Survey of ICT and education in Africa : Equatorial Guinea country report

SURVEY OF ICT AND EDUCATION IN AFRICA: Equatorial Guinea Country Report 45609 ICT in Education in Equatorial Guinea by Babacar Fall June 2007 Source: World Fact Book1 Please note: This short Country Report, a result of a larger infoDev-supported Survey of ICT in Education in Africa, provides a general overview of current activities and issues related to ICT use in education in the country. The data presented here should be regarded as illustrative rather than exhaustive. ICT use in education is at a particularly dynamic stage in Africa; new developments and announcements happening on a daily basis somewhere on the continent. Therefore, these reports should be seen as "snapshots" that were current at the time they were taken; it is expected that certain facts and figures presented may become dated very quickly. The findings, interpretations and conclusions expressed herein are entirely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of infoDev, the Donors of infoDev, the World Bank and its affiliated organizations, the Board of Executive Directors of the World Bank or the governments they represent. The World Bank cannot guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other information shown on any map in this work do not imply on the part of the World Bank any judgment of the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. It is expected that individual Country Reports from the Survey of ICT and Education in Africa will be updated in an iterative process over time based on additional research and feedback received through the infoDev web site. For more information, and to suggest modifications to individual Country Reports, please see www.infodev.org/ict4edu-Africa. Equatorial Guinea - 1 www.infodev.org  SURVEY OF ICT AND EDUCATION IN AFRICA: Equatorial Guinea Country Report Overview In Equatorial Guinea, there is no specific policy concerning ICT, although attempts to improve management in the Ministry of Telecommunications are being made. This could help facilitate the adoption of such a policy in the near future. The efforts to strengthen the presence of ICT in communities and in schools are primarily made by non-governmental organisations, universities, and other actors. They collaborate on projects that make computer equipment, training, and management available and accessible to students, educators, and members of the community. These initiatives take the form of computer labs in schools or media centres in the community. Country Profile The Republic of Equatorial Guinea is a mainland enclave between Cameroon and Gabon and two islands in the Atlantic Ocean. This fragmented country covers a surface area of 28,051 square kilometres with a population of over 540,000, of which 67% live in rural areas. Most of the 90,000 islanders live in Malabo, the capital city. A former Spanish colony, it gained its independence in October 1968, and it remains to date the only country in Africa with Spanish as an official language. The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of the GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although Equatorial Guinea depended on cocoa production for hard currency earnings prior to independence, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth. However, the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture. Table 1 provides some selected socio-economic indicators for the country.2 Table 1: Socio-economic Indicators: Equatorial Guinea Indicator Area 28,051 km2 Natural resources petroleum, natural gas, timber, gold, bauxite, diamonds, tantalum, sand and gravel, clay Population 540,109 (July 2006 est.) Age structure: 0-14 years 41.7% (male 113,083; female 111,989) 15-64 years 54.5% (male 141,914; female 152,645) 65 years and over 3.8% (male 8,886; female 11,592) (2006 est.) Population growth 2.05% (2006 est.) rate The Education System Equatorial Guinea - 2 www.infodev.org  SURVEY OF ICT AND EDUCATION IN AFRICA: Equatorial Guinea Country Report The education system is organised into cycles and degrees. The levels of education are pre- school, primary, secondary, and higher education. The degrees are the baccalaureate and advanced degrees in higher education. The institutional structure of the school system is as follows: