The impunity of mis-educating Kenya’s youth

By XN Iraki

Counterfeiting is a big industry worldwide and mostly targets physical products. It’s easy to find counterfeited phones, computers, drugs, car spare parts, software, cosmetics and so on in the market.

Counterfeiters usually study the market, and mostly target highly successful brands. And why not? Their main objective is to make money. And they take advantage of the fact that the most costumers cannot tell a genuine product and a counterfeited one apart.

Counterfeiters use the law of large numbers, in that there will always be a new consumer who has not used that particular product. In fact, con men work the same way — there is always someone who has never been conned before using the same old lie.

There is, however, an area that people rarely consider — counterfeited services particularly in education. 

There is already a heated debate that some degree courses offered by some universities in Kenya are fake and therefore useless. The reason for this is that entrepreneurs have found a hole in the system that they can capitalise on.

Demand

The primary attraction to the sector for most of these entrepreneurs is the traditional demand for higher education and the liberalisation of the education sector. And because they are smart, they are counterfeiting the most sought after qualification — the degree. They lure in prey by setting up institutions and giving them attractive names, which our youngsters are easily attracted to and hence enroll. The move is perfect for the entrepreneurs, since the students will not know they have been conned until they are through with their education and are seeking jobs.

It should be noted that some students also prefer that counterfeit education that assures them passing and getting A. With this, they are happy and will not concern themselves with the contents. But these students should know that the market has come up with countermeasures — including the use of aptitude tests and interviews— to nap cheaters.

The biggest tragedy with counterfeited education is that unlike a product, you cannot return it. It is in your ‘head’. Even if you got another degree, the ‘counterfeited knowledge’ is still yours.

 But the bigger tragedy is that counterfeit education affects the disadvantaged members of the society — the poor more than the affluent. This is not unexpected. Consumers of counterfeits are after low prices. In fact, most of counterfeit institution of higher learning use prices to lure students.

Mediocrity

Counterfeit education can also drown the genuine education and standards required at the workplace, with citizens accepting mediocrity as standard.

So where do we go from here? Kenya seems to have become the Wild West of higher education. While it can be argued that this has attracted lots of investors in this sector, it has also attracted lots of counterfeiters. The main commodity in higher education is our children. Why should we allow our children to acquire counterfeit education, which they will carry throughout their lives? Will this not naturally lead to counterfeit economy?

The impunity of mis-educating Kenyans must be dealt with urgently.

No nation can transform itself economically without genuine education for its citizens. South Korea, Singapore, and other Asian economic powers rose to global eminence because they consistently ensured their citizens got not only genuine, but also quality education. We cannot achieve Vision 2030 when our youngsters do not have the skills needed to effect the dream.

The truth is that higher education in Kenya is a growth industry. It has the capacity to transform this country. It must be guarded against counterfeits.

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