Kiingereza Bora Zaidi barani Afrika

Nchi hizi za Kiafrika zinazungumza Kiingereza bora zaidi, kulingana na EF Education First, kampuni ya elimu inayojishughulisha na ufundishaji wa lugha. Tanzania iko nafasi ipi na utafiti wa EF ni sahihi kiasi gani?

Kulingana na utafiti wa hivi karibuni wa EF, nchi hizi tano za Kiafrika zinazungumza Kiingereza bora zaidi.

Moja ya nchi mbili za Afrika Mashariki katika tano bora, Uganda imejumuishwa katika utafiti huo kwa mara ya kwanza. Labda haishangazi kwamba nchi hiyo ina alama za juu, ikizingatiwa kwamba hadi Kiswahili kilipopata hadhi rasmi mnamo 2022, Kiingereza ndio lugha pekee iliyotambulika rasmi nchini Uganda. Kinatumika kwa katiba na maneno ya wimbo wa taifa. Ingawa lugha kubwa zaidi ya kikabila, Luganda, inaweza kuzungumzwa zaidi kila siku, inachukuliwa kuwa ya kitaifa (national), sio lugha rasmi (official). Kwa hivyo haitumiki kama Kiingereza kinavyotumika, serikalini, mahakama au elimu ya juu.

Inakadiriwa kuwa zaidi ya nusu ya wakazi wa Ghana wanaweza kuzungumza Kiingereza, na kwamba wengi wa kundi hili wanakitumia kama lugha ya kwanza. Hii inakuja kwa manufaa kwa Waghana milioni 3-4 wanaofanya kazi nje ya nchi, na makundi makubwa katika Ulaya na Amerika Kaskazini. Ghana, hata hivyo, imezungukwa na nchi zinazozungumza Kifaransa, na kuna mipango ya kupitisha Kifaransa kama lugha rasmi ya ziada katika siku zijazo.

Jitu hili la Afrika Magharibi huzungumza zaidi ya aina moja ya Kiingereza, kati ya lugha zinazokadiriwa kufikia 520! Nigerian pidgin (Pijini ya Kinigeria), kwa kawaida ni mchanganyiko wa Kiingereza kilichorahisishwa na lugha mbalimbali za kieneo, huzungumzwa na watu wengi sana, na huchukuliwa na wengi kuwa lugha tofauti na Kiingereza sanifu. Hata hivyo, idadi kubwa ya Wanigeria huzungumza Kiingereza sanifu pia, na nchi hiyo imetoa waandishi wengi maarufu duniani katika lugha hiyo, wakiwemo Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka na Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Nigeria sasa inakadiriwa kuwa na idadi kubwa zaidi ya watu wanaozungumza Kiingereza duniani, na wazungumzaji wengi wa Kiingereza kuliko Uingereza yenyewe.

Koloni nyingine ya zamani ya Uingereza, Kenya, ndiyo nchi inayoongoza kwa kuzungumza Kiingereza katika Afrika Mashariki, na kwa mujibu wa EF, sio tu ya pili kwa uzungumzaji wa lugha hiyo barani, lakini ya ishirini kati ya nchi 111 duniani kote, ikiwa juu ya nchi za Ulaya zenye lugha zinazohusiana kwa Kiingereza, kama vile Uswizi, Italia, Uhispania na Ufaransa.

Kiingereza ni mojawapo ya lugha mbili rasmi za Kenya, huku Kiswahili kikiwa lugha nyingine. Watanzania jirani pengine wanaweza kujifariji kwamba Wakenya wako katika nafasi ya pili barani kwa kiswahili pia.

Afŕika Kusini ndiyo nchi pekee ya Kiafŕika iliyofuzu katika kitengo cha Ustadi wa Juu Sana wa Kiingereza (Very High Proficiency), kulingana na utafiti huo. Kiingereza ni mojawapo ya lugha rasmi kumi na moja nchini (zote hizo zinachukuliwa kuwa na hadhi sawa), idadi inayofanya Taifa la Rainbow kuwa la pili duniani baada ya India, ambayo ina kumi na sita. Jambo la kushangaza ni kwamba, nchi mbili ambazo Kiingereza si lugha rasmi ni Marekani na Uingereza, kwani kukosekana kwa lugha zinazoshindana kumemaanisha kuwa haikuwa lazima kuipa hadhi rasmi.

Sio chini kama wengine wanaweza kufikiria:

Kutoka: https://www.ef.com/ca/epi/

Tanzania iko nafasi ya saba kati ya nchi ishirini za Afrika katika utafiti huo. Hata hivyo, kulikuwa na anuwai ya alama zilizorekodiwa kwa nchi kwenye orodha. Picha inabadilika tunapoangalia mahali walipo katika orodha kamili ya ulimwengu ya nchi zilizojumuishwa kwenye utafiti:

Source: https://www.ef.com/ca/epi/

Ni vyema kutambua kwamba wakati Tanzania kama nchi inaingia katika Bendi ya Ustadi wa Chini (Low Proficiency), jiji la Dar es Salaam linakuja juu zaidi, katika Bendi ya Ustadi wa Wastani (Moderate Proficiency). Hii, kulingana na EF English First, inatosha kwa mfanyakazi wa kawaida kushirikiana kuvuka mipaka. Kwa vile jiji hilo ndilo kitovu cha biashara nyingi za kimataifa za Tanzania, hii ni habari njema.

Kuna nchi 54 barani Afrika, lakini utafiti huo unajumuisha 20 tu kati ya hizo Kwa vile idadi kubwa ya nchi ambazo hazipo kwenye utafiti huo zilikuwa makoloni ya zamani ya Ufaransa, zingeweza kutarajiwa kuwa chini katika uorodheshaji kama zingejumuishwa. Hii ina maana kwamba nchi zilizo karibu na sehemu ya chini ya orodha ya EF zinaweza kuwa karibu zaidi na katikati, kama utafiti ungefanywa katika nchi nyingi zaidi.

Wakati mwingine kunaweza kuwa na tofauti kubwa kati ya matokeo ya utafiti wa nchi moja kwa muda mfupi.

Kwa mfano, Tunisia inaonekana kuruka viwango viwili kati ya 2018 na 2021, wakati Saudi Arabia ilishuka kutoka nchi 26 kati ya 44 mnamo 2011 hadi 52 kati ya nchi 54 mwaka uliofuata. Kenya ilipanda kutoka nchi 66 kati ya 100 katika utafiti huo mwaka wa 2019, hadi 22 kati ya 99 mnamo (2020).

Mabadiliko hayo ya haraka hayawezekani kutokana na muda unaochukua ili kuendeleza lugha.

Huenda sampuli ya chini kwa kila nchi (wafanya mtihani 400) ni ya chini sana, na kwamba hii inachangia baadhi ya matokeo yasiyo ya kawaida. Ni rahisi kufikiria kuwa katika nchi ambayo imepanda faharasa kwa haraka, mzungumzaji wa kiwango cha juu cha Kiingereza anaweza kuwa amealika marafiki wenye ujuzi sawa kwenye mitandao ya kijamii kufanya jaribio la mtandaoni, na kwamba kundi hili linaweza kuwa limeleta wastani wa alama juu. Katika nchi nyingine, kikundi kipya cha wazungumzaji wa kiwango cha chini kinaweza kuanza kusoma Kiingereza, kufanya majaribio na kupunguza wastani wa alama. Hilo lingetoa maoni kwamba Kiingereza kilikuwa kikiwa mbaya zaidi katika nchi hiyo, wakati kwa kweli, watu wengi zaidi walikuwa wamependezwa na lugha hiyo.

Ikiangaliwa zaidi ya miaka kadhaa, uchunguzi unatoa picha ya kuvutia kuhusu ni nchi zipi zina wazungumzaji wengi wenye uwezo wa Kiingereza. Hata hivyo, kwa sababu haijumuishi makundi makubwa ya watu, kuna uwezekano wa kufanya uwezo wa wastani wa Kiingereza wa baadhi ya nchi uonekane wa juu (na, mara kwa mara, chini) kuliko ilivyo.

Ikiwa unataka kufanya mtihani wa EF ili kuona kiwango chako ni nini, tumia kiunga cha wavuti yao hapa, (majaribio yapo chini ya ukurasa) lakini kumbuka kwamba, kwa kuzingatia yaliyo hapo juu, ikiwa alama yako sio ya juu sana, kunaweza kuwa na wengine zaidi kama wewe kuliko matokeo ya EF yanavyopendekeza! (Kumbuka kwamba kuna taarifa fulani kuhusu viwango vya Kiingereza na majaribio mengine ya mtandaoni bila malipo kwenye tovuti hii hapa.

Ikiwa ungependa kusoma matokeo kamili ya utafiti wa 2022, inaweza kupakuliwa kwenye tovuti ya EF hapa.

These African countries speak the best English, according to EF Education First, an education company that specialises in language teaching.  Where does Tanzania come and how accurate is EF’s study?

According to EF’s recent study,  these five African countries speak the best English.

