ABDULLAHI JALALUDDEEN KANO.
The Executive Secretary of the National Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), Prof. Salisu Shehu, has revealed that only 30 per cent of school-age children in Northern Nigeria are currently attending school.
He made the disclosure at the 10th Ramadan Lecture organised by the Islamic Forum of Nigeria in Kano, warning that the region’s education sector is facing a deepening crisis.
Prof. Shehu said Nigeria presently has over 20 million out-of-school children, a figure worsened by armed banditry in the North-West and insurgency in the North-East, which have forced the closure of many schools.
He also decried the shortage of teachers due to retirements, deaths and career changes, lamenting that examination malpractice and weak oversight have further weakened the system.
The educationist warned that lack of access to education is fueling thuggery and banditry, stressing that education produces responsible citizens while ignorance breeds social instability. He urged Northern governors to declare a state of emergency in the education sector, prioritise funding and reforms, and reconsider what he described as misplaced priorities, including sponsorship of pilgrimages while basic education and healthcare remain underfunded.
In separate presentations, Alhaji Ibrahim Ado Kurawa linked climate change and the farmer-herder conflict to worsening insecurity in the North-East and North-West, describing them as major contributors to poverty in the region.
He called for political reforms and stronger collaboration among Northern groups such as the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) and the Northern Elders Forum (NEF). Prof. Kabiru Isa Dandago also highlighted poverty, unemployment and high living costs as pressing economic challenges, urging voters to elect credible leaders.
