Private higher education in Ethiopia: risks, stakes and stocks

Enduring the impacts of COVID-19: experiences of the private higher education sector in Ethiopia

“…Survival also demands a compelling vision, the ability to recognize and adapt to changing circumstances, and strong, effective leadership without which institutions in any sector are doomed (Muehlenbeck and Pineda 2019). In fact, PHEIs would be expected to move from 'a crisis management situation to more long-term planning for the new academic year' (IAU and ESN n.d.) but the history of Ethiopian PHEIs in terms of managing such crisis and developing long-term risk management strategies has been very low (Tamrat and Teferra 2019).…”

The new kid on the block: Perceived contributions and pitfalls of private higher education in Ethiopia

“…Using the model identified earlier (Tamrat & Teferra, 2020), instructors and administrators were asked to rate the contributions of PHEIs on a 5‐point Likert scale (from least significant to most significant). Accordingly, the contributions of the sector were examined in terms of access and equity, local economy and development, operational flexibility and efficiency, and serving as models of entrepreneurship and reform.…”

“…This appears to have been heavily influenced by the salient tendencies adopted by the government towards private sector development. Despite the presence of a sizeable PHE sector in the country, neither the general incentives nor the specific provisions set for PHEIs (FDRE, 1996, 1998, 2019) appear to prevent the PHE sector from being marginalised, not only in terms of competing fairly with the public sector (Klemenčič & Zgaga, 2014; Pachuashvili, 2011; Tamrat & Teferra, 2019) but also in the manners in which it is viewed and understood by stakeholders.…”

“…As aptly noted by Jamshidi et al (2012), the development of PHE can be facilitated only with collaboration between governments as policymakers at the macro level and the private sector as providers of higher education at the micro level. With the increasing global shift away from viewing higher education exclusively as an essential public good (Buckner, 2017), governments are expected to develop a sustainable policy that enhances the contribution of PHEIs and their full integration into a given higher education system (Lee, 2017; Levy, 2003; Tamrat & Teferra, 2020; Teixiera et al., 2017; World Bank, 2009).…”

“…This development has been accompanied by a gamut of practical arguments advanced about the relative importance of this emerging sector (Buckner, 2017; Fehnel, 2006; Jamshedi et al., 2012; Levy, 2003, 2006; Shah & Nair, 2016; Tamrat, 2008, 2017). Based on the categorisation suggested by Tamrat and Teferra (2020), the major contributions of PHE might fall under four major themes: access and equity, local development and economy, operational flexibility, and efficiency and entrepreneurship and reform.…”