Historical Analysis of Bilateral and Multilateral Cooperation Agencies' Interventions in Education and Training in Burkina Faso from 1960 to 2015

Abstract

Education and training are the most essential factors in the development process of States. Indeed, beyond enabling citizens, including children, to build their own future, education and training are the basis for the sustainable and inclusive development of any society. As proof, industrialized countries have relied on these sectors to increase their human capital. Inspired by this lesson, developing countries south of the Sahara, such as Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta), have appropriated these tools since their independence. However, given the financial difficulties of these countries, investment in education and training has always been lower than the real needs. This is what justified recourse to official development assistance (ODA) as soon as these countries gained independence in the 1960s. In the case of Burkina Faso, many technical and financial partners have been active in ODA since its political independence on 5 August 1960. So, what is the assessment of this international financial and technical intervention in the fields of education and training? What are the political and social implications of this intervention? This reflection shows that the bi- and multilateral actors have always been numerous and diverse in Burkina Faso since 1960. It also shows that the contributions of technical and financial partners, both bilateral and multilateral, have been insufficient to meet national expectations and very often not adapted to the real needs of the population at the grassroots.