Bringing our Universities to international standard
Posted on April 2nd, 2011
By Garvin Karunaratne, Ph.D.
Our Minister for Higher Education, Hon Mr ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ S.B.Dissanayake isƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ intent on bringing up our Universities to an international standard and many useful suggestions have been made by academics. This is a noble aim and it is hoped that it will be successful.
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I am a product of Peradeniya, in the days when that was the only University we had. There I graduated in 1954 and ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ read for ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ a MasterƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Degree.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ I fed into the Administrative Service andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ my experience lies in administration and economic development. I have studied Community Development for the MasterƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Degree at the University of Manchester, studied Agricultural Economics for my M.Phil at the University of Edinburgh and read Agricultural Economics and Non Formal Education at Michigan State University for my doctorate. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Thus, I ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ have spent over a decade attending to research and study in Universities in both Developed as well as Third World countries.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
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The speciality of my ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ experience lies more in the application of economic theory and educational strategies like community development andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ non formal education for development. I designed and implemented the Youth Self Employment Programme of Bangladesh, using my knowledge of economics and education in actual practice and this Programme is today the premier employment creation programme one can find anywhere. It has bagged over 1.6 million youths into self employment and currently guides 160,000 annually to become self employed.
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It is possible to delve at length on how our Universities have failed and make suggestions and many academics have made worthwhile contributions.
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I hope, ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ instead, ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to highlight certain areas where there is great scope and need, areas where the United Nations institutions as well as premierƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ universities of repute have so far failed to find solutions.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ It will essentially be a forbidding and a difficult task, but if any of our Universities can succeed then I am certain that great distinction will come to that University.
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It may be a good idea to detail a particular subject to each of our Universities, based on the disciplines taught, the expertise of the faculty ,the facilitiesƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and equipment available for research.
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May I suggest the following subjects for research;
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Solar Energy
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ A New Paradigm for Development for Third World countries.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Impasse in Higher Education
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Impasse in School Education
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All these subjects are currently of great importance to the future of the World and I would provide some details of the first two for kind consideration by our Ministry of Higher Education and the Universities. I would leave the latter two subjects for consideration by specialists. Once some authorities make a start I will also contribute from the angle where my experience lies in getting graduands ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ from the education system into employment.
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Solar Energy
This subject is crucial today because if solar energy isƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ available at a cheap price then it will be possible to provide energy and we could hope to get away from nuclear energy.
Today nuclear energy has proved to be forbidding due to ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ safety concerns. It sounds to me that our entire existence is threatened.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The current threatƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ of radiation at the nuclear plants in Japan militate that other sources of energy should be found fast.
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While it is an established fact that solar cells and panels canƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ be successfully manufactured, ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and the prevalence of sunlight is undoubted, what holds up the use of solar power isƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the high cost of solar cells.
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The manufacture of solar cells is entirely in the hands of the Private Sector. Research is conducted in various universities and the successful findings are fed to various companies that follow them up and obtain patents. Once patents are obtained no one else can engage in their manufacture. The patent holder or the manufacturer keeps a fantastic profit margin.
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I am certain that if solar panels are available at a reasonableƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ price, it can be effectively used to obtain energy. Already acres and acres of solar panels are common sights in countries like Spain and the United States. Thus the feasibility of producing energy from solar cells has been amply proved.
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What is needed is the manufacture of solar cells and panels by a non- profit organization. Universities in every country is the home of research and it would behove if research in solar cell manufacture is entrusted to one of our Universities. Once the research is concluded patents should be obtained and the manufacture of solar panels for sale should be entrusted to a non-profit making institute- like a community cooperative or a State sponsored institute attached to a University.
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It is a sad fact that monetary gain is holding up development today. Patents for the manufacture of various products are held by companies that control the manufacture. The manufactured product costsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ far less than the retail sale price, but with the motive being profit, a fanciful margin is kept. In case a non-profit making concern conducts research, finalizes a model that can be manufactured then that model can be marketed at a reasonable price.
