Problem Statement

While current research has identified the history of education and educational attainment in Namibia, there is an apparent lack of quality evidence on the contribution of education policies to economic development in this nation. This study seeks to consolidate current research on this connection. The approach used is referring to reports and studies developed specific to the Namibian education system and outline how changes in policy have affected education as well as their impact on development.

Major Questions to be Answered

1. What is the impact of Namibia’s Education and Training Sector Improvement Program (ETSIP) on educational outcomes compared to Botswana’s education policy?

2. What is the impact of Namibia’s education policies on economic development since 1990?

3. What factors of Namibia’s education policy can be improved to enhance the contribution of education to economic development?

Method

Systematic literature review and qualitative exploratory

Qualitative Questions and areas of Focus

• Systematic review searches for Namibia from independence in 1990
• Focus on education contribution to economic development
• What could be done to promote a knowledge-based economy through contributions of the education sector to the economy?
• Education policy changes over the years and impact on economy

Modified CASP Tool for Qualitative Assessment

1) Was there a clear statement of the aims of the research?

2) Was the recruitment strategy appropriate to the aims of the research?

3) Has the relationship between researcher and participants been adequately considered?

4) Have ethical issues been taken into consideration?

5) Was the data analysis sufficiently rigorous?

6) Is there a clear statement of findings?

7) Describes how valuable the research is?

Assumptions

The primary role of education in any country is to prepare learners to contribute positively to the economy. This can be achieved by instilling knowledge and skills that learners can use to innovatively contribute to economic growth. Based on this assumption, the extent to which the education sector contributes to the economy can be estimated.

Causal Theory

Education is the foundation for economic development. It is the ground on which social and economic efficiency are built by preparing labor to raise people from poverty to economic prosperity. It is expected that the quality of education policy can be estimated by the contribution it makes to the economy.

Ethical Considerations

1. How relationship between researcher and research participants affect the research process.
2. The informed consent of participants and confidentiality.
3. Quality of evidence provided by articles considered for the systematic review.
4. Impact of research on research participants.

Annotated Bibliography

Akuupa, M., Kazembe, L. N., Nickanor, N. M., & Oherein, D. (2018). Education-occupation mismatch among the youth in Namibia: Evidence from the Labour Force Survey data (2012 and 2013). ISTJN 2018, 11:51-69

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This article uses a national labor survey in Namibia to highlight the education-occupation mismatch in the country. It is useful in showing how the education sector links to the economic sector. Primarily, the article shows a high rate of mismatch, showing that the education sector might not be significantly contributing to economic development. Therefore, the article will be used as a part of the systematic review to determine the connection between education policy and economic performance in the nation.

Bobek, V., Moritz, J., & Horvat, T. (2019). Namibia’s Triple Challenge and Its Economic Development. In Perspectives on Economic Development-Public Policy, Culture, and Economic Development. IntechOpen. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88638

This article is a book chapter with two main areas of study. The theoretical part shows the connection between economic development and economic culture and performance. This connection is used to show the importance of policies that support economic development on the education system. The second empirical part analyzes the economic development indices in Namibia. This analysis will be useful in the research because it reveals information pertinent to the Namibian economy and its connection to education policies which are the core aspect of study in this project.

Jackson, S. J., Pompe, A., & Krieshok, G. (2011). Things fall apart: Maintenance, repair, and technology for education initiatives in rural Namibia. In Proceedings of the 2011 iConference (pp. 83-90). https://wtf.tw/ref/jackson.pdf

This paper is a discussion on the social science surrounding infrastructure maintenance and repair. Empirically, the researchers delve into maintenance and repair processes in the Kavango region and Rundu in Northeastern Namibia. The research focuses specifically on schools in the area and how infrastructure maintenance and repair have affected ICT implementation and maintenance. The research will be used to show how ICT policies affect education outcomes and the creation of a knowledge-based economy in the country.

Jellenz, M., Bobek, V., & Horvat, T. (2020). Impact of education on sustainable economic development in emerging markets—the case of Namibia’s tertiary education system and its economy. Sustainability, 12(21), 8814. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12218814

Namibia’s tertiary education system and its contribution to economic development have been studied extensively by different researchers including in this research article. The transformation of Namibia into a knowledge-based economy in line with Vision 2030 have also been discussed with the current tertiary education. Jellenz and colleagues conclude that the nation’s education system aligns with these goals and it is on the right track to transforming to a knowledge-based economy.

Ministry of Basic Education Sport and Culture. (2007, Feb.). Education and Training Sector Improvement Programme (ETSIP): Planning for a Learning Nation. Republic of Namibia. https://planipolis.iiep.unesco.org/sites/default/files/ressources/namibia_etsip_2007.pdf

This report is a source document by the ministry of education on the ETSIP, Namibia’s largest education policy since independence. The report analyses the education and training systems in Namibia at detail to propose approaches to achieving a knowledge-based economy in line with vision 2030. The document presents the set objectives and project implementation phases. This can be used to determine the current policy efforts to drive the nation’s commitment to improving education achievement.