The Shifting Sands of University Management in Ethiopia

The Teacher, Vol 6, No 12, 2014

The need for changes in the governance of the Ethiopian education system has been emphasized as early as 1994 in the Ethiopian Education and Training Policy (ETP) which may be regarded as the precursor to many of the policies and changes within the education sector. However, it is the directions set in the Higher Education Proclamations of 2003 and 2009 that have clearly outlined the mechanisms by which Ethiopian universities should be governed. This paper outlines some of the major features and changes in the area and explores how much the principles and aspirations laid down have been translated into action in light of international trends. The focus areas chosen for discussion are the issues of autonomy, accountability and governance structures both at system and institutional level. The study exclusively dwells on public universities and draws its information from secondary sources. It is structured in a manner that discusses trends within the international literature followed by the actual practices in the Ethiopian set up. The conclusions drawn are offered at the end.

Higher Education Quarterly, 2009

There have been significant increases in the number of universities and student enrollments in the last fifteen years in Ethiopia. The numerical gains have brought about improved access to higher education for students. The expansion has also diversified fields of study and opened opportunities to pursue higher degrees to a significant number of students. Furthermore, the opportunity created for the university staff includes increased university job security, positions in the university leadership and scholarships for PhD degrees. On the other hand, the downside effects of the massification have worsened the conditions of university teaching staff. Among others, it has resulted in increasing work load and extended work schedules for academic staff. A managerialist culture has evolved that measures teaching against instrumental outcomes. There is a sense of deprofessionalisation and deskilling among staff manifested in practices that are disconnections from professional knowledge, skills and attitudes. As staff are increasingly over-engaged, by taking more weekly class hours and managerial responsibilities, less ‘down time’ is available to keeping with developments in their fields of specialisation and practice

While achieving a remarkable result in expansion in the past two decades, the Ethiopian higher education, suffers a number of challenges. Though the government has undertaken a series of general reforms on higher education, the problem of atching the ever growing demand, and supply of skilled manpower in its public universities is not anywhere near resolved. This by itself interprets into other numerous problems related to the academic profession. Academics is at the center of any higher education system. And hence, ensuring quality of higher education requires, among other things, identifying and resolving problems related to the acquisition and maintenance of skilled manpower. While the subject is under researched in the case of Ethiopia, this descriptive essay draws on related literature, document analysis and expert interview to reveal the major challenges of the academic profession in Ethiopian public universities and concludes that the recently embarked quality improvement projects cannot be achieved without resolving the problems of the academic profession.

2017

The article attempts to explore the overall patterns of governance of higher education institutions in Ethiopia in the recent past that witnessed the massification of higher education institutions, and to investigate and display the change and continuity that have been observed in the governance of these institutions. It tries to offer some insight concerning the governance aspect in the ever-expanding and the most pressing issue of the Ethiopian higher education system. The paper presents a snapshot of the contemporary higher education development in the past two decades and associated features in Ethiopia by identifying the central issues related to principally governance, the legal framework and the political context. As the boom of higher education in the country became prevalent the governance bottleneck is one evident issue that vehemently impacts the missions of the institutions. The indispensable governance issues did not equally accompany the expansion of the higher educati...

Journal of Higher Education in Africa

The article attempts to explore the overall patterns of governance of higher education institutions in Ethiopia in the recent past that witnessed the massification of higher education institutions, and to investigate and display the change and continuity that have been observed in the governance of these institutions. It tries to offer some insight concerning the governance aspect in the ever-expanding and the most pressing issue of the Ethiopian higher education system. The paper presents a snapshot of the contemporary higher education development in the past two decades and associated features in Ethiopia by identifying the central issues related to principally governance, the legal framework and the political context. As the boom of higher education in the country became prevalent the governance bottleneck is one evident issue that vehemently impacts the missions of the institutions. The indispensable governance issues did not equally accompany the expansion of the higher educati...

The Ethiopian predicament in establishing a service university is a function of several mismatches between university, society and state: (a) between society's mainly low-tech agricultural production and the university's production of academics; (b) between the state's need for investment finances in new economic activities and the lack thereof; (c) between the state and the university in terms of proper governance and how organisational changes in higher education should be made; and (d) different opinions between state and university about the proper balance between individual academic freedom, institutional autonomy and accountability to society and state. Turning mismatches into constructive national development suggests that the government should attract foreign capital for new production activities, under the specific condition that the foreigners should simultaneously invest a certain percentage in the country's higher education development. An important structural change would be to establish a dynamic and competent decision-making body at government level for science, technology and competence production. Donor countries and agencies ought to be encouraged to support Ethiopian development projects where research, tertiary-level training and business projects can work in an integrated fashion and where the Ethiopian 'surplus' academic workforce power could be applied abroad.

International Journal of Research in Engineering & Management , 2021

The goal of this research was to assess the obstacles and possibilities for higher education expansion at Kotebe Metropolitan and Saint Mary Universities in Addis Ababa. In effect, the study looks at how the expansion of higher educational institutions affects problems and possibilities in the teaching and learning process, curricular material, quality considerations research preparation and so on. The study was carried out using a descriptive survey research approach. A total of 200 students and 100 instructors were chosen at random from these universities. To assess the students' and lecturers' responses, two types of Five-Point Likert-type scale questionnaires were issued. The researcher used an observation checklist to perform observations with the aid of two lecturers. Statistical techniques such as frequency counts, percentages, mean, and grand mean were used to analyze the data. The study's findings indicated that fast development of higher educational institutions has created difficulties, such as accepting fewer qualified students. In terms of growth potential, the study found that expansion boosts demand for higher education. According to the findings, university managers should investigate new ideas and information in order to balance expansion with the desired quality of teaching and learning processes. Finally, suggestions were made on the assignment of moderately competent candidates to these expanding universities.

Focusing on modern-day political provisions that are imposed on higher education, I will give a brief overview for an otherwise broad and contentious issue; the contemporary challenges of present-day higher education, and particularly higher education in Addis Ababa University (AAU).

International Journal of Educational Reform

This article discusses and analyzes the state of university autonomy in Ethiopia at a time when the country has embarked on massive expansion of the sector, and universities are established out of urban centers based on regional equity. Legislative provisions and case study reports were reviewed, and lived experiences documented with emphasis on academic, financial, staffing, and governance matters. Following, generalizations were made in order that the country benefits out of the sector.