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Development should not be held to ransom. The need for sources of energy is paramount. It is due to the fact that easy sources to get power and energy are not available that countries resort to getting nuclear power. If solar cells and solar panels are available at a reasonable price we could do away with nuclear power altogether and therein lies the necessity for some personage to take the initiative to get research cracking on solar cells.
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It is thus hoped that our Minister of Higher Education will take on this subject for serious research at one of our Universities. I can make a statement without any reservation that any University that produces a solar power panel at a cheap rate will gain prestige and its achievement will stand in good stead. That University will definitely gain high international status.
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A New Paradigm for the Development of the Third World
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ It is an established fact that development effort has failed today. Instead of development we are finding a situation where countries are daily getting on to the scrap heap in terms of debt,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ poverty and deprivation.
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Professor Paul Krugman, one of the foremost authorities on world development today has said that the world is today lurching from crisis to crisis.
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The voice of Noble laureate Professor Jeffery Sachs also gives support to this dismal state of affairs:
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Western Governments enforced draconian budget policies in AfricaƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ during the 1980s and 1990s.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The IMF and the World Bank virtually ranƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the economic policies of the debt ridden continent recommending regimensƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ of budgetary belt tightening known technically asƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Structural Adjustment Programmes. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ These Programmes had little scientific merit and produced even fewer results. By the start of the TwentyFirst Century Africa was poorerƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ than in the late 1960s when the IMF and the World Bank had first arrived on the scene, with disease, population growth and environmental degradation spiraling out of control. IMF led austerityƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ has frequently led to riots,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ coups and the collapse of public services. (From The End of Poverty)
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This statement finds confirmation ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ from no less a person than Professor Joseph Stiglitz, former Chief Economist of the World Bank and a Noble laureate on economics.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ He states that ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-the mistakes of the IMF were sufficiently frequent that they clearly werenƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t just an accident- as an academic you look for patternsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚¦. One was that they were incompetent, stupid people. But that argument is just not persuasive- they pay amongst the highest wages, they get good peopleƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚¦ They chose the models that led to wrong predictions, wrong policies and really negative consequencesƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚(FromƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚The Hospital that makes you sickerƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚: New Internationalist, March 2003)
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In fact Sham J. Ka math,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ states:
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-It is ironic that the World BankƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ which was set up to help war devastated and developing economies to grow, is hard pressed to find any nation among its clients that have successfully developed after over 40 years of ever escalating budgets and ever increasing levels of multilateral foreign aidƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚(Third World Opposing View Points, 1996)
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The dismal failure of countries that have been earlier declared as successes by the IMF and World Bank is indicative of how the economies have become bankrupt.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ As pointed out by me:
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-The failure of the IMF and the World Bank in their advice is well reflected in the fall in the value sustained by the currencies of countries that followed the Structural Adjustment Programme;
Turkey The Lira has dropped in value from Lira 336 to the pound sterling in 1983 to Lira 2,640,000 inƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 2007 marking a devaluation ofƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 787,000%.
Ghana ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Cedi has been devalued from 5.7 Cedi to the pound in 1983ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to 18,950 Cedi to the pound inƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 2007 marking a devaluation of 332,000%.
Nigeria The Naira has been devalued from Naira 1.11 to the pound in 1983ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to NairaƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 259 in 2007 marking a devaluation ofƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 23,445%
Bolivia In 1983, ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 116ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ pesos equaled a pound. The peso was converted into a Boliviano in 1987 at the rate of 1 million pesos to a Boliviano. ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚¦ The drop in the value of the peso from 116 peso to the pound in 1983 to15.1 Bolivianos to the pound in 2007 amounts to a drop ofƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 13,000,000%.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ (From Garvin Karunaratne: Success in Development, Godages:2010))
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This Drop in value helps the Developed Countries in their manufactures- for instance the copper and tin from Bolivia now reaches the manufacturers in the USA at a discounted price of 13 million percent.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ All imports from the countries reach the manufacturers in the Developed Countries at a rate discounted to the extent of the devaluation.
