups. Etzkowitz and Leydesdorff (2000) argue over the intersection
of Mode 1 (science and scientists) with Mode 2 (knowledge and practitioners) and Mode 2
with Mode 1 in the Triple Helix model. According to them, the system is neither integrated
nor completely differentiated, but it performs on the edges of fractional differentiations
and local integrations (ibid:119). However, at times when changes in the exogenous factors
influencing the systems of innovation are bringing to the forefront the relationships and
fluxes of information between actors, both models point to an increasing relevance of
the interactions between sectors for the development of science and for innovation. The
accompanying indicators support the evidence that academic research contributes more
directly to economic growth, and that scientific research should be evaluated not only on
the basis of scientific excellence but also societal utility” (Etzkowitz et al, 1998; Ziman,
2000). Among the ideas for developing a new governance model for research, the Triple
Helix model stands alongside suggestions for a more elaborate concept, with a particular
emphasis on the interplay between actors, organizations and institutions. The emerging
question is whether the integration of political, industrial and academic interests brings
about the development of a new institutional order and whether all three spheres of the
Triple Helix “ … have merged within the new organizational field (‘knowledge-based
economy’) guided by a norm system stressing the importance of techno-economic renewal
and market-determined success” (Benner and Sandstrom, 2000: 292).
The ‘Triple Helix’ interaction process has been represented by three factors or levels:
the actors, the institutions and the rules and regulations. The linkage warrants closer
scrutiny (Viale and Ghiglione, 1998). The analysis in the study develops a more focused
approach towards the characteristics of ‘actors’ - the micro-level, and the institutions
- the ‘meso-level’ in terms of ‘academic entrepreneurship’. Where ever the ‘bottom up’
approach dominates the researchers as actors may raise questions about possible ways of
coping with societal problems in different areas, and the effect of government measures.
‘Academic entrepreneurship’ includes the pursuit of entrepreneurial activities including
contract research, technical consultancy, knowledge transfer, external training and
activities devoted to ‘wealth creation’ through university spin off companies, patenting
and licensing to existing firms. The application of the Triple Helix model at micro- and
meso-level reveals the emergence of coercive, normative and mimetic processes under the
umbrella of organizational routines, structures and norms. Coercive forces come to the
surface when universities and/or faculties have to deal with resource allocation and public
regulation. Normative aspects are related to eventual conflict between norms and values.
It is important to set the benchmark for a successful university or individual faculty, to
provide comparisons. The new environment is more complex and more risky than the old
one, with multiple demands and opportunities that require new professional skills and
empower those who have them. This puts additional pressure on the traditional selection
methods for academic leadership and institutional management. The traditional system of
These liberal policies have led to a flurry of initiatives, such as science parks and Centres
of Excellence (CE), identified as ‘hybrid agents of innovations’. Feasibility studies point
towards the potential for starting up at least two science and business parks where the
production of software and other IT related parts and equipment will take place. Given
the geographical location of the country, the starting point for the Centres of Excellence
(CE) will be in the promotion and support of innovations in the areas of molecular biology,
software etc. However, as a result, institutions and activities at different levels of the
research system may become aligned and a new regime emerge (Rip, 2002).
The evolution of the ‘Triple Helix’ entails establishing the connection between internal
and external policy, and promotion of the ‘Triple Helix’ interaction, with the appropriate
internal governance and mediation mechanisms that need to be created at institutional
level (Kitagawa, 2005). The focused analysis of the evolution of the ‘Triple Helix’ model
also affects the rules and regulations – at the ‘macro’ level it enables a balance to be
achieved between the incentives for commercial and academic activities conducted
by academics, and financial incentives already in place. In this respect, analysis of the
new governmental policies gives a telling account of policy modification against which,
as a backdrop, a number of policy issues were analyzed. A number of new laws and
regulations have been developed and adopted: on scientific and research activities; on
encouraging and supporting technology development; on industrial and intellectual
property protection; on the award and distribution of funds for research projects; and
encouragement of better promotion and use of EC programmes available for Macedonia.
