Universities as agents for social and economic progress - Development Watch

UN Chronicle, June-August, 2003 by Erich E. Kunhardt

There is general recognition that the realization of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is a shared responsibility of both developed and developing countries. Concrete actions under consideration include reassessing financial assistance provided by developed countries, seeking quantitative measures of success, increasing collaborative efforts between and among parties, and promoting home-grown initiatives by developing countries. Noteworthy is the effort to encourage developing countries to tap, as instruments of national transformation, educated and skilled individuals who, all too often, have been drawn to the developed world.

In this essay, I suggest that the university in developing countries can serve a critical function in the realization of MDGs. The mission I am proposing does not derive from the model of the traditional American or European university, with its emphases on undergraduate, graduate and professional education and academic research. These are non-trivial goals that should not be neglected, but they are insufficient to make the university an agent of change in the developing world. Rather, the university I have in mind must span the social and material gaps between creative individuals with innovative ideas, on the one side, and the application of technology for economic progress and social betterment, on the other. The university also will serve as a bridge that carries the traffic of social and economic development. At Stevens Institute of Technology, we label this enhanced mission as "education rooted in Technogenesis". By accepting it, the university takes responsibility for direct involvement in shaping and satisfying the needs of the community.

The arguments in favour of this mission emerge from considering these questions: Why is the university particularly well suited for this more engaged role? How can its traditional functions be enhanced to make it central to the development of a country or, in other words, what is education rooted in Technogenesis? And, finally, can Technogenesis form the basis for taking increased advantage of the financial assistance made available by the developed countries?

At present, the university in developing countries has a unique opportunity to create its own model, not by following others but through guided self-development. This can have a significant impact on the economic and social development of a nation, well beyond the education of its people. Here I provide a general outline of why I believe this to be the case. First, the world climate is right for transforming the role of the university in the developing world. For decades, the ideological posturing and political battles of the cold war significantly consumed the energies of the university. But those battles have been put aside for now and those energies can be refocused on the battle for self-realization. Success can be achieved through self-direction, not by once again blindly following after the "great nations". A nation's greatness entails the integration of many elements, and thus the models from the developed world, in particular that of the university, are not wholly transferable. The traditional univers ity in the developed world is only a part of a more complex socio-political entity, and therefore its preoccupations and priorities are not necessarily congruent with what ought to exist in developing countries. Moreover, the experience of self-development enhances self-esteem and gives greater assurance that the university truly meets the needs of developing countries. I am not suggesting that countries or universities should go at it alone, but in the best tradition of higher education, they should undertake guided self-development. A number of individuals and organizations in the developed world may be willing to participate in joint ventures, and their participation should be welcomed, albeit with a certain caution. Such collaboration is certainly consistent with the tenor of the Millennium Declaration. Secondly, the university in developing countries does not have the burden of tradition. This observation is not meant to imply that tradition is necessarily a bad attribute, but too often it entails instit utional inertia, and not having to contend with entrenched vested interests gives greater flexibility to defining new roles for the university. Thus, the university is well positioned to articulate and address the needs of society, create a better world for people and take on the challenges of the Declaration. And, finally, in most if not all developing nations, the university educates the "governing class--composed mainly of professional people--and professional education has been its principal mission. Thus, getting the university involved in a country's development is a natural extension of its present social function and socio-political connections, which means economic and social development, not simply political maturation. In fact, any explicitly political reforms should evolve out of economic and social developments, and not the other way around.