e-Learning has the potential to solve Africa's human resource gap

By Bakary Diallo. Over the past decade, Africa has experienced unparalleled economic growth, putting the continent on a pedestal to become the next growth frontier. Development experts predict that economies in Africa will continue to grow at an average of 6% even while the rest of the world is facing an economic slump.
McKinsey Global Institute, a leading economic research institution, predicts that the financial services, retail, telecommunications and construction sectors in Africa will attract more private-investment inflows.
While there is much optimism surrounding Africa’s growth potential, the continent appears to be lagging behind in training the necessary human resources to match its rosy economic growth prospects.
Although the number of students enrolling in tertiary education has been growing, the proportions are still dismally low, with only 6% of school-leavers in Sub-Saharan Africa entering tertiary institutions.
Educationists and economists have observed that if Africa is going to compete in the global economy, at least 12% to 15% of the continent’s workforce should have attained tertiary education. More...