These aim to reduce bureaucracy by streamlining the regulations to cut red tape,
decrease the legislative barriers and ease administrative procedures. The Government of
Macedonia (2006) adopted a Programme for Research and Science 2006-2010, which sets
out active measures for determining financial, legal and institutional aspects, develops the
cooperation of higher education with industry, and establishes a pro-active approach to
international cooperation and to increased participation of the country in the Framework
and other EU programmes. A close examination of the specific regulations set in the
Macedonian policy context emphasizes the organizational impact on the universities.
The effective dissemination of knowledge between knowledge institutions, such as
universities, and the private sector, thus becomes heavily dependent on certain regulatory
factors: intellectual property rights (IPR) policy in the public sector; developing new
sources of revenue; mediation of the flow of knowledge between industry and universities
by formal licensing agreements; and industry-specific public goods (ISPG). It should be
noted, however, that the expectations regarding university patenting and exclusivity in
exploitation of research results may become complicated and controversial, especially
regarding the principle of free dissemination of publicly funded research.
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3. Future considerations
The importance of higher education, science and research policy is now gaining ground
in political circles. Science can no longer be mediated and regulated through a limited
number of bureaucratic or professional institutions. Though some of these will persist,
science is also engaged in collaboration, negotiation, debate and conflict involving a range
of actors. Increasingly, policy-makers have sought to introduce non-academic, evaluative
criteria, such as social relevance and assessments of social, economic and environmental
impact upon science, whilst research users tend to be incorporated into the evaluative
systems of funding bodies as well as, in some cases, into the research process itself. Other
considerations include the commodification of scientific knowledge, the conversion
of pioneering technology into intellectual property, and the diversification of external
finance and competitive funding.
The capacity for profit-making combined with the importance of intellectual reputation
puts at stake the role university leadership and management. The changing relationship
of government to the higher education institutions generates new kinds of expectations
which are placed on institutional governance, leadership and management. Those whose
role in academic management is to stand between university and state, and between the
academics and those they serve, have a difficult task in understanding the range of their
clients and responding to their needs and demands.
References
Amaral et al., 2002. Governing Higher Education: National Perspectives on Institutional
Governance, Dordrecht/Boston/London: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
Benner, M. and Sandstrom, U. 2000. Implementing the Triple Helix: The Academic
Response to Changing University-Industry-Government Relations in Sweden.
Research Policy 29.
Cerich, L. and Sabatier, P. 1986. Great Expectations and Mixed Performances: The
Implementation of Higher Education Reforms in Europe. Stoke-on-Trent:
Trentham Books.
Clark, B.R. 1983.The Higher Education System, Berkeley, Los Angeles, Oxford: California
University Press.
Clark, B.R. 2004. Work. In: de Boer et al., (eds.), Higher Education and its Academic
Organizations, Part 1, Reader, Twente University: CHEPS.
Enders, J. 2002. Governing the Academic Commons: About Blurring Boundaries Blistering
Organisations, and Growing Demands. In: The CHEPS Inaugural Lectures 2002,
Twente University: CHEPS.
Etzkowitz, H. ; Healey, P. and Webster, A. (eds.) 1998. Capitalizing Knowledge, New
Intersections of Industry and Academia. Albany, New York: State University of
New York Press.
Gibbons, M. 1998. Higher Education Relevance in the 21st Century, Washington, DC: The
World Bank.
Goedegebuure, L.; Kaiser, F.; Maassen, P. and De Weert, E. 1994. Higher Education Policy
in International Perspective: An Overview. In: Goedegebuure, L. et al., (eds.),
Higher Education Policy in International Perspective: An International
Comparative Perspective; Oxford, New York, Seoul and Tokio: Pergamon Press.
Gornitzka, Å.; Kogan, M. and Amaral, A. (ed.), 2005. Reform and Change in Higher
Education, Analysing Policy Implementation. Doordrecht: Springer.
Henkel, M. 2002. Current Science Policies and their Implications for the Concept of
Academic Identity. Paper presented at the International workshop on Science,
Training and Career; Changing Modes of Knowledge Production and Labor
Markets, CHEPS, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands, 21 and 22
October.
