The prospects of development education in African countries: building a critical mass of citizenry for civic engagement

This article argues that development education is often framed in an African context within notions of national citizenship designed to engender support for public institutions and policies rather than develop critical thinking skills. This limited concept and application of development education often results in public apathy and disengagement from participation in community, national and global development initiatives. The author argues that recourse to the more radical, Freirean conception of development education practice in African states could potentially support more engaged public activism in issues underpinning poverty and injustice locally and globally. The author draws upon his knowledge and experience of the public sector in Ghana and general trends across Africa to propose potentially fertile areas of research that could support more effective DE practice that nurtures enhanced civic engagement.