Regional conference on dairy education and training in Africa
The conference which was facilitated by the DAIRYCHAIN programme was held on 21st-22nd September, 2015 at Merica Hotel, Nakuru, Kenya. Participants drawn from The Netherlands, USA, Kenya, Nigeria, Malawi and Ghana attended. The conference which was themed “Transforming Dairy Education and Training for Health and Wealth in Africa” was categorized into four sub-themes namely; Status of Dairy Education and Training in Africa, Dairy Education and Training, Dairy Curriculum Development for Tertiary Training Institutions and Case Studies of Competence- Based Curricula in Dairy.
Status of Dairy Education and Training in Africa
In this sub-theme, papers on the current status of dairy education were presented. Papers on experiences with this system of dairy education in terms of the competence of dairy experts produced by training institutions from an industry perspective were also presented. These provided an objective evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the current approach to dairy training and education in Africa, and identification of skills and infrastructural gaps of the current system.
Dairy education and training
Papers on the status of dairy training and education in countries with developed dairy sectors were presented in this sub-theme. The presentation exposed the participants to the unique features of the dairy education and training in terms of curriculum development, policy environment and industry structure which have propelled the dairy sector in the developed world to current levels of successes being experienced. Opportunity to review the successes of these systems was provided.
Dairy curriculum development for tertiary training institutions
Under this sub-theme, a new transformative approach to training and education that focused on acquiring concrete skills as opposed to abstract learning was presented. This aimed at identifying policy constraints that hinder or otherwise support, review or overhaul the training needs and approaches. Experiences across Africa and outside Africa were shared as a way of identifying the key policy issues for governments.
Case studies of competence-based curricula in dairy
Presentations on specific curricula developed for certificate, diploma and bachelor’s degree in dairy and animal science were presented. These presentations provided a snapshot into the process of labour needs assessment to ensure that learners exhibit a mastery of the intended and required competencies.
The 2015 regional conference on transforming the dairy sector in Africa through education and training provided a platform for dairy farmers, extension staff and other practitioners, educators and trainers in the dairy sub-sector together with all other stakeholders along the dairy value chain in Africa and beyond to actively participate, and share findings and experiences, while at the same time learning lessons towards effectively transforming the dairy sector into a competitive economic sector. The conference therefore provided dairy farmers, the industry, institutions of higher learning, local and international development agencies with an opportunity to review the current status of the dairy education and training in Africa, assess the progress made so far in the dairy sub-sector through training and education and lessons to be learnt from similar curricula from Europe. This will help to develop strategies to overhaul the training needs of Africa’s institutions to facilitate economic growth in the dairy sub-sector.
