The new managerialism of peace: Public higher education in neoliberal, post-conflict contexts

• In Event: Higher education a key pillar for development in Africa?

Abstract

Purpose of the Paper

The purpose of this paper to explore the qualitative connection between new managerialist trends in public higher education and peacebuilding in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Specifically, we ask, “how do universities in post-conflict settings reflect new managerialist trends when creating policy that has implications for peacebuilding?” Using data from universities in Kenya and Côte d’Ivoire, we uncover post-conflict activities addressing formerly contested employment practices intended to cultivate peace in the community; yet we problematize the sustainability of peace derived from these efforts.

Theoretical Framework

In the new managerial regime, emphasis is placed on financial returns and economic policies that reflect the neoliberal, de-regulated environment of higher education (Deem, 1998). New managerialism, as a consequence of neoliberalism, has proliferated the Global South and approaches to public higher education. Mamdani (2008) has written critically about how the influx of managerialism into public higher education in SSA has led to resource creation for universities, but at the cost of quality, equity, and the public mission. What has not been considered by the literature is how universities in post-conflict settings reflect the new managerialist trend, now prevalent in SSA, when creating policy that has implications for peacebuilding.

Methods

This paper uses qualitative data produced from case studies on public universities institutionalized responses to violence, post-conflict, in Western Kenya and Côte d’Ivoire. As a result of these studies, interviews with 46 faculty, administrators, and staff members at two public universities (Moi University and Université Félix Houphouët-Boigny [UFHB]) provided descriptive accounts of university policies and practices focused on economic development that were rhetorically framed as peacebuilding, in post-conflict conditions. The data were analyzed using qualitative techniques to produce naturalistic generalizations regarding the cases (Stake, 1995).

Results

From new managerial perspective, the universities role in economic development is considered paramount. “The emphasis is on short term goals and successes, often achieved by risk-taking and entrepreneurial zeal” (Deem, 1998, p. 50). In both cases, university stakeholders observed how access to the economic opportunities created by the university was contested, specifically around employment. A participant stated, “Actually we have a large population of unemployed youth and they make a ready army.” As a result, during the conflict, combatants targeted the case institutions.

Post-conflict, administrators and faculty at Moi University in Kenya noted how critical reconsidering employment practices at the institution were to creating and maintaining a peaceful environment. As one faculty member noted, “The community members told us, said they were angry. ‘There is nothing we benefit. We only get waste products– the sewerage and condoms.’” In response to such concerns, university officials established employment policies geared toward hiring from the local community. However, many problematized this practice, one that was often framed as maintaining peace by university officials, as further tribalizing the institution.

At UFHB, a focus on post-conflict employment practices was also prevalent. Students, who were the main source of violence due to political and economic grievances, were offered employment on the campus as security workers after the conflict. A Dean described of this practice, “For the security, the environment, if [students] have some small projects, the problem that they are facing is more money, resources…the atmosphere on the campus will change and it will bring more responsibility for themselves.” As a short-term solution, participants noted that security policies engendered peace. Yet in the long run, a lack of competence in security increased insecurity on campus. Both cases demonstrate that a focus on short-term economic policies consistent with new managerial thinking addressed immediate problems, but did not contribute to long-term sustainable peace efforts, despite university intentions.

Significance

This paper posits that universities within highly diverse settings should intentionally integrate peacebuilding measures into the function of the institutions, beyond a focus on peace curricula preponderant in the literature on conflict and education. Yet, we uncover how a focus on economic development in post-conflict contexts, as a result of the new managerial regime, may be antithetical to sustainable peace. For international education, this work is significant in that it connects constructs heretofore independent and reflects a new way of thinking about the university as an agent of peace in neoliberal times.

Deem, R. (1998). ‘New managerialism’ and higher education. International Studies in Sociology of Education, 8(1), 47-70.

Mamdani, M. (2008). Higher education, the state and the marketplace. Journal of Higher Education in Africa, 6(1), 1–10.

Stake, R. (1995). The art of case study research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Authors

• Ane Turner Johnson, Rowan University

• Dawn Singleton, Rowan University