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The quests and advocacies for co-operations, alliances, integration and unity amongst African countries are quite historical, and are ever resonating in discourses on international relations. It is such advocacies that birthed the idea for the formation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Southern African Development Community (SADC), etc. Unfortunately, not even the rationale for the metamorphosis from OAU to the African Union (AU) has been able to entrench the much desired unity of purpose amongst African states. This paper posits that the conversations on strategies for a closer and sustainable integration in Africa should not only be centred on socio-economic and political paradigms, but should deeply reflect cultural cum educational matrixes. The paper hypothesizes that cultural transmission, which is a fundamental goal of any educational system, has to be emphatically explored in the drive for integration and unity in Africa. It therefore conceptually highlighted the link between culture and education in regional integration, with reminiscences of such linkages in Africa. The paper however observes that, beyond the affirmations and declarations arising from Treaties and Charters by some regional fora in Africa, the varied uses of education for the purposes of cultural transmission, promotion of African history and languages, in addition to the merits of intellectual exchanges, are to be further surveyed as the plausible templates that would encourage integration in Africa. Consequently, the paper suggests that socio-political institutions, governments, sub-regional blocs and other agents of diplomacy and development in Africa should carefully reconsider the multi-dimensional values of education in the realization of the dreams of African nationalists for a well-integrated and united Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Language & Law / Revista de Llengua i Dret is the property of Revista de Llengua i Dret and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Pope Francis has made the protection of our common home a central theme of his Papacy. This may be nowhere more important than in Africa, a continent that is already today highly vulnerable to climate shocks due in part to high levels of water stress in many countries, food insecurity, and forced displacement, among others. In this paper, we use household surveys from West African countries to explore the impact of covariate shocks (most of which are weather-related) and international migration as a potential response to shocks on educational outcomes for children of primary school age. The results suggest that shocks affect educational outcomes substantially, but that international migration may generate benefits for children of migrants. The paper also briefly discusses policy prescriptions on how to tackle climate change, arguing that education to sustainable development should be a priority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an attempt was made to locate the role of internationalisation in African Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). It is argued that comprehensive international, intercultural, and global dimensions in the affairs of African tertiary institutions provide for a more nuanced and diversified higher education landscape. Through a desk study approach, dwelling mainly on existing literature, the paper examines the issues of internationalisation from the perspectives of diversity and inclusion, as well as the roles of the relevant key players within those institutions to practically deliver internationalisation strategies that will put the institution on a global pedestal while remaining locally and regionally relevant. More importantly, strategies for achieving comprehensive internationalisation are discussed drawing inferences from literature and documentary sources. The interrogation of these sources in relation to the expectations of the current and future HEIs to remain socially relevant and sustainable is carried out. HEIs in Africa must contribute to socio-economic change and engage with their quad-helix and eco-system partners to ensure that high end skills training, knowledge production, entrepreneurship and innovation are accelerated. In so doing, African HEIs must embrace diversity in its fullness including welcoming differences in gender, race, culture, nationality and providing platforms of engagement that allow for inclusion, and breaking silos to allow for a nuanced agenda of internationalisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the pedagogical challenges and dilemmas surrounding film and media arts education within Nigerian tertiary institutions against deficient teaching facilities and infrastructure. Teaching film and media arts has rapidly developed in recent years. Many Nigerian universities now recognise the necessity of robust film/media pedagogy to complement and respond to the escalating growth of the country's indigenous film and entertainment industry. The onus is increasingly placed on Nigeria's tertiary institutions to spearhead the advancement of film and media arts education, premised on disseminating adequate practical knowledge, skills acquisition, and integrating international best practices. However, a pivotal issue emerges regarding whether Nigerian tertiary institutions possess the requisite facilities to fulfil and drive this pedagogical mandate. This paper argues that most Nigerian universities continue to emphasise theoretical instruction over practical application, constrained by the unavailability of resources required to execute a technologically immersive media pedagogy tailored to the needs of the nation's thriving creative industries. Drawing insights from a recent experimental pedagogical model undertaken at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, this paper highlights how an integrated pedagogical methodology combining conventional teaching formats with social media tools and platforms may potentially mitigate the difficulties imposed by insufficient practical teaching facilities for film education in most African tertiary institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the current situation of the provision of speech-language services in East Africa. An overview of the educational opportunities, workforce density, communication rehabilitation planning, caseload, and ethical and/or cultural challenges is provided. A narrative review was performed. All papers referring to communication disorders in East African countries were identified from EMBASE, PubMed, ISI Web of Science: Science Citation Index Expanded, and ISI Web of Science: Conference Proceedings Citation Index-Science using the following search terms: speech therapy, speech pathology, speech-language pathology, speech-language rehabilitation, speech-language therapy, logopedics, East Africa, communication disorders, communication difficulties. Two concepts were combined with a Boolean operator 'AND'. At present, there is an alarming shortage of speech-language pathologists in East Africa. This