Education for All (EFA): A Glimpse into The Challenges and Achievements Since its Adoption in 2000

Children sitting on the floor in a classroom at Missiran primary school, Guinea. Photo Credit: Michel Yaradouno

Even though it has been 20 years since the adoption of Education for All (EFA) to address the global obstacles associated with access to free and quality education, much more remains to be done. At the present time, a vast majority of children are still out of school and most of them engaging in child labor. While some progress has been made since its initiative, the movement has not fared well across the globe. The number of children out of school in Sub-Saharan Africa is greater when compared to other target areas, including South and West Asia and the rest of the world. For example, according to UNESCO, in Sub-Saharan Africa only 65 of the poorest kids for every 100 of the richest kids attend school. In Northern Africa and Western and Southern Asia, the number rises to 90 of the poorest for every 100 of the richest kids.

Moreover, in 32 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, at least 20% of school attending children are likely to drop out. About 9 million children, specifically young girls are likely to never attend school. (World Bank)

Additionally, other factors such as lack of parental support, pregnancy, long distance commutes and school fees create more barriers for children, again, this is especially girls who want to attend primary and secondary school.

The severity of this situation is illustrated by the unfortunate story a young Tanzanian girl named Imani. At 16-years old, Imani was aspiring to further her studies and get a job to help her family. But she was confronted with reality when she got pregnant after being sexually assaulted by her private tutor, whom her parents had hired from penny-pinching earnings to assist in her studies during the weekends. Although a victim, that event led to her immediate expulsion from school (hrw.org).

Sadly, Imani’s case is not an isolated incident as there are many other similar unreported cases.

The lack of parental support is a big hurdle in many African countries. When challenged with budget constraint, most parents choose to send their sons instead of their daughters to school. Most of these children who live in remote locations will eventually drop-out due to lack of transportation. As for the families living in extreme poverty, the option to pay for school fees is out of the question. For them, putting food on the table is of the highest priority.

But why has the African educational system been lagging so far behind the rest of the world?

First and foremost, there is the lack of commitment from African governments to enact policies geared toward education.

Then, there is the high likelihood of corruption among political leaders. In Guinea for example, there is an outburst of private schools with little to no regulatory rules, but practically no public schools. The few existing public schools lack the necessary infrastructures and resources to function properly and accommodate the pouring number of school-age children.

The quality of education that is available is subpar because teachers are not trained according to national standards. Most teachers receive a formal education from a two-year training program and spend their entire teaching careers without having the opportunity to upgrade their skills.

This is not to say that progress has not been made since the adoption of EFA. On the contrary, some African nations such as Burundi have significantly increased their net enrollment ratio. The rate in Burundi went from 41% in 2000 to 94% in 2010. In 11 other countries in in Sub-Saharan Africa, the net enrollment increased by 20% percentage point between 1999 and 2012. It is estimated that 34 million more children born before 2010 have had access to school for the first time by 2015. (Education For All Global Monitoring Report, 2015)

The improvements made are in great part because of the abolition of school fees. Just in Sub-Saharan Africa, 15 countries have successfully adopted this act. As a result, these countries witnessed a net positive impact of school enrollment. For example, Guinea, Benin, Cambodia, Nepal, Mali, Mozambique and Ethiopia have increased primary completion rates by a 20 percentage point because poor parents were not required to pay school fees for their children. Tanzania and Ethiopia have successfully been able to reduce the percentage of children who have never been to school significantly. (Education For All Global Monitoring Report, 2015)

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