NCDC hosts ACA executive meeting

NCDC hosted an executive meeting of the African Curriculum Association (ACA) from 17th to 19th October 2022 at the NCDC Headquarters in Kyambogo. This brought together education experts to discuss the future of curriculum development in Africa and the world at large. Hon John Ntim Fordjour, the Deputy Minister of Education of Ghana, attended the ACA executive meeting in his inaugural visit to Uganda. Hon Ntim Fordjour represented the Minister of Education of Ghana, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, who is the reigning Patron of the continental curriculum association. The Minister for State for Higher Education, Dr John Chrysestom Muyingo attended the meeting on behalf of the First Lady and Hon Minister of Education and Sports, Janet Kataha Museveni. The visiting delegation was received by the Director NCDC, Dr Grace Baguma, who is also the reigning ACA chairperson.

Hon John Ntim Fordjour, the Deputy Minister of Education of Ghana highlight:

  • “The dictates of the 4th Industrial Revolution are upon us. If nothing changes by 2030, nearly 825 million young people globally will reach adulthood without the skills needed to thrive in this world.
  • “The main competencies required of the 21st Century are critical thinking, communication, and creativity; these are the competencies that the young ones that are growing today on our soil need to confidently and assertively compete with their compatriots located in any part of the world.”
  • “Our focus has laid emphasis on shifting from humanities to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), with a strategic target to ensure that by the time we get to 2030, we should be able to turn the narrative of the present 60% humanities and 40% sciences to a 60:40 ratio in favor of sciences.”

Dr. John Chrysestom Muyingo highlights…

  • The curriculum is the heartbeat of the education system. After ensuring access to education, the global agenda at hand right now is the quality of education.”
  • “Many countries in Africa have been embarking on reforming curricula at different levels of education so that it is compatible with the demands of the 21st”
  • “In Uganda, we have been reviewing curriculum because the job market is asking for new skills from time to time.”
  • “The First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports, Hon Janet Kataha Museveni, congratulates Ghana for being the first Patron of the African Curriculum Association”
  • “Government will support the African Curriculum Association to fulfill its mandate”

Sheikh Mansour Bin Mussalam, the Secretary General of the Organisation for Educational Cooperation highlights…

  • “It seems that Africa, just as Latin America and the Arab world, in terms of curriculum development, must first start by opening the education systems to the realities of our communities.”
  • “We have in many respects inherited education systems from eras that are long past. Today, we have an imperative to develop endogenous curriculums that reflect our aspirations and priorities.”
  • “Curriculum must reflect the realities that are faced by our youth. It must be relevant to the world in which we live in and articulate the future that our youth want.”

Dr. Grace Baguma, the Director of NCDC and Chairperson of the African Curriculum Association

  • “We need to look at a curriculum that brings out the kind of person we want. We are looking at a transformative curriculum that will look at not only this generation but future generations.”
  • “Africa is talking about an Afro-centric curriculum; knowledge that is inward looking. Knowledge is global but we can have our own researched knowledge that makes us innovative and critical thinkers.”