issue is mainly related to the limited availability of educational programs in speech-language pathology. Although more and more universities are beginning to offer such educational programs, the number of available speech-language pathologists is still too low to meet the needs of all children with communication disorders. In addition, speech-language pathologists are often faced with different cultural and ethical obstacles when they provide intervention to East African children with communication disorders. These speech-language pathologists are therefore challenged to take a broader view of their role as a therapist. These alternative roles often include training of other individuals in the context of community-based rehabilitation. In the future, it will be important to carefully consider the development of sustainable learning opportunities in East African contexts. Initiatives, for example, "train-the-trainer" workshops, are needed to support the speechlanguage pathologists. Existing models like the communication disability model can aid to create holistic frameworks for the development of sustainable speech-language services in the East African countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Christian missions in colonial Africa have contributed significantly to the expansion of formal education and thereby shaped the continent's long-term economic and political development. This paper breaks new ground by showing that this process depended on local demand for education. It is argued that disagreements over norms, and in particular the struggle over polygamy, which resulted from missions' insistence on monogamy in traditionally polygamous areas, lowered African demand for education. Analyses of geocoded data from historical and contemporary sources, covering most of sub-Saharan Africa, show that the struggle is associated with worse educational outcomes today. Effects are not limited to formal attainments but carry over to informal outcomes, in particular literacy. The findings attest to considerable heterogeneity in missionary legacies and suggest that local conditions should be given greater consideration in future studies on the long-term consequences of colonial-era interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historical research on the race between education and technology has focused on the West but barely touched upon 'the rest'. A new occupational wage database for 50 African and Asian economies allows us to compare long‐run patterns in skill premiums across the colonial and post‐colonial eras (c. 1870–2010). Our data reveal three major patterns. First, skilled labour was considerably more expensive in colonial Africa and Asia than in pre‐industrial Europe. Second, skill premiums were distinctly higher in Africa than in Asia. Third, in both regions, skill premiums fell dramatically over the course of the twentieth century, ultimately converging to levels long observed in the West. Our paper takes a first step to explain both the origins of the Africa–Asia gap and the drivers of global skill premium convergence, paying special attention to the colonial context that shaped demand, supply, and labour market institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the role of precolonial class inequality systems in the intergenerational transmission of education processes amongst ethnic groups in Africa. Using ethnographic and household survey data from six African countries and grouping ethnic groups by the historical class system that existed within them, I observe variations in intergenerational persistence between them with varying levels of significance in the different countries included. The findings suggest that understanding intergenerational mobility within African countries should take into account the different historical ethnic group characteristics, although the mobility process does not evolve uniformly across countries. Country-specific colonial administrative systems and the immediate post-independence education policies are critical factors that also need to be taken into account to understand the changes in education-based intergenerational persistence from the precolonial to the contemporary period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, expenditure in defence and security has been rising for the past two decades. Many reasons account for this phenomenon. Among them are increasing threats, and economic and geopolitical competitions. In Africa, not a day passes without security incidents which often results in heavy casualties leading to loss of lives and properties. Security has become a huge developmental challenge on the checklist of almost all countries in the world and this is no different in Africa in general and West Africa in particular. Every year countries in Africa invest billions of dollars in security to ensure that lives and properties are protected. These investments are in the procurement of new equipment, training and capacity building, maintenance and materiel, administration and operations. These expenditures are recurrent and often do not yield direct benefits to the country’s Gross Domestic Product as often expressed by the citizenry. Some have argued that though these huge recurrent expenditure on security are worthwhile, concerns have been expressed about the low level of citizen security education in West Africa. This is because some believe that when the citizens are well informed enough about the security threats and what they should do, incidents of security will be reduced. The paper focuses on the roles of government in citizen security education and awareness and explores the ways that citizen security education and awareness can be improved to reduce security threats and harm to the people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Cumhuriyet Medical Journal is the property of Cumhuriyet Medical Journal and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Over the past decade, hundreds of youth leadership initiatives have been established globally with the mission of grooming a new generation of leaders. This paper examines this largely unstudied and rapidly expanding leadership pipeline based on an ongoing study, which has collected data on 277 programmes that: target African youth, offer educational training or professional development, and have goals of cultivating leaders who will contribute to African development; and interviewed and surveyed 240 youth participants. Our purpose is twofold: (1) we offer an overview of the organisational approaches of these initiatives, which reveal a global ecosystem within and beyond Africa that is investing billions of dollars into youth leadership. Then, using case studies of the African Leadership Academy and University, and the Young African Leadership Initiative, (2) we ask what their tendency toward elite-driven strategies, corporate leadership models, and foreign collaboration may indicate about their larger politics and likely impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The informal sector is dominant in developing economies, and the vast majority of the poor