CRITICAL FACTORS AFFECTING SDG 4 IN AFRICA

The Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs) refers to a set of 17 goals proposed by the United Nations(UN) for global partnership to eliminate worldwide challenges such as poverty, hunger, inequalities within and among countries, environmental degradation, and injustice, amongst many others.

SDG 4 is quality education. The goal is to “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”. The targets to achieving the goal include providing free basic education for all children, training teachers, eliminating gender disparities in education, building infrastructure and, providing scholarships and other learning opportunities to children, youth and adults.

The SDGs are all interrelated, an example is SDG 1, 2, 3 and 4, no poverty, zero hunger, good health and wellbeing, and quality education, respectively. Meaning that to achieve SDG 4, a child has to be healthy, well fed and have their basic needs met.

Education is a powerful tool in eradicating poverty and in preparing children to lead comfortable lives. Since the adoption of the SDGs, a lot of progress has been made in Africa, across all 17 goals.

As regards SDG 4, there have been notable improvements in the rate of girls in school, school enrolment, primary school completion, and a significant reduction in the number of out-of-school children. However, there are certain factors still affecting the progress of SDG 4

Poverty and hunger

According to United Nations Conference on Trade and Development(UNCTAD), it is estimated that about 490 million people in Africa live under the poverty line, earning less than $1.90 a day and, every one in three Africans faces the risk of food insecurity.

Poverty and hunger go hand in hand. In a country where children struggle to eat and get basic amenities necessary for everyday living, as vital as education is, it will not be their major concern. What good is education if there is no food to survive the day? Can a child truly learn while they are hungry with no consolation that there will be food when they get home?

Even when the government provides free education, many students may want to attend but do not have other resources needed, textbooks need to be bought, school uniforms, exercise books, etc. and others may even have to go out during school hours to do menial jobs or hawk goods to bring in money to support the family.

Children from poor homes are four times more likely to be out of school than those from rich homes. A family that is barely managing to meet their basic needs will likely not have spare money to spend on education.

Armed conflicts

It is a familiar saying, “there is no winner in war”, both parties always lose, from the loss of lives to the loss of property, buildings and infrastructures, to their way of life being disrupted, both parties suffer these damages. There are a lot of reports of insecurity and armed conflicts in several African countries.

In a few hours of armed conflicts, damages done can take a country years to recover from and rebuild. According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Facts and Figures, about 50% of out-of-school children of primary school age live in areas affected by armed conflicts. It also shows that 57million children are out of school and about half of them are in sub-Saharan Africa.

This shows the extent to which conflict affects education. No parent will want to send a child to school when there is insecurity and trouble in the country.

Funding

There is a need for school buildings, internet connectivity, computers, textbooks, and other necessities for education. All these things need funds for such projects to be implemented. In some countries, these have been provided, but due to armed conflicts or natural disasters, they have been damaged.

Funds play a huge role in building the educational system. The government also has a role to play in this. The value a government places on education will influence the funds that will be allocated to the educational sector. ?Asides from allocating funds, there needs to be proper management and handling of the funds to ensure that all projects are properly executed.

Funds are also a constraint for students, Scholarships serve as a way of helping out students to start, continue or finish education. The private sector, foundations and, Non-Governmental Organizations award scholarships to help students struggling financially. With the lack of beneficial partnerships from the private sector, the growth and progress of the educational system can be slow.

Poor data collection

In Africa, there is low availability of quality data which affects the assessment of the outcome of interventions. The collection of this data may cost a lot of money, but the data is vital.

This data helps to know the population of children that are still out of school, their exact locations and age groups, net school enrolment, the completion rate of school, both basic and primary education. This then helps to place needs in priority. It is also the way through which success can be measured for all efforts so far.

These are all factors that need to be carefully and strategically resolved, as we do our best to push quality education to children in African countries, you also as an individual or a corporation can make your contribution in your capacity. Remember change begins with you, no act is too small.

We cannot do it alone; we need everyone’s help. Education is key to the growth and development of every nation. Investing in the future is investing in children. The quality of education they have goes a long way in shaping who they become and also the fate of Africa.

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SOURCES: United Nations (UN), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)