Some analysts argued that carrying out education in the absence of economic development and related social services had been a mistake. The 1984-1988 Development Plan concentrated on improving livestock resources, marketing facilities and banking services, assuming that demand for education would stem from increased monetary resources. Rather than look at the programme s shortcomings, the blame was put on pastoralists backward way of life. Mainstream explanations for the failure of education provision in pastoral areas usually blame the recipients. It is assumed that the problem stems from the nomads obsolete way of life and cultural conservatism, rather than from the incapacity of a national system to respond to the living conditions of a significant number of its citizens.
Research is practically inexistent on the impact of education.
Figures on enrolment and attendance rely on local records that are often incomplete and inaccurate, yet these figures are usually the main yardstick used to measure the outcomes of education programmes. The most profound impact of these programmes remains an untold story. Social norms, networks and relationships of authority play a critical role in pastoral livelihood systems, which education often tends to undermine. A divide often sets in between educated and non-educated members of communities. Recent research underlines how projects of directed change are embedded into education programmes for nomads, tending to antagonize local learning and socialization patterns.