rely on it. There is much to learn about informal firms—the "businesses of the poor"—as little is known about the drivers of their performance. The present paper attempts to fill this gap in the literature by analyzing how labor productivity of informal firms in developing countries depends on the level of education of the manager or the main decision‐maker of the firm. Using survey data for 3,854 informal or unregistered firms in 18 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, we find that labor productivity is 28% to 33% higher when the manager has secondary or higher education versus only primary education or no education. The finding is robust to various robustness checks including parametric and semi‐parametric specifications and confirmed using instrumental variables estimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teaching and learning were disrupted due to lockdown imposed as part of efforts to curb the spread of the COVID19 virus that hit the world in 2020. As a result, many national governments requested educational establishments to migrate their teachings online. In Africa, internet penetration has improved in the last decade. However, the continent still lags in integrating the Internet into learning. Besides, there is unequal access to technologies used in online education and unequal access to data and connectivity. Regarding access to quality learning, the COVID-19 pandemic has widened the gap between the rich and the poor and has exposed society's fragility. This paper evaluates the strategies of African leaders in sustaining access to learning and the experience of learners during COVID19 lockdown. It argues that most African countries' educational systems are unprepared for the sudden switch to online learning. Finally, it investigates future policy strategies in bringing more Africans out of the digital desert. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the performance of key factors influencing the prospect of Africa's poorest children avoiding being left behind in poverty by 2030 as required by the United Nation's Agenda for Sustainable Development, a set of sustainable development goals (SDGs) declared in 2015. At that time, sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) was facing both rising debt and deterioration of the fiscal space required to provide resources. Quantitative methods employing descriptive analysis on secondary data are used in this study to compare the trend of child poverty, as represented by under-5 mortality rates (U5MR), both over time and between country clusters. U5MR was chosen because it is an indicator of the well-being of a nation's children. Countries were "clustered" into quartiles based on their average U5MR between 2000 and 2018. The results indicate marked disparities in U5MR across SSA. No strong association was found between economic growth and U5MR, but good governance, as demonstrated by progress towards achieving the SDGs, correlates with decreases in both U5MR and the incidence of childhood stunting. In the first U5MR quartile, the SDG index score is over 50% in all child poverty indicators under consideration, whereas in the fourth quartile it is below 50%. SSA as a whole performed well in child poverty indicators from 2000 to 2015; however, consideration of the period from 2015 to 2018 suggests that much remains to be done to lift every child out of poverty. Within and across countries, critical areas for immediate attention include: improving sanitation and access to clean water and lowering the prevalence of anaemia and stunting; increasing the rates of exclusive breastfeeding, birth registration, and pre-primary enrolment; and reducing youth unemployment and socioeconomic disparities. Cash transfers to low-income families may help address the added economic insecurity due to COVID-19 that has left more children vulnerable to child marriage and child labour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How does entrepreneurial education impact the persistence and hysteresis of entrepreneurial intent? Survival analysis is used to answer this question based on a quasi-experimental design. Being a member of an incubator increases entrepreneurial hysteresis by 66%. Females who do not benefit from that experience are less likely to persevere as entrepreneurs while participating in an incubator increases their entrepreneurial persistence by 131%. A policy implication consists in rethinking higher education in general and in particular across gender lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using nationally representative survey data from 34 countries, we assess the extent of intergenerational educational mobility for three-quarters of Africa's population, over four decades and by gender. We employ both transition probability matrices and regression-based estimates of intergenerational elasticities and correlation coefficients. We find that the educational status of parents is a strong determinant of their children's educational outcomes, but the strength of this link has diminished in Africa between 1960 and 1999, particularly since the 1980s. We also find that there are considerable differences between countries and by gender. Those in the Southern and Central African region and those with historical links to former British colonies experience relatively higher intergenerational mobility in education. Intergenerational educational mobility is less pronounced for daughters than for sons and mother's education is generally more strongly associated with children's educational attainment than fathers' education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the findings of a systematic review that synthesizes the qualitative findings for acculturation and education experiences among African-born migrants. Systematic searches were conducted across seven databases for English language studies using qualitative research methodologies. The search strategy identified 25 studies (n = 511), and a meta-synthesis of their findings revealed that typically adoption of host culture enhanced African-born migrants' academic achievement, academic adjustment, and peer relationships, participation in education, and parent and guardian-based support. The findings were interpreted as suggesting that migrants who can adopt the host culture have better educational experiences. However, adoption of host culture in some cases was not related to better educational experiences. The findings of this review have implications for policy to support African-born migrants. • Synthesizes qualitative studies on African migrants' acculturation and education. • Acculturation to host typically positively impacts educational experiences. • Findings are largely in relation to language proficiency. • Found limited use of acculturation models in qualitative studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Africa is lagging in infrastructural development including Information and Communication Technology (ICT). As there are rising employment opportunities in the ICT-intensive industries globally including Africa, enhanced knowledge and use of ICT may tend to reduce youth unemployment in Africa. Thus, this study investigates the effect of ICT on youth unemployment in Africa using a sample of 41 African countries between 2003 and 2018. The study employs a dynamic Generalized Method of Moment (GMM) approach and constructs a composite ICT index to combine key indicators of ICT, using the principal component approach. We also account for the interactive role of education in the ICT-youth unemployment nexus. Relying on the Phillip curve theoretical model, the effect of inflation, physical capital accumulation, level of corruption, and economic growth are also examined. The results show that youth unemployment in Africa can be reduced by higher ICT deployment and usage, which confirms our hypothesis in this study. There is also evidence that education enhances the potential of ICT usage to reduce youth unemployment. Furthermore, we find that the Phillip curve hypothesis holds, as the inflation rate has a negative effect on youth unemployment. More so, there is evidence that youth unemployment in Africa can be reduced by higher physical capital accumulation, lower level of corruption, and higher economic growth. With falling economic growth and looming economic recession in many African countries, governments would need to revise educational curricula to include ICT-based training to reduce the level of youth unemployment in the medium to long term period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We argue that national networks facilitated cooperation between actors in colonial empires, especially governments and mission societies. • Unlike their non-British counterparts, British mission societies expanded education more in British colonies than elsewhere. • Findings are supported by novel primary data that captures educational activities of mission societies in interwar Africa. • National networks should receive more attention in studies on the history and legacy of colonialism. Colonial Africa was shaped by a variety of European actors. Of foremost importance in the educational sector were both colonial governments and Christian mission societies. While their activities and long-term implications are often analyzed in isolation, few systematic studies investigate relationships between them. However, it is well-known that underfunded colonial governments supported mission societies, who used schools to attract new converts, as low-cost educational providers. In this paper, we argue that mission societies that shared national ties with colonial governments benefitted from increased support and engaged in more extensive educational activities. Using new historical data on Protestant mission societies from the interwar period in Africa, we demonstrate that national alignment between mission societies and colonizer's identity in British Africa was associated with more primary schools and higher enrolment. We discuss and explore potential channels underlying this dynamic, including financial support for missionary activities as well as the granting of access to more favourable locations. Our findings show that national networks are an important but understudied aspect of colonial empires. Furthermore, analyzing the early expansion of education provides insights on the causal links often assumed by studies focused exclusively on long-term effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper employs an event history analysis to examine the diffusion of compulsory schooling laws (CSLs) that require at least seven years of schooling throughout Africa. The current theory on CSL diffusion has been developed almost exclusively by studying patterns of adoption in the Western world. This paper tests reasons for diffusion that are prominent in this Western literature and adds additional predictors that are likely to better represent educational governance in Africa. The main finding from this paper is that adoption of seven-year CSLs in Africa can be predicted primarily through common linguistic and historical ties between countries, rather than through other variables that are theorized to be important from prior literature. • Prior work on compulsory schooling law (CSL) diffusion was developed in the West. • Event history analysis examines seven-year CSL diffusion in Africa. • Common linguistic/historical ties between countries primarily predict CSL adoption. • Variables from Western literature largely do not predict CSL adoption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This concept paper reviews issues pertaining to parasitic and vector-borne infections, of humans, animals, or both, of topical relevance to the African continent as well as to neighbouring and interconnected geographies. This analysis is carried out through the "One Health" lens, being mindful of the central role of agriculture and livestock keeping in Africa's sustainable development. The possible agricultural transformation that the continent may undergo to fulfil the rising demand for animal protein of its growing population, coupled with the ongoing climate changes, may lead to potentially enhanced interactions among humans, domesticated and wild animals, in a fast-changing environment. In this view, tackling parasitic conditions of livestock can prove being multidimensionally beneficial by improving animal health as well as communities' food security, livelihood and public health. Accordingly, the value of applying the One Health approach to drug discovery and development in the fight against parasitic neglected tropical diseases and zoonoses, is also underscored. Overall, this article upholds the adoption of a holistic, global, interdisciplinary, multisectoral, harmonised and forward-looking outlook, encompassing both life and social sciences, when dealing with parasitic conditions of humans and animals, in Africa and beyond, in COVID-19 times and further. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The World Health Organization identified health to be the most important social goal and the 1978 Declaration of Alma Ata placed primary health care central to its attainment and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as the template. The Astana Declaration called on a change of focus in primary care, from treatment of specific diseases to the prevention and inclusion of both scientific and traditional knowledge. Such objectives require public–private partnerships in providing health care, including traditional and complementary medicine systems such as naturopathy that align. However, there is limited understanding of global regulatory frameworks and officially recognized training for naturopathy. Materials and Methods: This descriptive study employs an adapted mixed-methods explanatory framework to examine naturopathy regulation and education. Analysis merges data arising from a descriptive policy analysis of regulation from 36 countries and survey analysis from 65 naturopathic organizations from 29 countries. Results: Four types of workforce regulation were identified within 107 countries where naturopathy was practiced—statutory registration or occupational