Equatorial Guinea

The educational system in Equatorial Guinea faces many challenges: the lack of facilities and textbooks, the lack of adequate training for teachers, the centralist control of the curriculum by the state and the bureaucracy, the inability of officials to devise effective long-term educational policies, and an overall lack of funding (Liniger-Goumaz 2000). These problems are all very severe in Equatorial Guinea and must be addressed comprehensively in order to combat educational deficiencies.

Oil was discovered in 1996 off the shores of Equatorial Guinea. Mobil Corporation is the principal oil company involved in Equatorial Guinea, producing 90 percent of the country's oil wealth. Since this discovery of oil, Mobil Corporation has given aid to the government, particularly to be used to improve the educational system. Corruption is a problem in Equatorial Guinea, however; it is very uncertain to what extent profits from the oil reserves will ever reach the population for improving living conditions and the educational system. Because of the lack of transparency within the public finance sectors of the government, it is difficult for the citizens of Equatorial Guinea to hold their government accountable for changes in incomes and expenditures (World Bank 2000). Now that the country has oil wealth, however, Equatorial Guinea also has the potential to choose a developmental strategy that will allow it to grow and prosper.