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The IMF and the World Bank and Universities state that devaluation is caused by the flow of market forces of supply and demand. However as explained by me, ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-in actual practiceƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ there is a great deal of distortion in both supply and demand by manipulators who hoard stocks creating price increases and dump stocks creating a fall in prices(From Garvin Karunaratne:Microenterprise Development..(Sarasavi, 1997).
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The recent confessionƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ by John Perkins in his book:The Confessions of an Economic Hitman is to the effect that he fabricated statistics and produced false reports for countries where Aid given went back to the donor countries leaving the receipient country indebted. Actuality the IMF and the World Bank in collusion made the Third World countries indebted by giving them loans for consumption purposes after the late Seventies.
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I have been researching and writing on this aspect.
I addressed the South Asian Forum at the University of London in 1992 stating that the IMF was bleeding Sri Lanka to death.(See my book:
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My book: Microenterprise Development: A Strategy for Employment Creation and Poverty Alleviation in the Third World :The Way Out of the IMF Stranglehol(1997) spells out the disaster the befell the Third World Countries long beforeƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ authorities like Professor Joseph Stiglitz and Professor Jeffery Sachs ever thought of it.
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I have further documented the demise of the Third World Countries in my books:
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ How the IMF Ruined the Third World & Alternative Programmes of success(2006 )Success in Development( Godages, 2010)
Universities all over the world are even today teachingƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ traditional economics. Today we are seeing the economies of the Third World being bled to death by the IMF and the Developed Countries. First the IMF and the World Bank made the Third World countries indebted by providing them with loans for consumption. Once the country is indebted it has to service its debt for which the country has to obtain further loans. In that process the country become further indebted.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Sri Lanka and many other countries that were the place where the IMF imposed the Structural Adjustment Programme is in this plight. Traditional economic theory has now been turned on its head and it is time that University teaching in economics comes out of its ivory tower and looks at the devastation that is happening through the economic policies imposed by the IMF.
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It is time that one of our Universities like Peradeniya or Colombo is entrusted with the task of finding a solution to this problem. The ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ search for a New Paradigm for Development is a noble task that will help humanity and any University that tries and succeeds will come into great prestige.
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Garvin Karunaratne, Ph.D. Michigan State University,
Formerly of the Administrative Service of Sri Lanka
31 st March 2011
April 2nd, 2011 at 3:35 pm
I read Garvin Karunaratne’s essay with great expectations. Although he describes his academic credentials, he provides hardly any details on the two factors he promises to explain: solar power and a new paradigm for development.
Dr. Karunaratne, please elaborate in layman’s language, what the government should do to implement a cost-effective solar power plan covering the entire island drawing examples from other countries. Give us examples of the costs involved and tell us to what degree we can depend on solar energy for our projected needs.
Dr. Karunaratne, please also spell out your alternative paradigm of development. You legitimately criticize the IMF/World Bank model as a failure. Is your alternative paradigm based on what Mr. Kudaligamage describes as the “Avusadahamy approach” or a variation of the alternative approaches proposed by Klugman, Sachs and other Western pundits”?
Incidentally, you describe Sachs as a “Nobel laureate.” When did he get that honor?
April 2nd, 2011 at 10:33 pm
To bring our Universities in to world standard we have to start from the beginning. This is a duty of our nation. At this moment none of our University is in at least with in 600 top universities in the world or at least any with in 200 top Universities in Asia even. This is the reality. At the end of the day we have to accept that our graduates are not up to even Asian standards.
We are not here to consider little personal success of few individuals. But overall either we like or not have to accept that the quality of education standards, research standards, social ethics, social views, attitudes are very low levels in every university in Sri Lanka.
For this unfortunate situation education authorities, education policy makers, education planners, university teaching staff, students, state and private sector administrators equally have to take responsibility.
