tions of citizens is the pedestal for endogenous infrastructural , technological and other forms of advancement .
Ancient Egypt was the greatest education centre in the ancient world ; concomitantly , the infrastructural achievements of ancient Egyptians remain a wonder to date . The thirst for knowledge exhibited by ancient Egyptians , and the investment in knowledge production during that era , are yet to be matched by any other epoch . In more recent times , Western countries of Europe and North America have built a modest civilization on an investment in allround education that emphasizes character , culture , the arts , politics , science and technology etc . The same history is a landmark of the path of every country that is considered infrastructurally advanced today , including China and other Asian economies .
One thing that is often overlooked about ancient Egypt and the present global world powers is the connection between culture and knowledge . In order to build the knowledge it used to develop infrastructure , ancient Egypt had the deepest reverence for the land and the culture . It was a land of people who were emotionally intelligent and looked inwards for inspiration for personal and community growth and national advancement . Ancient Egyptians viewed their locally generated knowledge with deference and de-emphasized the sole consumption of other people ’ s culture , knowledge and resources .
The same applies to modern civilizations of today .
One of Africa ’ s greatest challenges to date is the intellectual strength and willpower to rid itself of the consumer mindset entrenched during colonialism . Indeed , hardly had the newly hoisted independence flags started flying over the land before African leaders began to embark on huge white elephant projects , for which their citizens lacked the technological know-how to construct and maintain , and the national treasury lacked the financial muscle to build . While many projects were abandoned halfway ‘ for good ,’ many were completed and functioned for a few years with heavy dependence on unaffordable external expertise and imported reinforcements . By the 1980s , a time when many such projects had turned into a shadow of themselves and their host countries were gasping for breath economically , the International Money Fund ( IMF ) came like a deluge , bearing the ill-conceived , ill-fated Structural Adjustment Programme , with unfortunate results for the continent .
If history was granted its proper place in the African clime , the futile loan of over three decades ago , forced on African countries by IMF and its Paris Club partners , for which many have little to show for today , will have served as a deterrent . That is not so . Many African countries continue to borrow to fund infrastructural development . Africa has spread its debt tentacles beyond the Paris Club countries to include other countries mainly in Asia . The consequences for Africa are getting direr with each new loan partner becoming more exacting .
The continued trend of borrowing money , knowledge and skills for infrastructural advancement must be strongly resisted by all well-meaning Africans . Borrowing for infrastructural advancement does not yield lasting benefits for the present and future generations of Africans , as exemplified in the continent ’ s post-independence history . It has chiefly served to empower the rich , perpetuate the class divide across the region and leave Africans ’ self-esteem hanging at the lowest point in history .
As in ancient Egypt , formal , informal and non-formal education across Africa of today must be firmly built upon respect for the land , the people and culture . The aim being to transform the mindset of the average person to such a point where innovation , creativity , character and the social-emotional connection necessary for accelerated advancement will occur spontanously . Africa ’ s indigenous knowledge systems , across all sectors and disciplines , are necessary for policy action and in education .
In this era of knowledge liberalization which the internet has brought , the emphasis should be on governments strongly supporting Africans to access enough knowledge to build their infrastructure themselves with locally
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