Gender Inequality in Education in sub- Saharan Africa

European Scientific Journal (ESJ), 2019

Achieving gender parity in education and eradicating disparity in gender gap among developing nations especially the Sub-Saharan African countries, particularly Nigeria, has been a major area of interest and concern of global development discourses. Different reports, narratives, and arguments have been advanced to demonstrate that considerable progress has been made in closing the gaps of gender disparities in achieving educational parity. However, some levels of disparities still remain, mostly at girls' expense. This paper explores the review of various related materials and global initiative reports to assess education and gender disparities in West Africa more importantly from the Nigeria context. It elicits the notions of gender gaps and the extent of the achievement that has been made in the light of the Millenium development goals at a global glance. It identifies the barriers hindering the process of achieving parity status in education within the West African countries and suggest ways out of the predicament. The paper concludes that the quest for gender parity in Nigeria's educational system has witnessed some major progress while inequalities still persist. It then provides useful recommendations for better results.

Opening Address Presented at the Federation of University Women of Africa Conference, Lagos, Nigeria, 2009

Girls’ education on the African continent has reached a crossroads. The gender gap has lessened significantly over the last 15 years, particularly in primary education, with the high priorities placed on girls’ education in national, continental and international education policies and laws, conventions and agreements. These include country education policies, poverty reduction and economic development strategies, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Education for All (EFA) campaign. However, there are still millions of girls without access to primary and secondary education across the continent. This paper describes the foundations of girls’ education at the beginning of the 21st century and explores the macro-level, socio-cultural, legal/policy and school-related factors causing the gender gap in primary and secondary education. The paper details recent successes in achieving the MDG and EFA goals and outlines the way forward for closing the gender gap.

Scholars Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, 2019

The authors of this article report the findings of an investigation of the challenges faced by Sub-Saharan African governments in promoting women and girls‟ access to Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education. They further report the countermeasures of the challenges which the governments put in place to overcome them in the efforts to promote STEM education and the achievement reached so far. This study is partly in response to the growing recognition that countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have been facing an uneven distribution of STEM education access to women and girls across different sub-regions. The design and implementation of STEM education curricula that are gender inclusive and flexible will go a long way to help governments to bridge the gap that exists between male and female in accessing STEM related subjects and careers. The findings recorded from secondary sources reveal a plethora of challenges. These are cultural beliefs, lack of expertise in STEM curriculum design and teaching practices, and administrative laxity. On the other hand, Sub-Saharan African states have also embarked on a series of reforms to effectively promote women and girls‟ access to STEM education with East African states being a shining example. The authors conclude the article with a number of suggestions that would positively affect the curriculum design, implementation, and monitoring of STEM education in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Fafo-report 2017:39, 2017

A scoping study concerning knowledge about trends and sub-variations In this report we take stock of the state of knowledge on gender and education in West Africa. Girls still face many challenges, but their situation is also rapidly changing. We find that the main barriers to girls' education are also barriers to many boys' education. Some of the barriers affect boys and girls differently, but an obstacle unique to girls is the notion that girls should do other things rather than go to school. Barriers are also related to vulnerabilities, like disabilities; unstable or poor urban living conditions, including homelessness; being on the move; and being affected by conflict or violence. New global targets including out-of-school secondary school-aged girls make it more important to understand the local alternative costs of schooling. These are linked to a gendered labour market, marriage practices and changing claims on girls related to the religious revival in the area.

Successive Nigerian governments have made concerted efforts to establish concrete and laudable policies as well provide funding towards making education readily available to her citizens. The governments have also been relentless in striving to translate into action the stated philosophy of equal educational opportunities for all. However, these lofty goals are truncated by the disparity in access to education on gender basis as well as the inability of the conventional schools to absorb all aspirants/applicants. Statistics ascertained that there is indeed, gender inequality in the Nigerian educational system. Major reasons for the continued gender inequality are socio-cultural and religious, coupled with gender-based economic factors. These have a negative impact on national development as a tangible number of both sexes are affected. This paper highlights the concept and gains of education to males and females and by extension, the nation. It analyses the concept of gender as it affects Nigerians in social and academic dimensions and finally proposes Open and Distance Learning (ODL) as an avenue for expanding access to quality education for all who seek knowledge.

Issues in African Education: Sociological Perspectives, 2005

International Journal of Comparative Sociology, 2000

This paper investigates the relationship between economic reforms, particularly the World Bank's Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPS) and educational policies with regard to gender equity in access to schooling in Africa. Using qualitative, historical, and quantitative methods and based on data from UNESCO and African Development Bank, it analyzes the impact of economic factors, specifically gross domestic investment, public expenditure on education as a percentage of gross national product, public expenditure on education as a percentage of government expenditure, and government deficit/surplus as a percentage of GDP at current prices, on women's access to higher education.

This book Studies in Culture, Gender and Education in Africa provides a wide range of analyses on many issues that influence development in education sector in many countries. The book looks at various issues touching on cultural issues in various African countries, as well as gender dynamics and how they affect education in Africa. The authors who come from many parts of the world provide a rich inventory and critically examine and wrestle with issues that affect education in Africa, using culture and gender as prisms of analysis and interpretation. The book provides new frameworks and parameters of analyzing the role of culture and gender in education in ways that would allow the reader to understand the importance of research. The main argument that runs through this book is that culture, gender and education are interrelated in ways that allow us to appreciate change. The articles examine a wide range of issues which include indigenous knowledge, religion, science, language question, NGOs, new farm practices, poverty alleviation and other development issues. The authors reveal the need for us to unlearn our cultures and how we perceive and look at gender. Scholars and students of education and culture, gender and development from all humanities, social and natural sciences will find this book very useful. All university and college libraries in Africa will need this book.

APAS, 2023

Gender, Human Rights and Education in Africa: Proceedings of the 2023 International Conference of the Association for the Promotion of African Studies. Maryland, USA: Association for the Promotion of African Studies.