One of two East African countries in the top five, Uganda has been included in the survey for the first time.  It is perhaps not surprising that the country scores highly, given that until Swahili gained official status in 2022, English was the only recognised official language in Uganda.  It is used for both for the constitution and the words to the national anthem.  While the largest tribal language, Luganda, may be more widely spoken on a day-to-day basis, it is considered a national, not official language.  It is therefore not used, as English is, in government, the judiciary or higher education.

It’s estimated that more than half of Ghana’s population can speak English, and that most of this group use it as a first language.  This comes in useful for the 3-4 million Ghanaians who work outside of the country, with large groups in both Europe and North America.  Ghana is, however, surrounded by French speaking countries, and there are plans to adopt French as an additional official language in the future.

The West African giant speaks more than one form of English, among an estimated 520 languages! Nigerian pidgin, usually a mixture of simplified English and various regional languages, is very widely spoken, and considered by many to be a separate language from standard English.  However, large numbers of Nigerians speak standard English too, and the country has produced many world-renowned authors in the language, including Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Nigeria is now estimated to have one of the largest English speaking populations in the world, with more English speakers than England itself.

Another former British colony, Kenya, is the leading English speaking country in East Africa, and according to EF, not only the second best at speaking the language on the continent, but twentieth out of 111 countries worldwide, placing above European countries with languages related to English, such as Switzerland, Italy, Spain and France.

English is one of the two official languages of Kenya, with Swahili being the other one.  Neighbouring Tanzanians could perhaps console themselves that Kenyans are in second place on the continent for Swahili too.

South Africa is the only African country to qualify in the Very High Proficiency category of English, according to the study.  English is one of eleven official languages in the country (all of which are considered to have equal status), a number making the Rainbow Nation second in the world only to India, which has sixteen.  Surprisingly, two countres in which English is not an official language are the US and the UK, as the absence of competing languages has meant it has not been necessary to give it official status in either.

Not as low as some might think:

Source:  https://www.ef.com/ca/epi/

Tanzania actually comes seventh out of the twenty African countries in the survey.  However,

there was a wide range of scores recorded for the countries on the list.  The picture changes when we look at where they stand in the full world list of countries included in the study:

Source:  https://www.ef.com/ca/epi/

It is worth noting that while Tanzania as a country comes into the Low Proficiency Band, the city of Dar es Salaam comes higher, in the Moderate Proficiency Band.  This, according to EF English First, is sufficient for the average employee to collaborate across borders.  As the city is the centre of much of Tanzania’s international trade, this is good news.

Kuna nchi 54 barani Afrika, lakini utafiti huo unajumuisha 20 tu kati ya hizo Kwa vile idadi kubwa ya nchi ambazo hazipo kwenye utafiti huo zilikuwa makoloni ya zamani ya Ufaransa, zingeweza kutarajiwa kuwa chini katika uorodheshaji kama zingejumuishwa. Hii ina maana kwamba nchi zilizo karibu na sehemu ya chini ya orodha ya EF zinaweza kuwa karibu zaidi na katikati, kama utafiti ungefanywa katika nchi nyingi zaidi.

There can sometimes be a big difference between the survey results for the same country over a short time.

For example, Tunisia appears to have made a jump of two levels between 2018 and 2021, while Saudi Arabia fell from 26 out of 44 countries in 2011 to 52 out of 54 countries the next year.  Kenya went from 66 out of 100 countries in the survey in 2019, to 22 out of 99 in 2020.

Such rapid changes are unlikely given the amount of time it takes to progress in a language.

It may be that the minimum sample per country (400 test takers) is too low, and that this accounts for some of the stranger results.  It is easy to imagine that in a country that has quickly climbed the index, a high-level English speaker might have invited equally proficient friends on social media to take the online test, and that this group might have brought the average score up.   In another country, a new group of lower level speakers might apply to study English, taking tests and bringing the average score down.  This would give the impression that English was getting worse in that country, when, in fact, more people had become interested in the language.

If looked at over a number of years, the survey gives an interesting picture as to which countries have a lot of capable English speakers.  However, because it excludes large groups of people, it is likely to make the average English abilities of some countries seem higher (and, on occasion, lower) than they actually are.

If you want to take the EF test to see what your level is, use the link to their web site here, (the tests are at the bottom of the page) but remember that, in view of the above, if your score is not very high, there may be more others like you than EF’s results suggest!  (Note that there is some information about English levels and other free online tests on this web site here.)

If you are interested in reading the full results of the survey for 2022, it can be downloaded on the EF web site here.