118 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
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Rethinking governance – trends, policies, policy options
Kogan, M. and Marton, S. 2000. State and Higher Education. In: Kogan, M.; Bauer,
M.; Bleiklie, I. and Henkel, M. (eds.), Transforming Higher Education. A
Comparative Study, London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Kuzmanoska, I. 2008. The Choice of Scenario for the University – Rethinking or Hollowing
Out Policy. Presentation on the 11th Toulon-Verona Conference on Excellence
in Services, Florence, Italy, 4 to 5 September, 2008.
Kuzmanoska, I. and Piperkoski, I. 2008. The Choice of Scenario for the University
– Rethinking or Hollowing Out Policy. Proceedings of the 11th Toulon-Verona
Conference on Excellence in Services, Florence, Italy, 4 to 5 September, 2008.
Law on Higher Education. 2008. Official Gazette of the Republic of Macedonia. No35, March
2008.
Leišytè, L. 2007. University Governance and Academic Research, Case Studies of Research
Units in Dutch and English Universities. Twente University: CHEPS.
Mandic, P.D. 1992. Yugoslavia. In: Clark, B.R. and Neave, G. (eds.), The Encyclopedia of
Higher Education, Oxford: Pergamon, pp. 811-820.
Ministry of Education and Science 2006. National Progamme for Research and
Development in the Republic of Macedonia for the Period 2006-2010. Skopje:
Ministry of Education and Science.
Neave, G. and van Vught, F. A. 1991. Prometeus Bound: The Changing Relationship between
Government and Higher Education in Western Europe. Oxford: Pergamon
Press.
Orr, D. 2005. Can Performance-Based Funding and Quality Assurance Solve the State vs
Market Conundrum? In: Higher Education Policy, Vol. 18, Issue 1, pp. 31-50.
Rip, A. 2002. Strategic Research, Post-modern Universities and Research Training. Paper
presented at the International Workshop on Science, Training and Career;
Changing Modes of Knowledge Production and Labor Markets, CHEPS,
University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands, 21 and 22 October.
Viale, R. and Ghiglione, B. 1998. The “Triple Helix” Model: A Tool of the Study of European
Regional Socio-Economic Systems. In: The IPTS Report 29, Retrieved
www.jrc.es/home/report/english/articles/vol29/REG1E296.htm
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Toward an Education, Strategy for the Twenty-First Century. Washington. DC.
pp. 33-34.
Contact details:
Irena Kuzmanoska
Project Director/Education,
Sagittarius Ltd,
Ivo Lola Ribar 147-1/2,
1000 Skopje,
Republic of Macedonia.
e-mail:ikuzmanoska@sagittarius-ltd.org
Zoran Popovski
Associate Professor,
Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Food,
University “Ss. Cyril And Methodius” – Skopje,
Aleksandar Makedonski bb,
1000 Skopje,
Republic of Macedonia.
e-mail: zpopovski@ zf.ukim.edu.mk
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Chapter 11
Impact of temporary labour migration on the demand
for education: Implications for human resource development
in the Philippines
1. Introduction
Migration and overseas employment have been part of the lives of thousands of Filipino
households. It is estimated that there are close to eight million Filipinos overseas either as
permanent residents, temporary workers, or irregular migrants while 3,000 Filipinos are
leaving daily. Many of these Filipinos are temporary workers known as Overseas Filipino
Workers (OFWs). However, there are also a large number of them who leave the country for
tourism and other purposes but they eventually overstay, seek employment and become
irregular workers.
For over three decades, overseas employment has become a part of the culture of Filipino
families. The remittance income received by households has improved their standards of
living and social status in the community. At the macro level, the remittance inflows of over
US$12 billion in 2006 represented more than 20 per cent of the country’s exports receipts
and had contributed in the stability of the peso and more recently to the appreciation of the
currency.
