To be the great servant to the needs of a country it ought to be, education
needs Enterprise. Bridging the gap between Education systems and a nation's direction remains the
most urgent task poor countries are faced with if true transformation is to
happen. Education (on its own) doesn’t really transform communities. An orientation towards entrepreneurship provides the catalyst that turns skills and ideas into better livelihoods and flourishing nations. I have
increasingly come to see that education (even at its best) is just one side of
the coin. In a sense, the purpose of an education system is to put skills and
attitudes into the hands of a people.
However, the best education systems in the world not just put any skills and
attitudes into the hands of the people of a country; these skills and attitudes
must be productive and intentionally designed to reflect the current and future needs
and goals of that country.
The best way of thinking about this is to view education as
the task of building potential energy, while entrepreneurship employs this
potential in the task of exploring opportunities and solving real problems
facing communities. At first sight, this may seem like a simple distinction but
a little reflection will show just how important it is for countries to make
sure the education taking place in schools serves the collective needs of that
country.
My point is, countries like ours should first ask and
justify the answer to the question “What goals and outcomes do we seek as a
country at this point in time?” Then, and only then should we ask the question;
“What will an education system that best serves the realization of these goals and outcomes look
like?” This way, Education is viewed not as the question itself, but rather the answer
to a more important question of where we are headed as a nation; the challenges
and opportunities we face and the path we choose to pursue as a people.
Entrepreneurship answers the questions
“What problem or unmet need exists in this context?” and “How can this need be
met in the most efficient and economically viable way?” In essence, while education
has great push power to develop the necessary attitudes, creativity and problem
solving skills, it is entrepreneurship that uses these skills and ideas to provide
responses to the challenges and opportunities existing in communities. Seen in this
way, entrepreneurship (a.k.a solving problems and meeting the needs of
communities) delivers the results countries desire.
Everything else being the same, it seems like countries tend
to move along a destined path based on a complex weaving of social and cultural
factors. Yet we have also heard examples of struggling countries that suddenly
magicked their way out of poverty and set themselves forth on a new path towards
transformation and prosperity. While China, Singapore and other Asian countries
are the well-known examples of this sort of transformation, the changes happening in
places like Rwanda, Kenya and other African countries show an increasing
realization in the power of entrepreneurship as the fuel needed to achieve the goals and
aspirations of countries.
The president, his team and all elected representatives are working hard to provide answers to what needs to be done (and how) to result in the best outcomes
for our country. Yet, entrepreneurship may just be the best answer to their
worries and sleepless nights. Perhaps the best thing about focusing on entrepreneurship, in my view,
is that it is such a great pull factor that that forces radical institutional change,
provides the money (in the form of taxes) that governments need to pursue
their national agendas, provides self-funding yet effective solutions to local needs
and opportunities, and makes the best use of available
resources.
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