• Children in rural and underserved communities in Nigeria are being left behind as they are not equipped to adapt or transition to new methods of learning.

• Governmental reforms in the national curriculum would help bridge the gap in inequality, as would PPPs.

According to a 2019 Executive Summary on Poverty and Inequality by the National Bureau of Statistics, 40.1% of the population in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country and the largest producer of oil in Africa, is classified as poor. That is, on average, four out of 10 Nigerians has per capita expenditure below $400.

A UNICEF report states that 10.5 million of the country’s children aged 5-14 years are not in school. Only 61% of 6 to 11-year-olds regularly attend primary school. Some states in the north east and north west of the country have more than half of the girls not enrolled in schools as marginalisation ensures that girls are deprived of basic education.

A struggle was going on prior to COVID-19 to ensure young children stay in school and have access to proper education, as Nigeria contributes approximately 20% of the total global out-of-school population.

Read more: WeForum