The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reports that over 2.2 million children in Nigeria were unable to attend school due to severe flooding. Rahama Rihood Mohammed Farah, Chief of the Kano UNICEF Field Office, revealed this statistic during a press briefing on the International Day of Education (IDE). He emphasized the need for urgent action to address the growing impact of climate change on education in Nigeria.
Farah explained that UNICEF’s recent study, which examined the disruptive effects of climate change on learning across 85 countries, including Nigeria, found that flooding alone had disrupted the education of 2.2 million children in Nigeria.
He also introduced the theme for the 2025 International Day of Education: “AI and Education: Preserving Human Agency in a World of Automation.” However, Farah noted that today’s discussion would focus primarily on the state of basic education in the three Nigerian states supported by the UNICEF Kano Field Office—Kano, Jigawa, and Katsina—and the increasing effects of climate change.
Farah highlighted that Nigeria’s northwest region, which includes Kano, Jigawa, and Katsina, has the second-highest rate of out-of-school children in the country. He expressed concern over the alarming number of children in these states who are not in school and the worsening educational outcomes for those who are enrolled.
According to the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2021, approximately 10.2 million children are out of school in Nigeria. Of this, 16 percent are from Kano, Jigawa, and Katsina states. Specifically, Kano has nearly one million children out of school (989,234), Jigawa has 337,861, and Katsina has 536,112. The survey further revealed that 32 percent of children of primary school age in Kano are not attending school.
Farah also pointed out that even among children enrolled in school, many are not receiving a quality education. According to the MICS 2021, only one in four Nigerian children aged 7 to 14 can read and understand a simple sentence or solve basic arithmetic problems. In Kano, Jigawa, and Katsina, the situation is even worse. A 2022 Federal Ministry of Education report found that foundational learning rates were at 11 percent or lower in these three states. In Jigawa, just 2 percent of primary school students can read, and less than 1 percent have basic numeracy skills. Kano’s figures are slightly better, with 9.6 percent for reading and 11.2 percent for numeracy, but still far below the national averages of 26 percent for reading and 25 percent for numeracy.
Farah attributed these challenges, in part, to inadequate funding for education in these states. He noted that although budget allocations for education have increased in recent years—surpassing UNESCO’s recommended benchmarks in states like Kano and Jigawa—actual spending has not kept pace.
Regarding climate change, Farah discussed how flooding in Jigawa state in 2023 had severely damaged or destroyed 115 school buildings, rendering them unsafe and leaving over 92,000 children without access to education. In response, UNICEF, in collaboration with partners such as the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office, has been working to provide climate-resilient learning environments in Kano and Jigawa.
In addition, UNICEF has engaged 1,000 youth in climate change initiatives in the past year, with 350 in Jigawa and 650 in Katsina. Their efforts have included planting 200 trees in Jigawa and 100 trees in Katsina.
Farah also outlined UNICEF’s ongoing efforts to improve access to quality education in these states. These efforts include providing cash transfers to vulnerable families, organizing school enrollment drives with local communities and leaders, and supporting school grants to enhance educational quality.
UNICEF continues to advocate for greater investment and support to address the challenges facing basic education in Kano, Jigawa, and Katsina, particularly in the face of climate change.
Related topics:
