Ongoing Pandemic Push Africa ’s Children Out of School

Quality, safe, gender-responsive and inclusive education for Africa’s children increasingly out of reach, say experts. Credit: Joyce Chimbi/IPSBy Joyce ChimbiNairobi, Nov 24 2021 (IPS) Kenya’s secondary schools’ administration has been in the eye of a storm since schools reopened in October 2021. Since then, students have set on fire 35 schools and counting, forcing the government to announce an unscheduled break from school – ahead of the planned December 23 closing. Sarah Kitana, a secondary school teacher in Kathiani, Machokos County, tells IPS that fewer students are in classrooms after a year of COVID-19-driven disruptions and the ensuing prolonged out-of-school period. This is even more evident in rural areas. “Those that returned are finding it very difficult to cope with the new fast-paced learning to make up for the lost time. Secondary school students take on eight to 13 subjects. Some schools have their students waking up at 3.00 am to be in class by 4.30 am and to end the day at 10.45 pm,” she says. “These are efforts to help bring some normalcy to a disrupted, restructured and shortened academic calendar. It will take up to January 2023 for Kenya’s school calendar to regain some normalcy.” Pre-COVID Africa and more so, sub-Saharan Africa was already off-track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 4 to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.” In 2019, UNESCO’s Institute for St...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: Africa Armed Conflicts COVID-19 Development & Aid Education Featured Gender Health Human Rights Inequity Poverty & SDGs TerraViva United Nations #Covid19 ​#SDG4​ Source Type: news