One interesting social impact of temporary labour migration is the effects on the demand
for education. Firstly, the phenomenon of temporary external migration in the country
is pervasive. Second, the private sector is very prominent in the provision of educational
services in the Philippines and thus very responsive to the changes in the factors that may
affect demand for education. Third, enhanced expenditure on education at the household
level may have positive effects on improving the human capital of household members.
Fourth, the effect of temporary migration on education may have positive as well as negative
implications for overall human resource development in the country.
Thus, it is interesting to inquire into the extent of the effects of temporary migration on the
demand for education and evaluate its impact on the country’s human resource development.
Since the 1970s, OFWs have made significant contributions to the maintenance, stability
and growth of the Philippine economy as they continuously search for various markets
around the globe. The total volume of documented OFWs with processed contracts
has been continuously rising through the years (Philippine Overseas Employment
Administration [POEA], 2006).
Data from POEA show that countries in the Middle East absorbed more than 58 per cent
of OFWs deployed in 2006, accounting for the biggest share of OFWs destinations relative
to other major world groupings. Of the total 788 thousand OFWs deployed in 2006, 463
thousand were deployed in the Middle East, 59 thousand in Europe and 22 thousand in the
United States of America (USA), while a total of 223 thousand were sent to various parts of
Asia.
Among the countries in the Middle East, OFWs are concentrated in Saudi Arabia with
around 50 per cent of OFWs deployed in the region going to Saudi Arabia. The Middle East,
specifically Saudi Arabia, together with United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, and Qatar,
has always been the top destination of OFWs because the region has been embarking
on massive development projects since the 1970s. As a consequence, there has been a
continuous increase in the inflow of OFWs in these countries (Department of Labor and
Employment [DOLE], 2006).
In most cases, Filipino workers are in demand abroad because of their proficiency in the
English language, their training in Western standards of education, their reputation as
being hardworking, resourceful, adaptable, and patient employees with a willingness to
accept lower compensation, and as a value added for some employers, their adherence to
Christian values (Macaraeg, 2005).
The Philippines is one of the largest suppliers of a variety of workers deployed overseas
such as doctors, engineers, nurses, teachers, technicians, production workers, caregivers,
entertainers, domestic workers, and many others. Limited domestic employment
opportunities as well as a high compensation package attract many educated workers to
seek overseas employment (Macaraeg 2005).
Over these years, the top three occupational groups invariably have been production
workers, service workers and professional workers. In 2006, production workers accounted
for 48 per cent of the total while service workers and professional workers constituted
35 per cent and 12 per cent respectively. In relation to this, data also show that OFWs are
widely dispersed across the globe with concentrations in developed countries such as the
Australia, Canada, Japan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Taiwan, and the USA
The household and related workers category constitutes the biggest major occupational
group in 2006, accounting for almost 30 per cent of the total deployed land-based new
hires. ‘Domestic helper’ is among the job categories, which was recorded as among the
largest number of Filipino workers deployed overseas with a volume of 91,451. From
the data, it can be seen that the country deploys workers from all types of occupational
groups, mostly of the skilled-worker type.
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Impact of temporary labour migration on the demand for education:
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Recently, the number of high school graduates taking up overseas employment has
declined and there has been an increasing trend of college graduates being deployed
abroad as OFWs. This is because the current international labour market demands
significant educational achievement among its recruits, particularly a college degree.
Even production jobs in the world-leading manufacturers demand workers with advanced
education and skills.
Consequently, many Filipino degree holders are enticed to go abroad because they could
reap better benefits there, resulting in a brain drain. Nonetheless, college undergraduates
as well as those with lower educational attainments still manage to go and find jobs abroad
as domestic helpers, factory workers, construction workers, entertainers and other work,
which does not require any specific technical background.