licensing, coregulation, negative licensing, and voluntary certification. No form of naturopathic regulation was most common. Higher graduate/postgraduate education and access to a broader range of practices were more frequently reported in countries where naturopathy is statutory regulated. Government audits were more frequently reported where naturopathy was statutory regulated or coregulated. Discussion: Naturopathic philosophy and practice align with primary health care goals outlined in the Declaration of Astana. The naturopathic workforce represents an untapped health care resource with a demonstrated track record of translating these aspirational goals into practice. However, naturopathy remains inconsistently regulated globally, serving as a significant barrier to partnering with other health system actors to attain the health-related SDGs. Workforce regulation for the naturopathic profession offers increased standards, reduced risks, integrative health workforce planning, and assistance to countries toward achieving the promise of the Declaration of Astana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to examine the impact of financial inclusion and financial innovation on corruption, considering the moderating role of education, as well as identify the specific modality of digital inclusion and payments that contribute to corruption reduction. Design/methodology/approach: The study uses a representative sample consisting of 46 African countries in three different years 2011, 2014 and 2017. On the data, feasible generalized least squares (FGLS), instrumental variables – two stages least squares (IV-2SLS) and two-stage generalized method of moments (IV-2GMM) model estimation methods were employed. Findings: The results suggest that financial inclusion and education significantly reduce corruption. As well, the interaction between financial inclusion and education reduces corruption. Additionally, the authors find that the expansion of bank credit and the use of credit and debit cards are the specific modes of financial inclusion and digital payments that can contribute to corruption reduction. Research limitations/implications: This study awakens policymakers in African countries about the need to consider education as an alternative measure to support financial inclusion and reduce the use of physical cash in transactions for an effective fight against corruption. Practical implications: Regarding practical implications, the study shows that financial inclusion besides reducing poverty for households can contribute to macroeconomic stability in Africa. Originality/value: The study uses a representative sample composed of 46 African countries and considers the role of education in moderating the relationship between financial inclusion and financial innovation on corruption. Furthermore, the study identifies the specific modality of financial inclusion and digital payments that contribute to corruption reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The consequences of growing up deprived of critical resources vital for well-being and human development jeopardises the fulfilment of potential in the lives of youths, thereby creating hurdles in access to education, training or the labour market, consequently leading to higher rates of youths that are not in education, employment or training (NEET). Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8, Target 8.6 aimed to substantially reduce the proportion of NEET by 2020. This study aims to find out if the SDG's target of substantially reducing NEET by 2020 was fulfilled in Africa. If not, what are the factors affecting NEET in Africa? Descriptive statistics, Ordinary Least Squares and Two-Stage Least Square methods have been used. Results indicate that Africa stalls behind and is far from reducing NEET. Self-employment is the highest employer of youths and conversely exacerbates the rates of NEET. Gender parity index, access to the internet and irrigation services reduce NEET rates. Good institutional quality is critical because institutions are policymakers and service providers. Policies should support literacy, entrepreneurial and digital skills training to boost self-employment. Child marriage should be prohibited. Youths can be supported by securing funds from indirect taxes. Policymakers should work closely with youths to understand their needs and capacities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education of the pediatric oncology workforce is an important pillar of the World Health Organization CureAll technical package. This is not only limited to healthcare workers, but all stakeholders in the childhood cancer management process. It includes governmental structures, academic institutions, parents and communities. This review evaluated the current educational and advocacy training resources available to the childhood cancer community, the contribution of SIOP Africa in the continental educational needs and evaluated future needs to improve the management of pediatric malignancies in reaching the Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer goals. Childhood cancer, unlike adult cancers, has not been prioritized in African cancer control plans nor the teaching and advocacy surrounding pediatric oncology. The availability of formal training programs for pediatric oncologists, pediatric surgeons and radiotherapy specialists are limited to particular countries. In pharmacy and nutritional services, the exposure to pediatric oncology is limited while training in advocacy doesn't exist. Many nonacademic stakeholders are creating the opportunities in Africa to gain experience and train in these various fields, but formal training programs should still be advocated for. The African continent has various resources to increase the capacity of childhood cancer care stakeholders to increase their knowledge. African pediatric oncology teams rely on a multitude of international sources for training while developing their own. There is a greater need for formal, standardized cancer training especially for pediatric surgeons, radio-oncologists and nurses. Greater inclusion of pathologists, pediatric oncology pharmacists and dieticians into multidisciplinary care and childhood cancer training should be facilitated and resourced. Successful advocacy programs and tool kits exist in parts of Africa, but the training in advocacy is still underdeveloped. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growth‐energy‐environment relationship has been debated over the last decades. The devastating impacts of economic growth and energy consumption on the environment have concerned environmental stakeholders worldwide. Although education has been identified as an essential determinant of environmental degradation, its moderating role is overlooked in the literature. This study examines the direct and moderating roles of education in the growth‐energy‐environment relationship in 23 African countries. The panel mean group (MG), pooled mean group (PMG), fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) and the Driscoll–Kraay standard errors are used for the analysis. The study finds that the direct and moderating roles of education aggravate environmental degradation. The findings also reveal that the marginal impacts of energy consumption are contingent upon education and increase environmental degradation. The study recommends transforming the school curriculum to foster environmental awareness, competence, and mindset to improve the environment in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mismatches between conservation action and conservation needs have been highlighted for diverse species. Lion (Panthera leo) conservation is no exception, raising the question of whether current conservation strategies are always adequate to ensure the long‐term persistence of threatened taxa. To investigate the representation of different lion Evolutionary Significant Units in field research, captive populations, funding allocation, and education, we carried out a literature review and sent an online questionnaire to zoos worldwide. Over 75% of the publications focused on southern and eastern African populations. Uplisting the West African lion to Critically Endangered did not change this result. We received 88 responses from zoos, which reported 346 lions in 83 zoos. Only 14 individuals have West and Central African origins. Over 70% of the respondents reported that they do not include any information on the conservation status or taxonomy of lions from West and Central Africa in their education programs. The minority of zoos funding in situ lion projects did so in Eastern and Southern Africa. We provide recommendations to encourage role‐players involved in lion and other threatened species conservation to address this mismatch by shifting some of their attention and funding to West and Central Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We found that there are disproportionately intractable challenges such as poverty and inequality in an area of Tanzania, Eastern Africa. There was a need to identify and develop the factors critical for their success. Data were collected in rural Iringa, Tanzania on a case study basis, using a semi-structured interview and communication with leaders in this area of Africa, and we analyzed data with a coded transcript. We identified ten factors that are critical for the success of the orphanage literacy. These findings advance understanding of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and have important practical applications for such enterprises. When the United Nations literacy decade (UNLD, 2003-2012) reached a midpoint, we decided to add to the global awareness of literacy. With initiatives and policy shifts providing a stronger basis for action on literacy, we reached out to Africa. Our concern is that the rise in the global adult literacy rate (15+) from 76 to 83.6 percent over the last two previous decades shows steady progress, with the rates in developing countries showing an even sharper rise from 68 to 79 percent (Richmond, Robinson, & Sachs-Israel, 2008). Thus, we focused on students from grades four to twelve to foster their literary progress as well. This study included 58 students who were also orphans in Kihesa-Iringa, Tanzania. By creating a Coalition of Children's Book Authors, we established a common ground for global literacy in the form of an NGO. However, the complication in literacy levels exists due to the digital-divide challenges coupled with the expense and delay of material delivered to Africa from the United States. Thankfully, our concern has succeeded to have influence even through the digital divide posed several objectives. Our course of action included a comprehensive plan to reach the 58 orphans, train their leaders, and create interactive learning modules. Thus, our contribution to the literature has reacted to the needs of an African community that could use help in not only literacy but also literacy-leadership communication and knowledge-management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examining developments in the history of education in Africa as a whole raises far-reaching philosophical, anthropological and historical questions about what Africa is and whether such a history is even possible as such. The course of that history and its tributaries wend around social theories; its dominant issues, tensions and gaps represent ideological interventions that highlight competing narratives in attempts to theorise social progress along a set of converging historiographic projects through which the conflicts between positivist, Marxist and poststructuralist (and other critical theory) perspectives – and the Eurocentricity of their objects – become visible. Anticipating broadened inquiries that centre Africans in historical narratives concerning education in Africa, this review (a) critiques historians' obsession with and dissensions on colonial education, (b) clarifies epistemic ruptures in the well-worn quest for 'truth' in history evident in that obsession, and (c) proposes some prospects for decolonial futures in the history of education in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particularly in low- and lower middle-income countries, petty corruption remains prevalent in service delivery, whether in schools, health centers, administrative services, or other institutions. In reference to Pope Francis' call to say no to corruption in his recent trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo, this article measures the extent of corruption in schools in Africa using data collected by the Afrobarometer. More than one in four respondents have encountered problems to obtain the education services they need for their children and nearly one in five have had to pay bribes or do other favors for education providers. This proportion does not appear to have declined significantly over the past decade. Regression analysis suggests that different household characteristics are associated with the likelihood of having difficulty obtaining the services they need and the likelihood of being a victim of corruption. Interestingly for this special issue, while faith affiliation does not seem to affect the likelihood of providing favors to obtain services, religiosity does appear to matter—and therefore so may faith leaders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innovative technological approaches are crucial to enhance naturalistic museum collections and develop information repositories of relevant interest to science, such as threatened animal taxa. In this context, museomics is an emerging discipline that provides a novel approach to the enhancement and exploitation of these collections. In the present study, the discovery of a neglected lion skeleton in the Museum of Zoology "Pietro Doderlein" of the University of Palermo (Italy) offered the opportunity to undertake a multidisciplinary project. The aims of the study consisted of the following: (i) adding useful information for museographic strategies, (ii) obtaining a new genetic data repository from a vulnerable species, (iii) strengthening public awareness of wildlife conservation, and (iv) sharing new learning material. The