Almost half of schools in north-east need rehabilitation, says UNICEF official

Phuong Nguyen, chief of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) field office in Maiduguri, says almost half of the schools in the north-east part of Nigeria need rehabilitation. 

Speaking on Wednesday at the conclusion of a 12-month training for teachers in Borno, Nguyen said urgent efforts are needed to address the situation.

The training was initiated by the federal ministry of education, the National Teachers Institute (NTI), and the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN).

Nguyen said about 18,000  teachers were trained to enable them to study and qualify for the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) examination.

Nguyen lamented that as of 2022, only 29 percent of schools in the north-east zone had teachers with the minimum qualification, while the average pupil-teacher ratio is 124:1.

“Almost half of all the schools need rehabilitation,” NAN quoted her as saying.

“Only 47 percent of schools in Borno have furniture with lower proportions in Yobe (32 percent), and Adamawa (26 percent).

“In Adamawa, only 30 percent of schools have adequate learning materials for pupils with lower proportions (26 percent) in Borno, and (25 percent) in Yobe.

“About 1.9 million boys, girls, and youths affected by conflict are without access to basic quality education in the region. This is inclusive of 56 percent of all displaced children who are out of school.”

Nguyen added that the training was conducted by the Global Partnership on Education (GPE), adding that the teachers were from Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states.

“The challenges of out-of-school children and the learning crises in the education sector remain issues that UNICEF and stakeholders are working to address,” she said.

“This is to ensure that every child has the opportunity that education offers and is equipped with skills to survive and contribute positively to society.”