IDE: UNICEF Urges Northwest States to Prioritize Basic Education Funding

By Ahmed Rufa’i, Dutse

As part of activities marking the 2025 International Day of Education (IDE), UNICEF has called on the governments of Jigawa, Kano, and Katsina states to increase funding, allocation, and spending on basic education to address the barriers hindering children from accessing quality education.

During a press briefing held at BON Hotel in Kano, Mr. Rahama Rihood Mohammed Farah, Chief of UNICEF’s Kano Field Office, emphasized that education is a fundamental human right and a critical engine for societal development.

Farah highlighted the urgent need to tackle the issue of out-of-school children (OOSC) through equitable initiatives, noting that about 10.2 million primary school-age children are currently out of school in Nigeria, with Kano, Jigawa, and Katsina states accounting for 16% of this figure, according to the 2021 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS).
This is broken down with
Kano State having a larger share of 989,234 out-of-school children, Katsina with 536,112 out-of-school children and Jigawa 337,861 out-of-school children

Farah noted, “Close to 32% of primary school-age children in Kano are out of school. This alarming situation requires urgent attention and commitment from all stakeholders to remove barriers to education access.”

He also appealed for increased recruitment of qualified teachers, especially in basic and post-basic education, and the strengthening of Jigawa’s newly established Tsangaya Education Board to effectively implement its mandate.

The UNICEF official lamented that Nigeria spends only 1.2% of its GDP on education, far below the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 recommendation of 4-6%.
According to him, although Kano, Jigawa, and Katsina have met the UNESCO benchmark for budgetary allocation, actual releases and spending remain insufficient.

Farah urged state governments to bridge these gaps, noting that inadequate funding undermines the education sector’s ability to address challenges such as teacher shortages and infrastructural deficits.
Farah also drew attention to the disruptive impact of climate change on learning, calling for innovative solutions to mitigate its effects on education.
The International Day of Education, established by the UN General Assembly in 2018, serves as an annual advocacy platform to emphasize the importance of education in building inclusive and peaceful societies. The 2025 theme, “AI and Education: Preserving Human Agency in a World of Automation,” underscores the evolving role of education in a rapidly changing world.

UNICEF expressed gratitude to its partners, including the European Union for its support of the Education and Youth Empowerment (EYE) Programme in Kano, Jigawa, and Sokoto states, and the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office for the CRIBS project in Kano and Jigawa.

Farah concluded by urging all stakeholders to prioritize education as a means of fostering a brighter future for Nigeria’s children, particularly in the Northwest states.