Suchergebnisse

The relationship between African universities and their governments tends to be strained, whether these governments are political or military. Those in power often have little experience of higher education or understanding of its needs and there is little consensus about its goals. Political and economic insecurity provides little opportunity for "ivory tower theorizing"; low wages and inadequate resources are a poor basis for the research which needs to be done. Governments provide declining support and want a lot for their money. Universities are expected to become partly self-supporting through research contracts and charges to students, and teaching "relevant" subjects is supposed to prepare students for real jobs (which are often a future hope rather than a present reality). As beneficiaries of government cash, staff and students should not criticize or challenge government interests. Much is said about the benefits of science and engineering courses and of the wastefulness of humanities courses, ignoring the fact that governments are usually run by people with arts rather than science degrees.

The relationship between African universities and their governments tends to be strained, whether these governments are political or military. Those in power often have little experience of higher education or understanding of its needs and there is little consensus about its goals. Political and economic insecurity provides little opportunity for "ivory tower theorizing"; low wages and inadequate resources are a poor basis for the research which needs to be done. Governments provide declining support and want a lot for their money. Universities are expected to become partly self-supporting through research contracts and charges to students, and teaching "relevant" subjects is supposed to prepare students for real jobs (which are often a future hope rather than a present reality). As beneficiaries of government cash, staff and students should not criticize or challenge government interests. Much is said about the benefits of science and engineering courses and of the wastefulness of humanities courses, ignoring the fact that governments are usually run by people with arts rather than science degrees.

Many people argue that 'modernization' will deprive the African elderly of their former roles and support. This paper focusses on the positive side. It argues that help has always been limited by resources and that 'development' will limit resources even further. Many elderly Africans receive support from children and grandchildren- as do large numbers of elderly people in industrialized countries; a few elderly Africans are entirely dependent on this help. Most get less help than they need, and some are abandoned, for various reasons. But this has always been the case. Although there were many problems, the majority of children in the studies reported here gave financial, material or physical help to their parents, depending on their circumstances. While governments develop welfare programmes, it is useful to measure the variability of help received, of various types, by men and women, urban and rural residents, in different regions and countries. Such information can help governments and NGOs to target those who are most in need.