Experts weigh in on Mass abduction threat on girl-child education in Nigeria

The continued abductions of school children in Northern Nigeria could erode gains made to keep girls in school and force many more children to the streets leaving them vulnerable to societal ills, experts have said.

At least 800 school children have been abducted by armed bandits since December 2020. The consequence of this is already being felt in the region as several schools have been shut down and parents are wary of sending their children back to school due to fear.

While the North already occupies an unenviable position hosting the highest number of out-of-school children in Nigeria, data from the United Nation’s Children Fund (UNICEF) shows that over 5.3 million students in the region have had their education disrupted due to attacks on schools. According to UNICEF, almost 13.2 million out-of-school children in Nigeria also reside in the North.

Despite advocacies to promote girl-child education by government and non-governmental organisations, records from UNESCO also show that southern states record 53 percent and 80 percent literacy, northern states record 14 percent to 48 percent literacy.

At the zonal level by gender shows female literacy shows an abysmal 29 percent and 49.6 percent in the northern zones compared to an average 80 percent in the South. Experts are worried that insecurity and attack on schools in the North will worsen the statistics.