264.3m children worldwide not in school Eswatini enlisted as one of the countries suffering the most
According to a report compiled by Heart for Africa, this can lead to poverty, poor health, unemployment, shorter lifespan, exploitation, and gender inequality.
The organization states that in the whole world, over 264.3 children are not attending school. “
“A good education is not just important. It’s a must and for any country to thrive and progress, it needs to have a school system that empowers its citizens to contribute to society and stimulate the community. Otherwise, its people will suffer,” Heart for Africa points out in its most recently released report.
According to the organization, given the impact of these consequences, it would be easy to assume that every country has an excellent education system to ward off any adverse effects.
Adolescents
“However, that’s not the case for children, adolescents, and youth that are not in school. One of the countries that are suffering the most is Eswatini, Africa,” stated the organization.
According to Heart for Africa, they are committed to stimulating better education in Eswatini.
“This commitment is part of our mission, which centres on building hope in the kingdom,” the organization further wrote on its website.
Contributory factors, according to Heart for Africa that has seen children out of school are the high drop-out rates including pregnancy (41 per cent of drops in lower secondary and 52 per cent in senior secondary is due to pregnancy; poverty and the inability to pay “top-up fees” at primary levels, the high cost of secondary education, and high levels of sexual violence.
Repetition and problems-UNICEF
UNICEF, originally called the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children’s Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to children worldwide
In its report, the organization points out that it is repetition and dropout that are serious problems throughout the system, and even more so as children become older.
Moreover, the organisations add that high repetition rates add considerably to the likelihood of dropout.
“Many children also start school late in Eswatini, which, combined with high repetition rates, leads to the majority of learners in the system being overage. The proportion of overaged learners in each dropout are serious grade increases in higher grades,” states the report.
Furthermore, UNICEF points out that FPE (Free-Primary-Education) has increased the demand for education in Eswatini.
However, when children are somewhat older, the opportunity cost of their being at school rather than being active in the household to assist with agricultural activities or household chores becomes a greater issue for some parents.
“If in addition education also becomes costly at the secondary school level, it makes further education less attractive. This is particularly the case in households involved in subsistence activities. It does not appear that the supply side (providing enough schools across the country) is a major
problem. However, a related acute problem in Eswatini is the inadequate availability of well-trained teachers. The
Many children also start school late in Eswatini, which, combined with high repetition rates, leads to the majority of learners in the system being overage. The proportion of overaged learners in each grade increases in higher grades,
Ministry has argued that a shortage of appropriately qualified teachers is a major cause for concern.,” notes the organization in the report.