A CONTENT ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECT OF OUTSOURCING ON COST CONTROL IN DISTANCE EDUCATION

Abstract

The shrinking state subvention to many African universities have compelled them to look for more alternatives for funding their various programmes or look for more prudent ways of reducing cost of operations to improve their financial positions. The paper looked at how local outsourcing initiatives could be used to provide cost effective distance education. Qualitative content analyses method was used. Data was mainly gathered from published documents, financial statements and contract documents. Descriptive statistics was used in some instances to show trends in gains from outsourcing. It was found that an institution can reap both monetary and non monetary gains through local outsourcing. A detailed description of key local outsourcing initiatives that the UCC DE programme adopts is given. The paper indicates that a local outsourcing initiative is a cost effective means for providing quality distance education. The approach helped the institution improve upon its financial performance by reducing its operational costs significantly. For Universities that are into DE or entering into it, the UCC’s approach is an experience worth emulating.