360°KNOWLEDGE POWER

Economy of Information, Insight and Impact

   

SAKYI-GYINAE KWESI & AKESSEH SOLOMON

“At times of momentous change in culture and society, our use of old words to describe new things can hide the emerging future from our eyes.”

Charles Handy¹

Conquest of Change

Centuries of years ago, between the 1400s and 1800s, a new society emerged in different parts of the world at different times. It was the shift from the ‘hunter-gatherer’ society into the Agricultural society.² During that era, new agricultural inventions coupled with novel knowledge about how to grow, cultivate, and harvest food from seeds evolved, resulting in a massive and impressive increase in agricultural productivity, plus vast developments in farm technology.³ Later in the 18th century, another next shift occurred. This time it was the switch from the agricultural society into what was regarded as the industrial revolution. This period was marked by the introduction and extensive use of machines, particularly the internal combustion engine and the steam engine, to transform fossil fuels into controlled physical power.² Other technological innovations culminating in production increases for industries such as cotton and iron, and rapid urbanization associated with growth in the service sector were symptomatic of this period.⁴ After almost three centuries of reign, the kingdom of the Industrial Revolution was invaded by the army of information in the beginning of the 21^st century.² ....In spite of the repercussions of these transformations, we often fail to see the nature of structural reforms and deep trends until they are upon us, just like the blight which goes unnoticed until just before the tipping point – the day before it takes over the entire pond.⁵ Today, the scope and scale of economic systems is being transformed by the proliferation of knowledge-intensive activities... 

Elusive Apologies

For many reasons this information about the pre-eminence of knowledge might not be good news among some sects of people across the world because the idea of ‘knowledge’ simply scares them. There can be no apologies! But for individuals who intend to make an impact in their various fields of endeavour, it is imperative that this reality be unravelled and understood. The macro implications of this knowledge-reality can be understandably complex. These implications would mean the evolution of strategies bent on addressing and advocating for both structural and procedural reforms within national economies, large multinational firms, small and medium-sized enterprises, governmental institutions, among many others. However, it is much more pragmatic to reckon with what this knowledge economy brings to our tables as individuals and more so as young people...

On Your Marks, Get Set, Stop!

Before sprinting through this concept, it is important to establish certain foundations. The nub of the knowledge economy is undisputed; the times have changed, and for us to become relevant to and productive in our current dispensation, we have to arm ourselves with knowledge. Unfortunately the system of education in Africa, particularly Ghana, which was supposed to serve as the powerhouse for the knowledge economy, has neither understood nor taught us in the right perspective of knowledge... 

‘Brilliant Science & Maths’ Gig: A Real Life Experience

With the issue of rote learning comes one of the biggest issues with education in Ghana. This is most readily seen in the Mathematics. The subject has become a fearful thing among most students and it is not without reason. Who wouldn’t panic if they had to commit to memory several esoteric math formulas the usefulness of which is hard to overestimate?... 

Rethinking Our Destinies

One of the world’s corporate services leaders, Ernst & Young, together with New Zealand’s Ministry of Information Technology observed that “The implication of the knowledge economy is that there is no alternative way to prosperity than to make learning and knowledge-creation of prime importance.” Meaning that to make an impact in this economy, we must look beyond the disappointments we harbour for the failed knowledge powerhouse of the country- the educational system- and begin to rethink our own destinies as young people and future leaders. It will be catastrophic for us to remain adamant to the worldwide transformations set into motion by the knowledge economy...