remains of the lion were examined with a preliminary osteological survey, then they were restored by means of 3D printing of missing skeletal fragments. Phylogenetic analyses based on cytochrome b sequence clearly indicate that the specimen belongs to the Central Africa mitochondrial clade. At the end of the study, the complete and restored skeleton was exhibited, along with all of the information and data available from this project. This study shows a useful approach for the restoration and enhancement of a museum specimen, with important opportunities for preserving biodiversity and driving specific conservation policies, but also for providing Life Science learning material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pregnancy is life altering for women. For an adolescent girl, a pregnancy can set her on a radically different life trajectory, potentially toward a life of poverty. Across the world, governments differ in the way they respond to teenage pregnancy, especially in light of policies toward schoolgirls finishing their education. We explore how religion correlates with policy and practice toward teenage pregnancy, examining whether teenage moms are supported if they want to return to school after giving birth. We consider whether the predominant religion in a country corresponded to the type of policies that were passed. We use Gallup World data to predict whether a country that criminalizes or expels pregnant schoolgirls by their self-reported religion. We also run a simple ordinary least squares regression to estimate a linear probability model with the outcome that indicates whether the country expels pregnant teens from school or considers teen pregnancy a criminal expense. Findings indicate that countries that were primarily Protestant Christian were much more likely to have restorative policies toward girls who were pregnant or had given birth, supporting them if they decided to pursue school completion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Boardgames pervasive in Iron Age southern Africa. • Boardgames played a vital role in education, skills development and relaxation. • Boardgames were played across class, age, and gender categories. • Meanings and names of boardgames in southern Africa different to that of other regions of the Indian Ocean. What games did the inhabitants of ancient southern Africa play to enrich their lives during the Iron Age (500–1900 CE)? We address this question by drawing from archaeological fingerprints of board games (tsoro / mufuvha) documented at farmer and forager sites in different parts of southern Africa. The typology of games and their spatial locations in the archaeology were compared with historical and contemporary gaming in selected African communities to map continuity and change in social significance temporally and spatially. Within limitations imposed by a lack of well-resolved chronologies for the material remains of board games, the comparison provided a platform to make inferences about how and why the games were played in the everyday life of Iron Age communities. Based on the strong correlation between the ethnographic and archaeological data, the conclusion of the paper is that board games were played for edutainment, skills development, gambling, and social engineering. However, this is tentative and opens possibilities for further research into the role of indigenous games in the development of ancient southern African communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much of what is taken for education in Africa is not African, but rather a reflection of Europe in Africa. Our curriculum is a site where the English language is sacralised, and the internalisation of bourgeois European values in our curricula is interpreted as an index of progress. This study eclectically draws on decolonising scholarship to critique a curriculum that continues to perpetuate stereotypical and patronising views of Africans. It challenges overt and covert Eurocentric assumptions and rationality that alienate and 'other' Africans by referencing the rich cultural and linguistic heritage of Africa. It strategically draws on African folktales, aphorisms, and praise poetry that have been excluded from the curriculum by colonial and apartheid malfeasance. This study argues that this African corpus has profound and liberating pedagogical utility. Moreover, it provides a space in which Africans experiences of the social world are validated and in which Africans may recognise themselves. This study postulates that there is a plethora of African folktales, dirges, lullabies and other creative works that are transformative, speak to African ways of knowing and embody an ideology that honours and is progressive of the African psyche. Finally, this study adroitly rebuffs Eurocentric prejudices and fallacious assumptions that the linguistic heritage of Africans is not worth knowing. It does this by persuasively demonstrating that African aesthetics, philosophies and cultural artefacts should contest western capitalistic individualism and serve as powerful transformative agents in our curricula that motivate an inclusive, thoughtful, equitable and dignified existence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education is widely known for its positive effect on conventional politics and nonviolent protest as well as its suppressive effect on violence. However, recent studies have connected education to violence through its effect on relative deprivation and frustration–aggression mechanisms. We address these divergent findings by presenting a theory of the conditional effect that education has on violence. To do so, we build on literature addressing education's positive association with political participation, such as voting and protests, and question how this relationship translates to contexts in which conventional and nonviolent channels are unlikely to be effective – specifically, in cases of politically excluded ethnic groups. We argue that education increases ethnic group members' resources and desire to address grievances. Yet, because the ethnic group is politically excluded, opportunities for conventional politics and nonviolent protest are limited. Educated ethnic group members are limited in political options, and are thus more likely to address their grievances through the support of rebel groups, increasing the probability of violence. Violence then occurs in localities where members of a politically excluded ethnic group are located and where those members have higher levels of education. Using geo-spatial data and statistical analysis, we demonstrate that education has divergent effects on violence in areas populated by politically excluded versus politically included ethnic groups in Africa and Central America. Areas with highly educated politically excluded ethnic group members are the most likely to experience violent events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A popular paradigm to support surgical education for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) is partnering with high-income country (HIC) surgeons. These