Following links are eye openers to us and show us where we are in the world and Asia.
http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2010
http://www.university-list.net/rank/univ-110001.html
April 3rd, 2011 at 5:19 pm
It is a well known quip that aid (or loans) by developed countries to so called developing countries is grants from poor taxpayers in rich counties to rich in poor countries. The worst offenders in this vicious cycle is not the developed world but these influence pedaling cronies in poor countries who will do any shady thing to keep their status. The worst racists in the world are these people who despise, cheat and laugh at their own people. With respect to Sri Lanka you can find any number of them wandering in high society places around Colombo. Intention of almost all who went into politics is to get in to this circle. The current administartion (at least some) seems to show less inclination towards such tendancies.
Regarding the writer’s well intended hope for better functioning universities with significant pay back to the public for their spending hard earned money for higher education (Which unfortunately has not happened so far since the initiation of higher education fully eighty years ago), advanced R&D like solar energy may not be the most appropriate for a country like Sri Lanka who has minimal R&D acitivities in all technical, finacial and business fields.
(regarding solar there are two components – light and thermal conversion to elctricity and thermoelectric technology is also very appropriate to Sri Lanka).
At the start, as done by our East Asian neighbors in 1950s (I should add – while we were importing lot of luxuries with our money from rubber exports under the most capable guidance of ceylon civil service), we should establish an industry and knowledge base through technology transfer. That is adopting already establish technologies which become unprofitable in developed countries for e.g. due to high labor costs. We have a well educated workforce to handle such knowledge transfer. Once such a base is established there will be a natural growth towards more cutting edge R&D and industries with the participation of universities, industry and well meaning gov. beaurocracy (like in South Korea). This will automatically elevate the status of universities as well as the quality of the diplomas as both lecturers and students have opportunities to augment their knowledge through meaningful R&D. A must have condition for high ranking universities is to have a good commercial, scientific and industrial base. Unfortunately we have not dveloped such a backdrop since the inception of universities leading to progressive decline in the international acceptance of our degrees (especially professional degrees). For e.g. medical degrees many decades ago had a very high level of acceptance. And I think due to sheer selfishness and disregard of our medical professionals (as lamented by a medical doctor himself in this forum several months ago) a concurrent industry in healthcare was never materialized. Had it happened cutting edge research in medical technologies would have add prestige to our degress and at the same time earning large amount of foriegn exchange for the country.
April 5th, 2011 at 5:16 am
Applause to Dr Gavin Karunaratne for pointing academic thinking in the right direction. I myself know almost nothing re Solar Energy, except that I think that this is the exciting energy of the future. Similarly, it is also wind energy for the future together with other sources.
Herewith a net connection on how to make a Solar powered Generator for less than US $300 on your own ! It’s a start, isn’t it ? The writer of that article says he can save around $5 per day on his electricity bill.
Here is the web connection : http://www.rain.org/~philfear/how2solar.html
Once our young and budding scientists get confidant building small items, their imagination is fired up and there is no stopping them. Science teachers in govt. schools should be encouraged to build small units of useful items. Children will soak up useful ideas which can help in every day living. We think that it is the funds that are lacking in our govt schools, and properly trained teachers, sad to say.
How do we raise funds for such school projects ?
Another interesting noteworthy item re energy production : we have seen a You-Tube presentation of energy from sea water activated through radio waves. I may not have used the correct scientific terminology here. Please check up on the You-Tube for this presentation. Google Salwater.wmv for website.
Sri Rohana’s comment :” But overall either we like or not have to accept that the quality of education standards, research standards, social ethics, social views, attitudes are very low levels in every university in Sri Lanka”, is only too true. To remedy all this after 30 yrs of ‘state of war’ in Lanka, prior to which was restrictive, status & class creating Colonial Rule, it may take quite a while to upgrade all aspects mentioned by Sri Rohana, particularly in the all important govt. schools.
April 5th, 2011 at 5:21 am
Upgrade all govt. schools along with the Universities. Actually, if the govt. schools are upgraded, the Universities will not be long in following, rather than vice-versa. Also, it would be very easy for Uni upgrading if the govt. schools are upgraded.