Identification des déterminants et évaluation de l’efficience des institutions d’enseignement supérieur et universitaire de la province du sud-kivu de 2012 à 2021

Abstract

This study presents an economic analysis of the determinants of efficiency among higher and university education institutions in South Kivu Province. It uses input and output indicators and applies the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method to assess institutional performance.

The study is based on a reference database designed to monitor and evaluate the levels of efficiency and inefficiency of higher education institutions across various socio-demographic criteria, including geographic regions, legal status, and location. This approach enables identification of both the efforts already made and the improvements still required for these institutions to operate on the efficiency frontier.

Given the important role that higher education institutions play in a country’s economic development, it is essential to evaluate their efficiency, examine the evolution of their productivity, and analyze the determinants of their performance. Assessing the efficiency of higher education institutions helps identify the most efficient institutions, which represent best practices, as well as the least efficient ones, which reflect areas requiring improvement. These institutions are responsible for developing the skills, competencies, and knowledge necessary to train national elites and support the growth of knowledge-based societies.

Since education may rightly be considered a knowledge-production “industry” capable of promoting high performance, it is important to examine the conditions that generate institutional efficiency. In the current context of globalization, higher education institutions must strengthen their competitiveness in order to survive, prosper, and remain relevant. Quality and efficiency have therefore become two major concerns to which these institutions must pay close attention.

The objective of this study is to identify and analyze the factors that explain institutional efficiency using each institution’s scores. It also proposes corrective measures that may enable these institutions to respond effectively to global changes, implement the necessary reforms, and align themselves with international standards.

By comparing the efficiency scores of the institutions examined, higher and university education institutions in South Kivu can be classified into four categories. The first category includes institutions that are not efficient at all, with scores ranging from 0 to 0.25. The second category includes weakly efficient institutions, with scores ranging from 0.26 to 0.49. The third category includes moderately efficient institutions, with scores ranging from 0.50 to 0.99. Finally, only one institution among the 32 institutions studied, namely the Official University of Bukavu, appears to be fully efficient.

Keywords: higher and university education institutions, efficiency, effectiveness, quality, performance, evaluation, Data Envelopment Analysis.