Technological Infrastructure and Use of ICT in Education in ... - ADEA

50 Working Group on Distance Education and Open Learning
however, is also a function of the geography and climatic conditions of
this region. Of these ten countries, the Democratic Republic of Congo
and Mozambique have the lowest percentage urban population. This
rural-urban split is important because there are generally higher poverty
levels in rural areas, which have less access to all forms of services and
infrastructure, including education. While the population of all ten countries
is predicted to continue growing from 2000-2015, evidence of lower
rates of growth is apparent for most of the countries listed above. 4
Per capita income also varies widely, with people in Congo DR living on an
average of US$765 per year compared to US$23,569 for OECD countries.
The percentage of people living below the poverty (PPP) line ($1 and $2
per day) is telling. In Nigeria, the vast majority of the population lives
below the poverty line, with 90.8% of Nigerians earning less than $2 a
day. South Africa, the country with the highest GDP per capita in Africa, still
has 35.8% of the population living on less then $2 a day. These statistics
are especially important when educational issues are considered, since
many studies have shown that children are forced to work (either for
wages or for subsistence) in conditions of poverty.
According to statistics presented in the Human Development Report
2002, several African countries have shown a negative GDP per capita
growth rate between 1995 and 2000. These countries include Algeria
(-0.1), Sao Tome & Principe (-0.8), Kenya (-0.5), Cameroon (-0.8), Congo
(-3.4), Togo (-0.4), Madagascar (-0.9), Nigeria (-0.4), Djibouti (-3.9), Congo
DR (-8.2), Gambia (-0.3), Angola (-1.8), Rwanda (-2.1), Central African
Republic (-0.5), Chad (-0.8), Guinea-Bissau (-1.1), Burundi (-4.7), Niger
(-1.0) and Sierra Leone (-6.5).
5. Socio-Economic Context of Sub-Saharan Africa
Table 2 (on page 51) provides information about the health and wellbeing
status of people living in Africa. It is evident that life expectancy
varies widely across countries. Out of the ten countries listed here, all
for which information was available have problems with nutritional
provision. This is especially the case for Congo DR, Mozambique and
Kenya, where more than 50% of the population are undernourished.
Once again, this has important implications for education since cognitive
development can be impaired when nutrition is poor. Furthermore,
there are high levels of children under the age of five years who are
under weight for their age. Nutritional problems early in life can have
4. Population growth statistics are likely to change dramatically in the next decade as the
effects of the HIV/AIDS pandemic become increasingly evident.