The rise of Boko Haram has plunged North Eastern Nigeria, and particularly Borno State, deeper into an educational crisis. Rebuilding infrastructure is underway, but ensuring that the region is in a condition to recover must involve a much more careful and all-encompassing strategy. It needs to be assured that the state’s youth has the opportunity to thrive.

The name ‘Boko Haram’ can be roughly translated as ‘Western/formal Education is sinful’. This title says everything about the group’s position on formal education. UNICEF estimates that 1.8 million Borno State children remained out of school in 2016, mainly due to the presence of Boko Haram. The numbers might have decreased since then, but the lack of reliable data makes the current damage difficult to estimate. Furthermore, the number of children entering first grade at an age considered to be appropriate in Borno State stands at a mere 19%, being among the lowest in the country.

The current attack on educational opportunities in the North will have long-lasting ramifications on the prospects of the region’s development. With restricted access, the crisis has already made the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 4 on quality education more difficult to achieve.  The conflict denies access to education to many children. So-called out-of-school children “face a higher risk of recruitment by armed groups, child marriage, early pregnancy and other forms of exploitation and abuse,” according to UNICEF. But they also remain fundamentally ill-equipped to contribute to a post-conflict economy productively.

Poor attendance is far from being the only problem facing the educational sector in the country’s North East. “Learning poverty” is a concept introduced by the World Bank. It measures not just ‘quantity’ but also the quality of learning in developing countries. In Nigeria, learning poverty is rampant. A recent study by Southern Voice found that only 20% of the children in the North East who completed primary school could read and comprehend a simple sentence either in English or their local languages. This finding highlights how just being in school is not enough. It is not an automatic precursor to learning and the development of human capital.

This knowledge deficit in the North Eastern Region is placing its population at a severe disadvantage. Without basic skills, their children will often fail to flourish later in life, whether in more advanced stages of their schooling or when they join the workforce. They will not have access to productive activities to provide for their families. High learning poverty, therefore, is a structural obstacle to Nigeria’s progress towards achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Boko Haram Effect on education

The growth of Boko Haram over the last decade has caused several interrelated effects harmful to the prospects of education for local youth. Some of them are:

  • a severe lack of access to schooling from violence and infrastructure destruction;
  • poor teaching numbers and quality;
  • insufficient managerial capacity to ensure the observance of standards;
  • and an ill-conceived educational approach,

All these factors are exacerbated by a climate of insecurity in the states.

It is estimated that Boko Haram has destroyed more than 5000 classrooms and school buildings in Borno State alone. The group has systematically depleted the infrastructure required to extend education to communities, particularly in rural, sparsely populated areas. In this regard, the government’s drive to build “mega-schools” in the state, to replace the lost infrastructure, is indeed commendable.

Yet Boko Haram’s attack on schooling opportunities for Borno children goes beyond the destruction of infrastructure. A climate of fear makes the mere act of going to school a highly risky endeavour. Boko Haram’s abduction of 276 schoolgirls in the town of Chibok in Borno State was merely the most extreme and widely-reported symptom of a broader, often underreported, threat: the systematic attack on school teachers and students. The terrorists’ aim is to undermine the very institution of formal education. By the end of 2018, more than 2300 teachers had been killed. That human loss aggravates the lack of available education to children across the region.

Increased “learning poverty”

The killings of teachers are intricately linked to the issue of learning poverty. It adds to other factors that severely limit the effectiveness of teaching and education, even when children can attend school. Boko Haram has not only turned teaching into a dangerous vocation. It has also damaged the societal standing of this profession. Fear of violence and reputational loss has made the hiring of educators increasingly tricky, leading to an even more severe scarcity of teachers. This shortage has led to a teacher-to-pupil ratio well below national guidelines.

And there is yet one more problem. Children growing up surrounded by conflict are far more likely to develop psychological responses to trauma. Such reactions can significantly hinder their comprehension, their ability to produce work, their engagement in learning and their trust. These children are far less likely to grow up to be positive, productive individuals in their society. Instead, they are exposed to a life of criminality and violence.

Crucial policy challenges

The multidimensional attack in the North Eastern Region requires an equally multifaceted reaction. Again, the current government emphasis on rebuilding infrastructure, although necessary and laudable, is wholly insufficient, if the ultimate target is to provide children with the opportunities required to grow up healthy, productive, and safe.

Children in North East Nigeria need a strong initiative tailored to the needs of children in conflict zones. This strategy must begin with re-education of teachers to help pupils coming from traumatic experiences, supplemented with greater access to guidance counsellors, trained in trauma healing. Building positive relationships, fostering positive emotions through affirmative training, and teaching character strength are paramount to the recovery of children who have suffered. The education system must go beyond teaching their students to read. Rather, it must develop the types of relationships that “children of conflict” require.

Any efforts in this regard must begin at the policymaking level. Affected states in North Eastern Nigeria, and relevant Federal Government agencies, like the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and the North East Development Commission, must acknowledge the need for special education initiatives and subsequently seek creative solutions. Creating an inclusive partnership with local and international partners, as well as with education policy experts, will be vital for the children in Northern Nigeria. So is the training of teachers, and designing appropriate curriculums. On the international level, efforts to reduce small arms proliferation, a key driver of violent conflict, is crucial.

The only hope for the region’s youth against terrorism is a concerted and radical restructuring of the educational system. Only then will children be provided with the necessary positive skills to contribute to a peaceful society.

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