Introduction
An important aspect that must be taken into account when talking about higher education related to the development of nations is that development must be seen in an integral way, it cannot be valued only from the economic aspect, but from the social point of view, cultural, environmental, etc.
The general statistics on education at all levels presented by UNESCO, ranging from primary to university education, is quite worrying, especially those of underdeveloped countries.
As much as the need for a dignified and cultured life for all human beings on earth is written and raised by some international organizations, it is still not remotely possible to achieve what it aspires to achieve.
The second goal of the millennium, which is to achieve universal education, will not be fulfilled as long as the nation states do nothing to increase the Human Development Index (HDI).
Precisely the objective of this work is to make an analysis of how higher education is behaving in the world and its implication in the development of countries, as well as what Cuba has done in this field. It must be clear that one cannot speak of higher education without having taken into account a good base of primary, secondary and pre-university education.
¨ It is necessary to adjust a new education program, which begins in the school of first letters and ends in a brilliant, useful university, according to the times, state and aspirations of the countries in which he teaches »José Martí
Education is a key factor in the economic development of countries, as it contributes to increased labor productivity and therefore economic growth, primary education is the basis of later knowledge of the individual in his adult stage, hence the importance of the first stage of life.
Investing in scientific infrastructure and human resources are the two primary steps to obtain optimal results in society. The lack of attention to this last aspect is manifested in developing countries, where scarce public resources are allocated in investment for professional training.
An example of the above is what happens with public universities in Latin America, which few of these institutions are of high international level.
The financing of education is a social sacrifice that has to be made in the most rational way possible and according to needs. For there to be education, money is needed, which is obtained from work, so it does not cost the same for all families. This results in unequal educational opportunities.
Education expenditures depend on:
a) The rate of economic growth.
b) The% of income and resources allocated to education.
c) The costs of education per student.
d) In underdeveloped countries, they also depend on the volume of educational assistance received from external sources.
e) The priority given to education by both the population and the country's leaders.
The profitability of education is a productive system, which produces academic degrees and trains the population, in addition to other services. The work factor is made up of 4 groups: teachers, students, administrators and researchers.
Thus in the education sector there is a supply and a demand. In the offer it is necessary to distinguish:
• Global offer (number of degrees that a system can produce according to the number of places),
• Real offer (number of degrees that could be given in a specific year, according to the number of places occupied)
• Effective offer (number of degrees that actually are produced, according to the number of students who have passed).
On demand there are:
• Global demand (needs and desires of the population with respect to education),
• Real demand (number of individuals enrolled),
• Effective demand (number of students obtaining degrees).
There are differences between the education sector and other public sectors, since it must be taken into account that education resources are acquired in the market and are publicly financed. In the case of private education, it is sold in the market according to the law of supply and demand. But public education is a public service and is not subject to the law of supply and demand. Its production cycle is longer, consuming part of its own production. Public education is not exploited as a profit maximizer.
In the World Declaration on Higher Education in the XXI Century: Vision and Action, held on October 9, 1998, several very important aspects were raised, highlighting the missions and functions of higher education, which contains several articles.
Article 14 entitled: Financing higher education as a public service, states that financing higher education requires public and private resources. The State retains an essential role in this financing. It also argues that public support for higher education and research remains essential to ensure that educational and social missions are carried out in a balanced way.
In subsection b of that article, it states that society as a whole should support education at all levels, including higher education, given the role it plays in promoting sustainable economic, social and cultural development. Mobilization for this purpose depends on the awareness and participation of the public, the public and private sectors of the economy, parliaments, the media, governmental and non-governmental organizations, students and institutions., families and all social agents involved in higher education.
Obviously, in underdeveloped countries there are more problems than in developed countries for financing education. Below are some fundamental problems in financing Higher Education in underdeveloped and developed countries:
Underdeveloped:
• One of the fundamental factors in financing is the economic situation of the countries.
• Absence of medium-term state policies for financing Higher Education, Science and Technology.
• Public investment in education is primarily focused on primary and secondary education.
• Higher Education is not a priority in most governments given the need to invest public resources in priority social areas or more profitable in the short term.
• Society attaches little importance to Higher Education or perceives it as a matter of elites.
• The economic situation of poverty limits the State's collection capacity and the population's low purchasing power makes it difficult for families to contribute directly to financing Higher Education.
• Lack of effectiveness and efficiency in the management of allocated public resources, lack of resource allocation models, lack of transparency and control.
• Uncontrolled growth of private initiative in Higher Education, mostly of low quality and with real tuition costs that makes access difficult.
• The World Bank does not give sufficient priority to Higher Education as a resource for development. (Consideration imposed on the governments of developing regions, as part of the Stabilization and Structural Adjustment Programs).
• The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund do not sufficiently support the development of science and the training of professionals in poor countries who can stay in their countries of origin and contribute to their growth.
Developed:
• Existence of other political priorities, as there is little commitment by the authorities to education and research.
• Inadequate responses of public systems to social needs.
• Little control and accountability of the public systems of society.
• Limited autonomy of public universities, which hinders the self - financing capacity and resources of the universities, which translates into excess control by the authorities.
• Social reluctance to incorporate private sources for the financing of public Higher Education.
• Public resources cannot assume greater investment without increasing tax systems.
To date and in a general sense in the world little has been done to finance Higher Education, as many governments have not become sufficiently aware of the importance of this. Today education is more in danger than ever, as the impact of the international financial crisis has been felt very strongly in this area. Especially the poorest countries in the world have suffered a serious deterioration in their education system in this regard.
