The Future of Education in Africa

Friday, April 17, 2020

The Future of Girls' Education

When asked what she wanted to do with her future, a little girl living in sub-Saharan Africa answered that she wanted to become a doctor, or maybe a judge or scientist. To us, this may not seem out of the ordinary, but for her, achieving her goals would be near impossible due to the society and place that she lives in. (Kuwonu) In Malawi, her village, there are countless obstacles standing in the way of her education: the extreme poverty, unanticipated pregnancies, the sexist traditions and norms of girls marrying young and becoming housewives.
Driven by these factors, the enrollment rates of girls living in sub-Saharan Africa reached shockingly low levels, with their collective female population being the least educated population internationally (Kuwonu). Not only does this impair the futures of millions of African children, but according to lead World Bank analyst Mark Blacken, these rates are also bringing down the nation’s gross national product. He specifies that if girls were given the chance to become properly educated, along with other natural rights, the region’s GNP would increase by one percentage point yearly (Lafraniere). 

So why is a proper education so rarely given to girls in sub-Saharan Africa? There are a multitude of factors, the most prominent being the antiquated norms of society that are preventing the education of these girls. The standard in African culture is for girls to marry young, even as young as 12 or 13, and bear children for their family; however, girls who become pregnant while attending school are often forced to drop out and give up their education for good, compromising their entire future (Tibasima). Even those who escape early marriage can easily become pregnant–children are not taught sex education in school, and too often they become pregnant because they are misinformed. According to a Human Rights Watch article, in Tanzania, “over 15,000 girls drop out annually due to pregnancy”(Tibasima). 

Although girls have many more factors preventing their equal education, including pregnancy, the flawed school systems of sub-Saharan Africa impairs the quality of any education scarcely received by those who attend school. Akua Djanie, an experienced journalist, describes her experiences with her children’s education, comparing Ghana and Great Britain’s school systems to uncover the differences between the two countries’ education processes. The main takeaway Djanie had was that in more developed countries, including Great Britain, teachers challenge their students to think outside of the box and gain new insights independently, but in sub-Saharan African countries, they are not being asked to “probe their mind for other answers” beyond the obvious (Djanie).

The lack of resources available in the classroom also provides an explanation for the statistics: the typical classroom consists of chipped paint, cracking walls, and no desks or computers. (Djanie) How can these students be expected to learn effectively when the school system suppresses their learning and doesn’t provide sufficient resources?

Although organizations such as Unicef and the United Nations Educational Organization are raising awareness on this issue, sub-Saharan Africa consistently has the lowest rate of students attending school, and the students attending school funnel down from very few in primary school to even fewer at high school graduation (Sengupta). Without reform, the numbers will only continue to reduce. These girls are dropping out of school because they are treated so indifferently, and therefore led to believe that their education doesn't matter. Without reform, these girls will only continue quitting on their education, oblivious to how valued it should be.

Works Cited:

Djanie, Akua. "Education in Africa is failing its people." New African, no. 512, Dec. 2011, p. 46+. Gale In Context: Global Issues, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A275927696/GIC?u=los42754&sid=GIC&xid=a2ad1d59. Accessed 10 Mar 2020.

Kuwonu, Franck. “Millions of Girls Remain out of School | Africa Renewal.” United Nations, United Nations, Apr. 2015, www.un.org/africarenewal/magazine/april-2015/millions-girls-remain-out-school.

Lafraniere, Sharon. “For Girls in Africa, Education Is an Uphill Fight.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 23 Dec 2005, www.nytimes.com/2005/12/23/world/africa/for-girls-in-africa-education-is-uphill-fight.html

Sengupta, Somini. “African Girls' Route to School Is Still Littered With Obstacles.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 14 Dec. 2003, www.nytimes.com/2003/12/14/world/african-girls-route-to-school-is-still-littered-with-obstacles.html.

Tibasima, Marco. “Africa: Make Girls' Access to Education a Reality.” Human Rights Watch, 16 June 2017, www.hrw.org/news/2017/06/16/africa-make-girls-access-education-reality.