Data show that the bulk of OFWs have business related courses. On the other hand, the
figures for nursing and engineering are very similar. These figures are reasonable in that
both have a fair share of demand across the globe. Nursing professionals are highly sought
after in developed countries with ageing populations, such as Japan, as well as in those
countries with insufficient labour supply to sustain their economic activities. Likewise,
engineers are highly demanded in developing and developed countries embarking on
massive developmental projects, specifically in construction and reclamation such as
Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates (UAR). Finally, the exodus of teachers continues
to grow, from an average of 73 teachers in previous years, to 221 teachers per year recently
opting to teach in the USA according to POEA. Professionals and skilled workers choose to
work in other countries because of the relatively higher pay they can get abroad compared
to working in the Philippines.
The volume of migration of skilled professionals has been an increasing trend over the
years and Philippine top government officials see nothing wrong with this (Manalansan,
2003). “The labor and health departments are even instituting mechanisms to enhance the
country’s capability to send ‘globally-competitive’ professionals abroad” (Manalansan,
2003). Moreover, the Philippine Government expressed powerlessness over the
overwhelming number of professionals leaving the country to work abroad. However, the
Commission on Higher Education (CHED) makes sure that local nursing graduates are on
a par with international standards and this is done through the Technical Education Skills
Development Authority (TESDA).
There has been an increasing trend of Filipino professional and skilled workers,
particularly nurses, migrating to developed countries due to high rates of pay.
Consequently, there is a proliferation of nursing ‘diploma mills’ or schools offering poor
quality nursing education (Ronda, 2008) resulting in an unsatisfactory pass rate in the
licensing examination for nurses, thus ruining the reputation of the Philippines as the
leading producer of high-quality nurses in the global labour market
Studies have also established that family characteristics (Borromeo, Castillo and Lopez,
2007), and structures (Biblarz and Raftery, 1999) have an influence on a family’s demand
for education. Moreover, Binder and Woodruff (1999) and Lillard and Willis (1994)
established a positive relationship between the educational attainment of parents and that
of their children. Blake (1981), on the other hand, established that students who have more
siblings achieve lower levels of education, as resources are diverted towards the other
needs of the family like food, clothing and shelter. In addition to this, Plug and Vijverberg
(2001) and Hauser and Daymont (1977) also established that those with higher income
levels helped further the demand for higher educational attainment.
The usual analysis for the demand for education is centered on internal factors. However,
globalization’s effects and enhanced trade in services need to be taken into consideration,
especially with regard to the movement of persons and how this affects the demand for
education. Two major drivers that enhance the movement of people across boundaries to
render temporary service are (1) the process of globalization and (2) the economic and
demographic asymmetries across countries (Tullao and Cortez, 2006a).
However, the movement of persons represents a brain drain which can be considered as
a loss of skilled talent and labour from one’s country. A person’s drive to increase his/her
human capital may lead them to seek employment abroad, since pay is higher overseas
(Tullao and Cortez, 2006b). This leaves the domestic human resource pool with less skilled
or qualified human resources, thus contributing to labour inefficiencies and higher labour
costs. Aside from this, the brain drain also increases the demand for education (Tullao,
1982).
Where EDUC is the educational expenditure of a household; DHI is the domestic, internally
generated household income; REMIT is the remittance income that a household receives
from abroad; HSIZE is the household size; SCHL represents the number of household
members between ages 7 to 24 that demand education; EDUHH is the highest educational
attainment of the household head; and AGEHH is the age of the household head.
It was found that domestic income and remittances from abroad increased educational
expenditure, since (1) education is a consumer durable good whose consumption increases
as income increases and (2) education can also be considered as an investment good,
since this enhances the productivity of household members in the long run. Household
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Impact of temporary labour migration on the demand for education:
implications for human resource development in the Philippines
size on the other hand, reduces educational expenditure since the family tends to spend
their limited resources on other necessities like food, shelter and clothing. The number
of members of the household that demand schooling obviously increases educational
expenditure. Moreover, the educational attainment and age of the household head also
has a positive influence on the demand for education of the household, thus increasing
educational expenditure.
As shown, the results follow the a-priori expectations of our model, and all of the
coefficients of elasticity are significant at the 95 per cent confidence level. The results are
also consistent with the findings of Hauser and Daymont (1977) and Plug and Vijverberg
(2001). The negative coefficient of HSIZE, representing the effect of household size on
educational expenditure is also consistent with the findings and a-priori expectations of
Blake (1981) and Eijick and de Graaf (1995).
