“Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” This statement is somehow related in terms of countries and their economic activities. Nepal is a country that is highly dependent on foreign aid and grants, but it is just like feeding a man a fish. It is neither sustainable nor reliable in the long term. No country becomes rich by taking grants, and it needs to learn how to fish on its own. In order to become economically developed, a country needs to focus on its trade, innovation, and commercialisation. This can be achieved by promoting liberalisation and facilitating entrepreneurship in the country. This is possible if a country follows a Triple Helix model (i.e., academia, industry, and government) to generate market-ready manpower within the country.
The Triple Helix Model is a theory that describes the interactions between academia, industry, and government to create economic and social development. Basically, these entities help to nurture the young population into becoming an effective and productive human resource. These entities should be responsible for moulding the young population into becoming innovators and entrepreneurs. The first entity that the young population directly stumbles upon is the academic entity. Children as young as 2 years old start their formal education. If a country needs to develop its economic condition, then the education system needs to step up first to shape the future manpower to become an entrepreneur. But, unfortunately, there is a trend of students leaving the country as soon as they complete their high school or undergraduate
program.
Current Trend of the Students
As the studies have shown, the majority of students after completing their high school or undergraduate program tend to apply for other developed countries for different reasons. In the fiscal year 2023/24, a total of 112,593 individuals obtained no objection certificates from the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology to study abroad. Whatever the reasons may be, their intentions are clear regarding what they want to do in the future, and that definitely does not include doing something in their own country. This trend has been growing for more than a decade, which is concerning to the economic development as these populations are the backbone of any country. According to research at Tampere University by a research student, there are many factors why this activity is trending in Nepal. These factors are divided into two categories: pull factors and push factors.
Pull factors are the attractions that the students see in foreign countries. The research mentioned that there are several factors that attract students to leave Nepal. The factors include the education system of the host country being far more superior than that of Nepal, being recommended by their friends and families, better job opportunities after study, western life, etc. This shows that the foreign countries have so much more to offer that is attracting Nepal’s students. But this is not the only factor. There are many students who don’t want to stay in Nepal. It is because of a completely different factor.
Push factors are the repulsions that the students face in Nepal. The same research mentioned many factors that make the students leave the country. The factors mentioned in the research include the education system being theory-based and examfocused without any practical knowledge or skills, degrading education quality, lack of job opportunities in the market, etc. This shows that the traditional teachingmethods and subjects are lagging students behind in this fast-paced world.
Since the students are not seeing any future in the country, it is really difficult to convince them to innovate and start a business in their own country. This trend is really hard to stop, but it is a possibility. Although the changes might not be spontaneous, the changes can be achieved if all three entities of the Triple Helix Model can coordinate with each other. As mentioned earlier, academia entity is the first entity that the population stumble upon. So, they should take incharge of this change. The change can start by developing an entrepreneurial mindset into the
students.
How can Schools Develop Entrepreneurial Mindset into Students?
Entrepreneurial mindset is hard to develop into students by only attending seminars or watching motivational videos. It has to be developed into a person from grass root level. So, schools are the perfect place to develop entrepreneurial mindset into students as they can mould students from grass root. This can not be achieved instantaneously but through various strategic actions over a long period of time. According to several authors, entrepreneurship education should be based on three different purposes, i.e. education “about”, “for”, and “through” entrepreneurship. The objective of education “about” entrepreneurship is to provide theoretical knowledge about entrepreneurship and business. The objective of education “for” entrepreneurship is to prepare students to become entrepreneur by equipping them with relevant skills through practical training. The objective of education “through”entrepreneurship is to make entrepreneurs through hands-on experiences of
establishing and managing their own business.
Students learn science and mathematics which aspires them to become scientists, doctors and engineers. Students learn social studies which aspires them to become lawyers and historians. These are only the examples of how basic education “about” a subject can aspire students into becoming expert on the subject. So, it will not be exaggeration if the education system introduced entrepreneurship and business as a core subject in primary and secondary level, it will aspire students into becoming entrepreneurs. This is how a school can educate students “about” entrepreneurship and plant a seedling of entrepreneurial mindset into students. This is a cognitive way of learning. Theoretical study is only one of many ways as it alone is not enough to develop entrepreneurial mindset. Students should also be given the experience of entrepreneurship.
Along side making entrepreneurship a subject, the school system should also focus on practical side of the study and provide education “for” entrepreneurship. Like how schools host science fairs and exhibition, they can also host business simulations and entrepreneurship boot-camps where students can identify a problem, act on it and make a business out of it. This way they can get the practical knowledge of the subject which may amplify their aspirations and develop real life problem solving skills. Not only that, but the students will also get financial literacy and idea about how business is conducted. This can be both cognitive and non-cognitive way of learning. Education “for” entrepreneurship is to develop applicable skills and competency of the students who wants to become an entrepreneur. But getting knowledge and skill is not enough if it is not implemented in real life. Students become entrepreneurs when they step into the market.
One cannot learn how to swim by reading about it or simulating it. In order to learn the skill of swimming, one must enter the depth of water. Education “through” entrepreneurship is based on same idea. Schools can encourage students by getting their idea, knowledge and skills into real market. This way of educating students “through” entrepreneurship will not only help students learn how to build business but actually build business in the process. The live example of education “through” entrepreneurship can be seen at “Tetr College of Business”. In this institution, students learn business by doing various types of businesses at different countries. That is a dedicated school for this, but what schools in Nepal can do is at least encourage the students to start a business on their ideas and provide mentorship. But there is a limitation on what the schools can and cannot do. So, they should also
coordinate with other entities of Triple Helix Model.
One cannot learn how to swim by reading about it or simulating it. In order to learn the skill of swimming, one must enter the depth of water. Education “through” entrepreneurship is based on same idea. Schools can encourage students by getting their idea, knowledge and skills into real market. This way of educating students “through” entrepreneurship will not only help students learn how to build business but actually build business in the process. The live example of education “through” entrepreneurship can be seen at “Tetr College of Business”. In this institution, students learn business by doing various types of businesses at different countries. That is a dedicated school for this, but what schools in Nepal can do is at least encourage the students to start a business on their ideas and provide mentorship. But there is a limitation on what the schools can and cannot do. So, they should also coordinate with other entities of Triple Helix Model.
Conclusion
No country can achieve economic development only through aids and grants. Instead, encouraging trade and innovation is critical for economic development. To achieve this, a country needs to make a favourable environment for its population to start a venture. One of the way to do that is to develop an entrepreneurial mindset among the
public. In the case of Nepal, the young population’s trend is to leave Nepal for better opportunities. The country has to transform this trend into the population starting their own business and innovating. This transformative process is made possible by the Triple Helix Model, which emphasises dynamic collaboration between academics, industry, and government. Schools, as the initial point of interaction for young brains, are perfectly positioned to instill an entrepreneurial mindset. Schools that incorporate education “about”, “for”, and “through” entrepreneurship into their curricula not only impart critical information and skills, but also give real-world experiences that enable students to create and solve issues. This approach is critical in tackling the growing tendency of students leaving for better opportunities abroad, as it aids in talent retention and guarantees that the next generation contributes to the national economy. It is not an instantaneous process as learning how to fish on our own takes time and effort.