The impact of the slowdown in economic growth on the financing of education in the poorest developing countries must also be taken into account.
The educational systems of many poorer countries in the world are now suffering the consequences of a crisis that has arisen in the financial systems of developed countries, causing a setback, due to the increase in poverty, the economic slowdown and the pressure that this exerts on the government budgets.
Despite the fact that governments around the world constantly reiterate their commitment to equal educational opportunities, it is not being carried out in reality.
International conventions on human rights oblige them to act in accordance with that commitment.
According to the follow-up report "Education for All" in the world, it states that having the possibility of receiving a useful education is a fundamental right of every human being, and the offer of this possibility is an essential condition for advancing social justice. People who are left out of education face the prospect of having their chances of getting on in life diminished in many other areas, such as employment, health and participation in the political processes that interest them. Furthermore, the limitation of opportunities in education is one of the most powerful factors in the transmission of poverty from generation to generation.
A new instrument has been created in 2010 that provides an idea of marginalization within countries and of the social composition of marginalized groups, this instrument is called: Shortage of Education and Marginalization in Education (PEME). Despite the efforts made in the last decade, what has been called the absolute lack of education continues to be at an extraordinarily high level. For this reason, it is suggested that at any global scale, having completed less than four years of studies - the minimum time to acquire the basic knowledge of reading, writing and elementary calculation - constitutes a sign of extreme disadvantage. The PEME data setdefines this duration of studies as a reference indicator of the “lack of education” and the duration of studies of less than two years as an indicator of the “extreme lack of education”.
The findings of a review of the situation in sixty-three developing countries show the following:
Education shortage. In 22 countries, 30% or more of young people aged 17 to 22 have completed less than four years of schooling. This percentage rises to 50% or more in eleven countries of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Extreme lack of education. In 26 countries, 20% or more of 17-22 year olds have been in school for less than two years, and in some countries such as Burkina Faso and Somalia that proportion is 50% or more.
The PEME data set helps to identify not only the extreme lack of education, but also some of the essential characteristics of those who are marginalized. Based on surveys, this data set is used to identify the quintile of a country's population that has had fewer years of schooling.
The results show the great influence that social circumstances have on life chances, circumstances over which children have no power. They also draw attention to the existence of unacceptable levels of inequality.
Inequality in wealth means that when you are born into a poor family, you are twice as likely to be among the 20% most disadvantaged in education across a range of countries, ranging from India to the Philippines, passing for Vietnam. Differences between regions mean, for example, that living in rural areas of Upper Egypt, Northern Cameroon or Western Turkey greatly increases the chances of being part of the 20% of the most disadvantaged in education.
Sex, poverty, language and culture often combine to radically increase the risk of falling far behind. In Turkey, 43% of Kurdish-speaking girls from the poorest families have less than two years of schooling, while the national average for those who have only been in school for that long is 6%. In Nigeria, 97% of poor Hausa language girls have less than two years of schooling.
In the European Union as a whole, 15% of young people between 18 and 24 years old leave the classroom after having completed only secondary education. In Spain, that percentage rises to 30%. The income level of families has an important relationship with school achievement. In England (United Kingdom), pupils exempted from paying for school lunch - an important indicator of social destitution - score on mathematics tests, on average, 29% lower than the national average.
Some Conclusions and Recommendations:
• Something that is directly proportional to the way out of poverty is support for progress in education, but if governments do not support the development of education in their countries with their budgets, it will be difficult for them to achieve sufficient economic growth and development., since the technical and professional preparation is based on what the State has been able to invest in human resources so that in this way it is reversed in the economy and society of each country.
• It is suggested by some UN reports that the international community has not responded effectively to the problems that the poorest countries present in terms of Higher Education. Rich-country governments and successive G-20 and G-8 summits have shifted huge financial resources to stabilize their banking systems, but have only provided very modest aid to the world's most vulnerable populations. Reporting has also overstated the amounts of international aid going to low-income countries.
• Rich countries have truly lacked the political will to implement a world-changing partnership.
Recommendations:
• National budgets have a critical role to play in trying to prevent financial crises from degenerating into long-lasting human development crises. As the underdeveloped countries are the most in need of development assistance, aid is urgently needed to face the crisis and maintain their spending plans on Higher Education.
• We must ensure greater access to Higher Education with equity, thus guaranteeing a better response to social needs.
• Higher Education must have a majority of public funds as the main source of financing.
Consulted Bibliography
• Education for All Global Monitoring Report. UNESCO 2009
• Education for All Global Monitoring Report. UNESCO 2010.
• ECLAC, United Nations: "Higher Education and Economic Development in Latin America". Juan Carlos Moreno and Pablo Ruiz-Napoles.
• Economics of Education. Portal: http //: www.economiadelaeducación.com
• Education and Economic Development: The role of International Cooperation in the development of the Third World. Neira, Isabel, Faculty of Economics, University of Santiago de Compostela. (In Spain)
• Is the financing of Higher Education sustainable? Cristina Escrigas Páez
• Economy, Society and Education: Marcelo Fabián Vitarelli, • UNESCO (2004) “The universal conclusion of primary education in Latin America: Are we really that close ?, Regional Report on the Millennium Development Goals linked to Education.
• UNESCO (2005) "Links between the Global Initiatives in Education"
Annexed