relationships may, however, be asymmetric and fail to optimally address the most pressing curricular needs. We explored the effectiveness of our LMIC-HIC educational partnership. Methods: Through a partnership between a HIC (Canada) and a LMIC (Uganda), three candidate surgeons were commissioned for a custom designed 1-year training experience at our HIC accredited pediatric surgical training centre as part of their overall formal education. The training curriculum was developed in collaboration with the LMIC pediatric surgeon and utilized competency-based medical education principles. A Likert and short-answer survey tool was administered to these trainees upon completion of their training. Results: All prescribed milestones as well as specialty certification by examination of the College of Surgeons of East, Central and Southern Africa was achieved by participating fellows, each of whom have begun clinical practice, leadership and teaching roles in their home country. Although several obstacles were identified by fellows, all agreed that the experience boosted their clinical and teaching abilities, and was worth the effort. Conclusion: This endeavour in global pediatric surgical training represents a significant innovation in surgical education partnerships and would be reproducible across different surgical subspecialties and contexts. Such collaborative efforts represent a feasible upskilling opportunity towards addressing global surgical service capacity. Level of evidence: V. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Government spending on human capital continues to increase over the years. However, knowledge of the efficiency of such spending is limited. Using data from World Bank's World Development Indicator and World Governance Indicator from 2006 to 2017 and Data Envelopment Analysis and DEA Bootstrapping models, the study examined the relative technical efficiencies of public spending on human capital and their correlates in Africa. The study found public spending on health and education in Africa to be inefficient. Efficiency was much higher in health spending than in educational spending. Factors such as institutional quality, economic growth, government expenditure, foreign direct investment, and trade openness were found to influence the efficiency of public spending on human capital. Government should put in place measures to stimulate trade, ensure institutional quality and growth of urbanization to help improve efficiency in public spending. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ebola virus is known as one of the deadliest pathogens to infect humans. Children represent a minority of Ebola Virus Disease cases globally. Yet, the different Ebola outbreaks in Africa had a wide impact on children's lives and children' rights. Review the published literature to date on Children's rights during Ebola outbreaks. Outcomes shall contribute to get a better understanding of the main limitations or violations of children's rights, identify potential gaps in the literature and support the promotion and protection of children's rights for current and future health crisis. A scoping review from PubMed, Medline, Cochrane Library and Web of Science was performed using PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Articles, reports and editorial, published on Ebola Outbreaks between 1976 and 2020 were retrieved. The UNCRC clusters of rights and treaty specific guidelines were used as a framework. Documents were found through a targeted search of websites from international or regional organisations involved in Ebola crises and children's protection. 48 articles and reports were reviewed. Few documents focused solely on children's rights. Several articles covered the topic of children and Ebola outbreaks. Most of the data are linked to basic health, education, discrimination of orphans and survivors. 31% of the reviewed articles underline the violence against the children (rape, abuse, Female genital mutilations), while 21% focus on the right to education. 23% cover the topic of orphans. Impact on mental health and SRH were amongst the other covered topics. A lack of data on children's rights and their violations during epidemics is observed. Regional and international collaboration is needed to document the situation of children in health emergencies. Health measures and strategies based on children's opinions and raising awareness of their crucial role in society is key. Child-centred guidelines should be developed based on these elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Political elites tend to favor their home region when distributing resources. But what explains how political power is distributed across a country's regions to begin with? Explanations of cabinet formation focus on short-term strategic bargaining and some emphasize that ministries are allocated equitably to minimize conflict. Using new data on the cabinet members (1960–2010) of 16 former British and French African colonies, I find that some regions have been systematically much more represented than others. Combining novel historical and geospatial records, I show that this regional political inequality derives not from colonial-era development in general but from colonial-era education in particular. I argue that post-colonial ministers are partly a byproduct of civil service recruitment practices among European administrators that focused on levels of literacy. Regional political inequality is an understudied pathway through which colonial legacies impact distributive politics and unequal development in Africa today. JEL: F54, I26, N37, N47 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, there were 3,335 football players from four continents from around the world formed a study universe in which the causes of athlete aggression. Also, the factors affecting athlete aggression were investigated with different variables. It has been observed that the levels of aggression of footballers are different according to the positions they play. As the number of matches that players participate in increases, aggression levels increase among the important results. A correlation was found between the ages of the footballers and their levels of aggression, but it was concluded that athletes born in December were more aggressive. Those born in January and those born in winter have shown minimal levels of aggression compared to other footballers. It has been interpreted as having higher levels of aggression, with football players born in December and winter receiving more penalties than other participants. In the continents where football players were born, the highest number of athlete aggression was observed in the participating football players from the continent of Europe, while the aggression of athletes born in the continent of Africa and Asia was found to be lower. Taking into account the data obtained from the research, it was concluded that the athlete's position, age, month, and season of birth and continent of birth are factors affecting athlete aggression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]