In tracing the impact of overseas employment on the demand for higher education, a
general demand function for higher education is shown below.
The general demand equation for higher education for all year programmes at year t
(DHEt) is a function of per capital real GDP of the Philippines at time t (PCRGDPt), average
real remittances at time t (ARREMITPt), the consumer price index for services at time t
(CPISERVt) and the volume of employed workers who possess a college degree at time t
(EMt).
The demand for higher education is proxied by college enrolment. This is a good
approximate since there are no supply constraints with respect to higher education
in the Philippines. Real GDP per capita and remittances from abroad (in Philippine
pesos), proxies for income are expected to have a positive relationship with educational
demand, since education is deemed to be a normal good. Following the law of demand,
the consumer price index for services estimates the price for education, and this would
indicate an inverse relationship with the demand for education. Lastly, employment
captures how great the employment opportunities are, and thus a positive relationship
between educational demand and educational employment is predicted. Using 1992 to
2005 data from the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the National Statistics
Office (NSO), we utilized panel data econometric techniques in analyzing the relationships
between these variables.
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Impact of temporary labour migration on the demand for education:
implications for human resource development in the Philippines
the dummy variable trap, Accountancy is chosen as a base degree. The model specification
is shown below.
It can be seen from the results that the income variable as measured by per capita real
gross domestic product has a positive and significant effect on enrolment. Holding
all other factors constant, for every percentage increase in the PCRGDP, there will
be 3.5 percent increase in the demand for higher education across all degrees taken
into consideration. Average remittances also have a positive and significant effect on
enrolment. However, it is inelastic with respect to enrolment. These results are consistent
with the previous OLS regressions as well as with the study of Hauser and Daymont
(1977) and Plug and Vijverberg (2001). Price has a significant and negative effect on
educational demand which is consistent with the Law of Demand. However, employment
does not follow our a-priori expectations and exhibits a counter-intuitive negative
relationship with demand instead. A rational individual will choose and demand a degree
programme which enables him to recover the cost of education in the future through the
job opportunities waiting after finishing his degree. Notice also that there are varying
intercepts for each degree, except that of the Nursing dummy. This means that Nursing has
the same regression function as that of Accountancy.
Further diagnostic testing revealed that severe serial correlation exists in the model
used. Therefore, we followed Gujarati (2003) and did separate regressions for the model
excluding employment and the model including employment alone.
The estimated coefficients of PCRGDP, ARREMITP, and CPISERV are consistent with the
initial panel regression. Moreover, the nursing dummy is now significant at the 10 per cent
which implies that nursing has a different regression function from accountancy. This
is more acceptable because it is deemed that all degrees have their respective inherent
characteristics such as programme cost and programme duration, which greatly affects
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Impact of temporary labour migration on the demand for education:
implications for human resource development in the Philippines
Weaknesses have been identified in terms of inadequate faculty credentials, impractical and
outdated curricular offerings, a weak accreditation system, poor graduates’ performance
in licensing examinations and inadequate financing. Given these weaknesses of HEIs in the
Philippines, the ability of the country to continue supplying manpower in various parts of
the world is at risk. Unless these major problems are addressed, the Philippines may not be
able to supply the world with the qualified manpower coming from HEIs with inadequate
human and physical resources to produce graduates that are competitive in the global
market that is increasingly leaning towards knowledge-based industries.
Given the popularity and acceptance of our professionals and graduates in the global
labour market as shown in the increasing trend of outflows of skilled and professional
workers, we can possibly liberalize trade in the country’s educational services.
Harnessing the potential of the Philippines as a regional base for education has two
requirements: (1) The willingness of suppliers to be more liberal and open to other modes
of supply and (2) Meeting the requirements of providing educational services through
such modes of supply. By modes of supply, we can refer to the GATS 4 modes of supply:
(1) Cross-border transactions where online academic activities like exams and lectures
can take place; (2) Consumption abroad, where foreigners opt to study in the Philippines
instead of in their home countries (an example would be foreigners choosing to study
English here); (3) Commercial presence where actual establishments of branches of local
educational institutions are made abroad; and (4) Movement of natural persons where
people like professors travel abroad and undertake visiting professorships, research
abroad and the like.
