By ODUNAYO ALIU

Nigeria has a fast-growing population of 235 million with 45% below the age of 17. Insufficient schools, high poverty rates, and a poor education system result in lack of motivation for both teachers and students in rural areas.

As we celebrate the International Day of Education in 2025, I reflect on the transformative power of education and its critical role in shaping the future of Nigeria. Education is not just a fundamental human right; it is the cornerstone of development, progress, and equality. But what type of Education will change our current trajectory? A radically re-imagined education system!

Our journey towards achieving universal education is laden with challenges. According to the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Nigeria has approximately 17 million out-of-school children. This staggering number highlights the urgent need for comprehensive reforms and targeted interventions to ensure every child has access to quality education.

Even though rural communities of Nigeria accommodate 50.9% of its population; they however experience least development in areas of education and basic amenities. Over the past ten years, a high percentage of schools in rural communities have shut down due to low funding, inadequate teachers and insurgencies. It has become increasingly hard for parents in rural communities to fund the education of their children due to extreme poverty.

Schools in rural communities are generally known for their bad infrastructure, poorly trained teachers and low student attendance, poor incentives and working conditions for teachers and students. The failure of this system becomes more evident after reading the survey carried out by the World Bank in 2017. The study reported that more than 10% of children who went through public primary schools in rural areas of Nigeria cannot read, write or do basic arithmetic. According to the World Bank Capital Index, students in Nigeria score 309 on a harmonized test score scale, where 625 represents advanced attainment and 300 represents minimum attainment. This indicates that even when children are in school, they are not achieving their full potential.

The Nigerian Education system needs to be radically re-imagined to be able to deliver all that it promised to the citizens. In April 2004, the universal basic education law was enacted. It states the right to free and compulsory primary education and free junior secondary education for all Nigerian citizens, but like many other laws, this law continues to struggle at the implementation stage. NGOs, CSRs, Foundations and individual philanthropists are rising to the challenge of getting as many children off the street as possible.

Technology can play a pivotal role in bridging the education gap. Online platforms and mobile applications can provide access to educational resources, especially in rural and underserved areas. Personalised learning through AI-powered tools can tailor educational content to individual student needs, improving engagement and outcomes.

The UNESCO International Day of Education theme of the year 2025, “AI and Education: Preserving Human Agency in a World of Automation”, is particularly relevant to Nigeria. As Artificial Intelligence and automated systems grow more advanced, the line between what humans can do and machine actions becomes less clear. In Nigeria, we must ensure that AI supports students and teachers through access to information and cutting-edge curricula and other learning tools. We must work to guarantee that all users have the tools and knowledge required to use this technology smartly, safely, and ethically. This includes incorporating UNESCO’s Competency Frameworks to support learners and teachers as they integrate AI into their learning. We can also use AI-driven tools like adaptive learning platforms to tailor educational content to the needs of each student. And importantly, we can leverage AI to analyze the vast amounts of educational data we have untapped to identify patterns and predict outcomes, helping our policymakers and educators make informed decisions.

As we look to the future, it is imperative that we adopt a multi-sectoral approach to address the demand and supply-side barriers to education. Collaboration between government, private sector, and civil society is essential to drive meaningful change. By tapping into alternative learning pathways and leveraging the power of AI, Nigeria can address its educational challenges, especially in rural communities.

On this International Day of Education, let us recommit ourselves to the goal of providing quality education for all Nigerian children. By investing in education, we are investing in the future of our nation.

Odunayo Aliu, Founder of Bramble Network writes from Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. She is a transformative education champion and the winner of “The Future Awards Africa (TFAA) 2024 Prize for Education” as a recognition for her impact and transformative change in the education sector in Nigeria. She can be reached on odunayoaliu@bramblenetwork.org