Power of Global-Local Partnerships: An Assessment of Global, National and Local Stakeholders of Religious, Higher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

When post-secondary education (PSE) in Africa is viewed in terms of growth rather than total enrolment the region tops the list of impressive trends. Between the years 1985 and 2005 the countries of sub-Saharan Africa experienced the largest growth of PSE involvement of any region with total enrolment increasing fourfold. The insatiable student demand is being met by a proliferation of large-scale and small-scale religious denominations establishing post-secondary education. The current chapter provides a categorical, multi-levelled analysis of the growth of religious providers in sub-Saharan Africa. Particular attention is given to the activities and rationales of stakeholders who play a part in the establishment and continued operations of religious PSE. Using Marginson and Rhoades’s (2002) glonacal agency heuristic, the networks between stakeholders and their varying degrees of influence on regional PSE are described and discussed. The findings suggest that PSE in the region is being widely provided by small-scale denominations establishing religious training institutions. But the influence of this PSE is mainly limited to local communities.

Citation

Karram, G. (2013), "Power of Global-Local Partnerships: An Assessment of Global, National and Local Stakeholders of Religious, Higher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa", IThe Development of Higher Education in Africa: Prospects and Challenges (International Perspectives on Education and Society, Vol. 21), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 161-183. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1479-3679(2013)0000021009