With ever increasing cross-border education brought about by legal rules and agreements
that bind contracting parties, urgent attention must be given to the question of quality
assurance (AQ) and accreditation of educational service providers. In order to establish
uniformity and maintain quality in higher education provision, there will be a need to set
accreditation criteria and quality assurance mechanisms that are mutually acceptable to
other countries
As shown from the coefficients of our regression equations, households with OFWs tend
to spend more on education than families who do not receive external remittances at the
same level of income. This means from the perspective of the culture of migration that
families tend to invest in education as a way of preparing their family members to migrate
subsequently. There is now a shift in the reason for choosing degree programmes – from
domestic employment to employment overseas.
This alteration of academic thrusts has serious implications. First, financing public
higher education institutions would seem to be a waste of resources, since human capital
produced would eventually ‘flow’ out of the country. As more funds are reallocated
towards public higher education, funds for basic education may be substantially reduced.
And given an increasing school-age population, the quality and access to basic education
is imperiled with such reallocation.
There are social costs in the exodus of graduates of HEIs to seek employment overseas
– and these costs have to be quantified. These are enormous considering that public
funds were used to educate the brightest students and their exit may entail a drain on the
country’s human resources.
One of the main drawbacks of external migration is the phenomenon of brain drain.
The increase in the human capital value of professionals produced by this training and
educational expenditure may push many of them to work overseas, which may lead to the
problem of brain drain (Tullao and Cortez, 2006).
As more employment opportunities abroad open up, many local academics will opt to
migrate. The ‘brain drain’ will certainly be harmful to the economy as other countries
will reap the benefits of the education and training provided by the Philippine education
system. Training their replacements will entail additional expenses, with no assurance
that these replacements will remain in the country.
5. Conclusion
The overall objective of this study is to explore the extent to which temporary labour
migration affects the demand for education. As a consequence of this relationship, there is
a need to evaluate its impact on the human resource development of the country.
In this study, we have seen the increasing extent and magnitude of temporary labour
migration in the Philippines, specifically the migration of professional and highly-skilled
workers. We have also empirically verified that those receiving external remittances tend
to spend more on education than those who do not. Moreover, we find that education
is a normal good – the higher the income of a household, the higher its expenditure
on education. Regional and income-wise regressions also follow the coefficients in the
national setting, except for that of the lowest income decile, where resources tend to be
spent on other basic necessities instead of education.
In estimating the demand for higher education, we also verify that real per capita GDP,
prices for services, remittances and even degree programmes affect educational demand.
Also, the strong relationship between overseas employment and the demand for education
has major implications for the human resource development of the country, the: (i)
globalization of trade in educational services; (ii) redirection of the thrust in higher
education; (iii) threat to sectors with heavy migration of manpower, and (iv) long-term loss
to the economy.
Faced with these predicaments, what do we do? First, we need to improve the management
of temporary labour migration. Second, there is a need to address the negative
consequences of labour migration, such as brain drain. Third, remittances ought to
be redirected towards income and employment-generating activities instead of just
consumption in order to address the negative effects of temporary labour migration.
Lastly, since the Government cannot control the volume of labour migration, it should
focus on investing more on education, health and other human capital-enhancing
expenditure to increase the competitiveness of our workers in the global labour market.
130 • Occasional paper no.16 • Selected Papers from the Global Research Seminar on Sharing Research Agendas on Knowledge Systems
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Impact of temporary labour migration on the demand for education:
implications for human resource development in the Philippines
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Contact details:
Tereso S. Tullao,
Professor of Economics,
Center for Business and Economics Research and Development,
De La Salle University – Manila,
2401 Taft Avenue, 1004 Manila,
the Philippines.
e-mail: tullaot@dlsu.edu.ph
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