Education Reform: Our Vision for the Future

As a foundation, Cameroon's educational systems will reflect its ONTS identity, which is uniquely Cameroonian, from elementary to postgraduate levels. There are several aspects to reinvent in the education sector, and to provide the best conditions and infrastructure through which the legendary qualities of Cameroonian ingenuity and creativity can be unleashed.

The USDP's first commitment is to remove partisan politics from the education system and to provide, or even require, that the Judiciary, as an independent branch of Government, has the sacred duty to challenge every proposed state action with a potential impact on the educational system and infrastructure and others.

From the outset, working with experts and using international standards, the USDP will focus on the educational sectors of Cameroon's Far-North and that inherited from the former Southern Cameroons. The educational sector in the Far-North region of Cameroon suffers from excessive underinvestment and significant neglect. Meanwhile, through unsuccessful harmonization attempts, the educational sector in the South-West and North-West regions of Cameroon has experienced significant disruptions and destruction that will be urgently reviewed as part of the joint reform of the educational sectors of the Far-North, North-West, and South-West. For, if they had not been interrupted, institutions like CCAS Bambili, CCAS Kumba, GTS Ombe, etc., in the former Southern Cameroons would have evolved into full-fledged universities, and the Far-North would not have been so neglected in terms of educational infrastructure given the pressing needs of its population.

Therefore, through a sufficiently rapid but scalable process, and under the supervision of experts, Education Commissions or Boards will be developed by a combination of the Ministry of Education and Examination Boards, tasked with reviewing and restructuring the educational sectors from elementary to postgraduate levels in the three regions; under the ONTS dispensation involved in the Special Status recommendations of the National Dialogue of September/October 2019.

It goes without saying that the creation of all forms of educational institutions under the USDP must be pre-planned and part of the full implementation of a strategic plan supported by technical, human, and financial resources. Educational institutions will not and cannot be created on paper and left in the hands of local populations to speculate on what to do.

The USDP's philosophy for higher education cannot be haphazard but linked to both individual goals and the decisions of students and families, as well as the needs for socio-cultural empowerment and economic development. The purpose of education according to the USDP must be for both intellectual growth and development; cultural empowerment; for employment and economic growth; first for Cameroon, and then according to the decision of the student and/or family.

For example, the authentic history of Cameroon and Africa, such as colonialism and its immediate consequences; religious incursions in Africa, the adoption of foreign languages, gods, and names, etc., will be mandatory, while studies on education that promote African Identity, encourage trade, travel, inter-African relations, and Pan-Africanism will be prioritized. Education on the Slave Trade and how Africans have lived in foreign countries to this day will be recommended. The USDP believes that a strong and accurate awareness of Africans about their place in the world is crucial to how we deploy our knowledge and skills toward our own emancipation and transformation of ourselves, the people around us, our country, continent, and the world.

For example, among the expected recommendations from education councils and commissions is how the teaching and examinations of national languages will be immediately deployed at the appropriate and relevant administrative levels.

The higher education system will be encouraged to become world-class learning centers and will be supported to use these global metrics to find a place in Cameroon's and the world's development agenda, or perish. The USDP will remove the negative influence of the Government on Higher Education in Cameroon. The USDP will ensure that the vibrant and cherished independence of Cameroon's higher education under the ONTS, Special Status, and Autonomous Regions dispensations does not promote profit by unscrupulous entities.

A key part of an USDP-led education sector reform program will be to restructure and rename state-run institutions according to the ONTS, Special Status, and Autonomous Regions Model, to support efforts to professionalize the Public Sector. Key aspects will include: Coordination of the needs of the ONTS, Special Status, and Autonomous Regions model with Academic development, Vocational training, and economic development needs; Creation and implementation of certification, accreditation, and long-term mechanisms for monitoring and evaluating the performance of these systems; Determination of technical infrastructure needs; budgeting, mobilization of resources from national and foreign sources, to ensure the implementation of strategies and action plans.

Schools are centers from which the nation's workforce will be produced and must therefore be carefully guarded against any form of injustice and corruption. The USDP will maintain a zero-tolerance policy for corruption. Information and Communication Technologies will be at the heart of education administration reform. Automation through the use of affordable information and communication technologies will support processes such as Admissions, Processing, Certification, Thesis defenses; Certificate awards, etc., to make systems transparent, fast, and world-class.

The USDP believes that the nobility of an education system is seen in its role in the holistic shaping of the minds of the present and future generations of our beloved nation.

A proportionate shift from purely academic education to more practical vocational education that will include the creation of post-secondary schools, three-year technical colleges that will focus on training in: Industrial electronics; Industrial mechanics; Plumbers and pipefitters; Heating/ventilation and air conditioning; Design, programming, and application of information technologies; Residential/industrial electrical services; Food processing technology.

Phase out all special government vocational schools: Determine the necessary vocational training programs and convert them into departments within existing universities; Create certification boards for various professions through which candidates are certified as professionals in these specialties; Provide the necessary infrastructure (laboratories, libraries, information technology centers, and internships through partnerships with various organizations, etc.) to improve the quality of education that Cameroonians will receive at all levels.