Why Education

In 2000, world leaders through the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals made concrete commitments to ensure that every child was in school and learning by 2015. However, by the end of 2015, about 17% of children of official primary school ages were still out of school. With one-in-three children still out of school, progress towards universal primary education has stalled. Meanwhile, learning levels among children who are in school are abysmal.

Despite the gains made towards increased access to education at all levels, increased enrolment rates of up to 91% in primary schools particularly for women and girls and increased basic literacy, yet 57 million children are still not in school and learning with more than half of them living in Sub Sahara Africa. Much work is still needed to achieve universal education for all. Education improves lives, livelihoods and fosters sustainable development – it is for this reason that SDG4 of the newly adopted Sustainable Development Goals calls for every country, both developed and developing countries to “Ensure Inclusive and quality education for all and promote lifelong learning”.

By 2030, its estimated that Africa which is facing a huge challenge in education will be host to over a billion young people; hence worsening the growing skills gap which will limit economic growth with severe special and political consequences in the long run. In most countries today, the educational system has become obsolete, as it no longer meets the needs of the present and future generation. With over 250 million children all across the world being unable to read and write, there is need for a revolution in education, which might seem like the obvious course

The kind of education our world needs must therefore be one that allows us to acquire new skills throughout life and be able to adapt to these new skills. Investment in education in recent years has dropped drastically and while education is not longer a priority to most world leaders, children are falling behind with almost 263 million children and youth are out of school. If this current trend continues it is estimated that that just four out of 10 children of school age will be on track to acquire basic secondary-level skills by 2030. This number is even worse in low-income countries where it’s estimated to be one out of 10 hence exacerbating the cycle of poverty.

Some of the major reason why the global educational system has failed and keeps failing include; overcrowding of school, lack of teacher innovation and involvement from parents, limited education financing. Therefore, failure to adequately equip young people with the needed skills required to drive the economy could be consequential if no action is taken. Education is a basic human right for all and key to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Studies show that for every dollar we invest in an additional year of school especially girl education, an additional $10 is generated in health and earnings in low-income countries

The State of Education In Cameroon

For children of primary school age in Cameroon, the biggest disparity can be seen between the poorest and the richest children. Fifteen years ago, Cameroon's government instituted free primary education as part of efforts to increase school attendance and meet the MDGs of achieving universal primary education. This led to a drastic reduction of funds for basic necessities, because the payment of school fees was suspended. Despite governments efforts to put every child in school, school attendance rate is barely 65% as students still have to pay “Parent Teacher Association” fees which most parents cant afford, and as such schools rely on monetary allocations from the government which never come in time. Over 80% of the head teachers reported that budgets don't arrive on time and 57% said this budget don't include materials and supplies to facilitate learning. As such most teachers don't go to school because of the poor learning conditions.

An estimated 30% of the Cameroonians live on less than $2/day and as such the many hidden fees imposed by schools exclude the poor. According to Transparency International, over 50% of primary schools had poor infrastructures; only 19% had working toilets, 30% had access to tap water and barely 30% had enough tables and benches for students. According to the MDG indicators, the total net enrollment in primary education between both sexes for Cameroon went from 72% in 1990 to an estimated 94.9% in 2014. This is not reflective at all based on realities in the field. School absenteeism by teachers was a huge contributing factor to poor level of education coupled with poor implementation and enforcement of rules and regulation. According to the 2011 Cameroon DHS Survey, 18% of girls were out of school compared to 12.6% of boys in Cameroon. Out-of-school rates for children from rural areas (22%) were higher than those for children from urban areas (7%) as a result of wealth and gender disparities as well as unequal learning outcomes, which puts vulnerable groups at risk of not going to school.

The way forward in such cases should be geared towards quality of teachers and better administrations. We need to invest in teacher training, personalized learning and supporting teachers with livable wages

Approximately 15% of boys of primary school age are out of school compared to 19% of girls of the same age. Despite governments efforts to put every child in school, school attendance rate is barely 65% as students still have to pay “Parent Teacher Association” fees which most parents cant afford, and as such schools rely on monetary allocations from the government which never come in time. Over 80% of the head teachers reported that budgets don't arrive on time and 57% said this budget don't include materials and supplies to facilitate learning. As such most teachers don't go to school because of the poor learning conditions. An estimated 30% of the Cameroonians live on less than $2/day and as such the many hidden fees imposed by schools exclude the poor. According to Transparency International, over 50% of primary schools had poor infrastructures; only 19% had working toilets, 30% had access to tap water and barely 30% had enough tables and benches for students. According to the MDG indicators, the total net enrollment in primary education among both sexes for Cameroon went from 72% in 1990 to an estimated 94.9% in 2014. This is not reflective at all based on realities in the field. School absenteeism by teachers was a huge contributing factor to poor level of education coupled with poor implementation and enforcement of rules and regulation. According to the 2011 Cameroon DHS Survey, more girls (18%) are out of school than boys (12.6%) in Cameroon and out of school rates for children from rural areas (22%) are higher than those for children from urban areas (7%) as a result of wealth and gender disparities as well as unequal learning outcomes which puts vulnerable groups at risk of not going to school.

Education Matters

Many of my friends ask me, why am I so passionate about issues that concern women and girls and I tell them: it is because of my mother. At a very young age, my mother lost her father and her own mother who was constantly sick and could barely provide for the family. She managed to see herself through primary school from transporting sand to a nearby construction site each morning for pay and from the sale of sweet potatoes, yams and peanuts. She would tell me how girl education was not valued in their time – the boys will go to school while the girls stayed at home and performed house chores. After her primary school education, she got a teaching job from which she helped to sponsor her siblings to school. Her determination to see herself through primary school while taking care of her family only goes further to emphasize the importance of girl education and encouraged me to reach out to other children especially girls who of no fault of their own are being denied an education.

When I reached my teenage years, I also realized that most girls and women who were not educated experienced different forms of violence at home. I kept asking myself why did women and girls have to face such injustices and inequalities, including violence? Gradually it became clear to me that most of the men who perpetuated violence against women were not only insecure but also uneducated. Since the women were not educated as well, they easily accepted such practices as a norm or even thought they were a way of expressing love.

Violence against women is quite traumatizing and prevents women from attaining their full potential. It strips women of their basic human rights and disempowers families and communities. As I grew older, I realized that most men who were perpetuators of violence against women were ignorant of their role as men. I grew committed to changing this and I started reaching out to fathers and young men and working with them in disrupting certain norms and challenging perceptions which is key in promoting gender equity and the empowerment of women and girls – this in addition to providing educational opportunities for children especially girls to stay in school and learn.

As Nelson Mandela once said, “Any society which does not care for its children is no nation at all” – Education Cannot wait