This article focuses on the following UN Sustainable Development Goal:
Nigeria’s reputation as “The Giant of Africa” is known all around Africa and the world. Within recent years, cultural exports such as music and dance have swept the world off its feet. Nigerians wear their pride for their motherland on their chest, but that does not mean that they are blind to the issues that plague the nation. One thing the people can come together to disapprove of is the horrendous quality of education. The lack of attention the government has given the Nigerian education system has prominently shown its effects across the country. From unemployment to poverty to increased crime rate, and more, it creates a negative ripple effect, endangering the future of the nation.
Unemployment
Lack of education has a direct effect on the country's unemployment. While higher education does not guarantee a job once post-college, it does improve chances within most competitive and high-paying career fields. In a rather traditional country like Nigeria, people who are lacking educational credentials are unfortunately not deemed worthy of respect, despite their other skills and talents. The lack of education narrows the pool of choices one has as an adult, since they have not been educated in any particular field. Primary school education is compulsory in Nigeria, however, with lack of government enforcement, measures cannot be taken to ensure that families are adhering to the law. This could greatly affect the opportunity of the Nigerian youth, and their ability to enhance their career choices in adulthood. As of 2021, Nigeria’s unemployment rate sits at 33.3 percent of working adults which represents ⅓ (23.2 million people out of 70 million) of the nation's working population. The availability of certain goods and services is increasingly unreliable, as there isn’t a consistent stream of income or profit.
Generational Poverty
Poverty is another negative effect that lack of education causes in Nigeria, due to unemployment. As fewer people are gaining proper education, there are fewer people
finding careers, and more people falling into poverty. Being stuck in poverty is a dangerous area to be in because it’s a cycle that can be difficult to break for generations onward. Much like unemployment, this does no good for the economy, as poverty hinders economic growth. About 40 percent of the Nigerian population lives in poverty, and with a lack of quality education, the likelihood of breaking the cycle is slim. This traps millions of people in a system of poverty without giving them the opportunity to prosper.
Increased Crime Rate
Increased crime is also taking a toll on Nigeria as a result of lack of education, being a direct consequence of poverty and unemployment. Because of the aforementioned circumstances, citizens are forced to take dangerous routes to care for themselves and their family. Nigeria’s most notorious crimes are armed robberies and kidnapping for ransom. According to SBM Intelligence, 2,371 kidnappings have occurred in the first 6 months of 2021 across all 36 states on 281 different occasions with a total ransom of more than ₦10 billion. Improving the education system would lessen the security risks across the country, as fewer citizens would have to go through illegal means to survive.
Incompetent Political Decisions
Wael Ghonim once said: “The power of the people is greater than the people in power.” These words can easily be applied to the government at every level in Nigeria. However, when the majority of people are uneducated and lack critical thinking skills, the nation, the people and the government suffer. The citizens are only able to consider instant gratification, and when it comes to considering how the nation should be run, that mindset stays the same. This is not entirely the fault of Nigeria itself, as it only became independent 61 years ago. Other former colonial nations struggle with the same issues, as struggles for power after colonization left many countries in turmoil. Unfortunately, instead of planning ahead to build a sustainable future, we get stuck with repetitive, corrupt governments that either make no difference or worsen the state of the country. In August 2016, merely 15 months after the swearing in of Buhari, the Chibok community and members of the #BringBackOurGirls (BBOG) movement expressed their regret for voting for Buhari during
the election after seeing how the kidnapping of the young girls was handled. Similarly, in September 2021, the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) also voiced their regret about voting for Buhari with Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, the NEF Director of Publicity and Advocacy, stating:
“Is there any Nigerian who is not disappointed in President Buhari including diehard APC people? Is there anybody who would not tell you he wished President Buhari had done much better? We raised huge expectations, we told people, ‘Get rid of Jonathan, put Buhari there, he would fix corruption, he would fix insecurity, he would fix the economy’ (but) look at where we are now.”
Those with higher education like Dr. Baba-Ahmed go abroad to learn, but those who remain are kept in the dark, unable to exercise their right to a quality education. When citizens are kept in the dark, the true detriment of decisions made on their behalf is not fully understood. They may understand that something isn’t right, but may not be able to understand the depth of certain issues.
Globally, it has been proven that countries with quality education are stronger nations with better societies. Nigeria is a country of great potential, and access to quality education will avoid wasted potential before these effects become more detrimental.
Remember, change starts with you.
Works Cited
Nwokoma, Ndubisi. “A Third of Nigerians Are Unemployed: Here’s Why.” The Conversation, 28 Apr. 2021, theconversation.com/a-third-of-nigerians-are-unemployed-heres-why-159262.
Onyeiwu, Stephen. “Nigeria’s Poverty Profile Is Grim. It’s Time to Move beyond Handouts.” The Conversation, 27 June 2021, theconversation.com/nigerias-poverty-profile-is-grim-its-time-to-move-beyond-handouts-163302.
“Chart of the Week: Nigeria 2021 Half-Year Kidnap Report.” Nigeria’s Leading Geopolitical Intelligence Platform, 12 July 2021, www.sbmintel.com/2021/07/chart-of-the-week-nigeria-2021-half-year-kidnap-report/.
Opejobi, Seun. “We Regret Voting for Buhari in 2015, He Deceived Us – Chibok Community.” Daily Post Nigeria, Daily Post Nigeria, 22 Aug. 2016, dailypost.ng/2016/08/22/regret-voting-buhari-2015-deceived-us-chibok-community/.
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