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All Eyes on Management education promises to play a crucial role in transforming Africa's economic future. by Tricia Bisoux F oreign investment may not be the only—or even the best—solution to the seemingly intractable problems that African countries face. The wide- spread availability of quality management education could be the key to ending years of political instability, poverty, and pandemics. That's the belief and mission of a growing number of business edu- cators around the world who have made Africa a central part of their teaching and scholarship. When schools on the international stage engage in active partnerships and academic exchanges with African institutions, they argue, both sides come out ahead. They not only develop their faculty's scholar- ship and enrich their students' educations, but also significantly contribute to strengthening the African economy, says Guy Pfefferman, director of the Global Business School Network. GBSN was formed by the International Finance Corporation to enhance the quality of business education in emerg- ing markets. "Business schools preach corporate social responsibility, but they do precious little of it themselves," says Pfefferman. "If they have any social conscience on an international scale, educators who study entrepreneurship, CSR, or global business need to include Africa as part of their international activities." Pfefferman and others are making a strong case to the world's business schools, urging them to make Africa a central priority. Through partnerships and exchanges of best practices, they argue, African business schools can con- tinue to build their capacity to educate qualified managers—and become cru- cial catalysts for a stronger African economy. Management—the Missing Piece A large piece missing from the African puzzle is management education, says Pfefferman. He notes that in Nigeria alone there are close to 500 nongovern- mental organizations (NGOs) dedicated to addressing the spread of AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis; yet only one meets the management standards required to receive money from the Global Fund. "That's an absolute calamity," says Pfefferman. "If those 500 NGOs could send their people for basic business training—in areas such as management, bookkeeping, inventory control, and human resources—they could also become eligible for these funds. That would dramatically increase the number of people who could be treated for these diseases." Management skills are also in painfully short supply in other sectors, he adds. "Managers of even large companies keep books because they have to keep books, but they don't relate those numbers to their management deci- sions," says Pfefferman. "Business schools need to teach these firms to focus on quantifiable issues." 42 BizEd MAY/JUNE 2008