Abstract: This paper embarks on a long journey deepinto the history of a country that is supposed or predictedgenerally to be economically one the leading countries inthe world or at least in Africa. Nigeria has been blessedtremendously and generously with remarkable economicresources such as oil, cocoa, rubber and plantations.Despite all these natural resources and blessed assets, it isreally lamentable to see an increasing number of Nigeriansstill living in absolute poverty in recent times. In the ruralareas, poverty seems to be higher compared to urban areas.The effects of poverty in the country, the instability of thegovernment and the country’s leadership have seriouslydamaged the educational system as well as its quality. Thegraduate unemployment rate is high and frightening as wellas that of adults, and the number of children dropping outfrom schools, joining the street traders and snatch-thievesis alarming. Adequate planning, resources and materials arenot invested and technological intervention is notincorporated. In this regard, this paper is a qualitativeresearch by nature based on interviews with some Nigerianexperts, educationists and scholars about what the Nigeriangovernment should do to reduce poverty that is tearing oureducational standards and quality apart. Besides, the paperproposes some solutions and makes recommendationsthrough interviews which perhaps the Nigerian governmentwill consider to raise the standard and quality of educationin Nigeria.
Keywords: Poverty, Education, Qualitative research,Human Capital
I. INTRODUCTION
o qualms, education is an absolute human rightthat should be given to all human beings. In everynation, education should be accessible for everysingle citizen regardless of their status or social
classes. And it is the core responsibility of governments toensure this access. Education is linked and related to nationdevelopment. According to EFC (2002), “education is akey index of development. It has been documented thatschooling improves productivity, health and reducesnegative features of life such as child labour as well asbringing about empowerment” (Otive, 2006, p.1).
In Nigeria, the accessibility of education is at stake. We get
to see more and more people getting access to poverty
rather than education. The Nigerian government has
launched various Poverty Alleviation Programmes starting
from 80s and every new government seems to have their
own Poverty Eradication or Alleviation Programmes.
Eventually, all these programmes become an avenue for
corruption and paving ways for embezzlement. For
education to take place in Nigeria, poverty must be
seriously addressed. Education has the capability of
reducing poverty because once the majority of the people in
the country are educated, they are likely to get jobs, earn
living and the ability to provide the basic needs for their
families. This is the strength and uniqueness of education
in producing an excellent Human Capital for nation
development and economy.
II. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
It is really lamentable to see a country that was given thetitle the “giant of Africa” becoming an “ant of Africa”.Besides, it is sorrowful to see a country such as Nigeriawith abundant natural resources and copious humancapital, but with 70 percent of its people living below the
THE EFFECT OF POVERTY ON EDUCATION INNIGERIA:
OBSTACLES AND SOLUTIONS
Ismail Hussein Amzata
aFaculty of Education, Department of Educational Management,
Planning & Policy, University of Malaya, Malaysia.aCorresponding author: [email protected]
© Ontario International Development Agency. ISSN 1923-6654 (print)ISSN 1923-6662 (online). Available at http://www.ssrn.com/link/OIDA-Intl-Journal-Sustainable-Dev.html
N
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56 OIDA INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT Vol: 01:04
poverty line and surviving on less than $1 a day. Povertyhas ripped the process of education apart and deprivedpeople from getting proper access to education. Poverty hasbecome the ‘boss’ with the help of corruption determiningwho should go to school and who should not. Povertydetermines children’s faith. Huge numbers of boys aredropping out of school, loaded with evil intention andsophisticated weapons–declaring a war of robbery whilegirls fail to complete their studies and end up with earlypregnancy. Some of them are so victimized by poverty thatthey have to sell their bodies on campus as a mean ofsurvival.
The impact of poverty on education is of greatsignificance and it is tormenting to see studentsstruggling and battling the hardship to study without anysupport from the government or their parents. It isdepressing to see our graduates unemployed after all thehardships of studies and poverty. This has led to thedevelopment greater population of poor people in thecountry.
The Nigerian government has turned a deaf ear to thepeople’s agony and blinded their eyes to the flood ofpoverty eroding our integrity and existence. Someprogrammes were launched which were supposed toalleviate poverty in the country but the efforts were invain due to self-interest and corruption.
The Nigerian government has failed to realize perhapsrealized but ignored the power of education on countrydevelopment and providing an excellent human capitalfor the society.
It is high time that the Nigerian government took onboard” the importance of education since it has beenaccepted worldwide that education plays a huge role in acountry’s development and economy. The Nigeriangovernment should rid their bodies of the virus ofcorruption and download the latest software ofdevelopment and anti-poverty programmes to combat thepoverty to allow every citizen to have access to education.
The Nigerian government has failed to provide a goodinfrastructure, there is a lack of teaching and learningmaterial while you could see some lecturers at theuniversities continue using their 10 year-old teachingmaterials while 10-20 year-old equipment/instruments stillsurvive in our labs.
III . OBJECTIVE To explore the effect of poverty on education in
Nigeria To investigate how education process and
accessibility could alleviate poverty in Nigeria
IV. RESEARCH QUESTION
1. How does the poverty affect education in
Nigeria?
2. What are the programmes that should be
introduced; suggestions and solutions in
alleviating poverty in Nigeria?
3. How can these suggestions and programmes
revamp the process of education in Nigeria?
Figure 1
THEORITICAL & CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
Source: Human Capital Theory
Figure 1 above shows the theoretical and conceptualframework of the study. Theoretically, education was foundto have a relationship with Human Capital. Thus, oncepeople have access to education in a country and properfacilities, resources and materials are provided for teachingand learning, the outcomes will be great and the countrywill be blessed with strong Human Capital.
Moreover, once Human Capital is achieved, it leads to thecountry’s development and economic growth due to thehuge numbers of educated and knowledgeable people in thecountry as well as helping poverty alleviation.
According to Becker (1964), education or trainingincreases workers’ productivity by equipping them withuseful knowledge and skills while other theorists providedifferent explanations for how education is related toworker productivity. One such argument is based on thestatement that the higher earnings of educated workers arerelated to the level of their education, rather than throughskills and knowledge (Jin Xiao, 2001).
Additionally, Spence (1973) stated that the market hasbecome a signal to indicate the potential productivity of
EDUCATION
Human Capital
Productivity Jobs Wages
Economy
Growth
Country
Development
Poverty Alleviation
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2010 EFFECT OF POVERTY ON EDUCATION IN NIGERIA 57
workers, while Schultz (1975) implies that educationenhances an individual’s ability to successfully deal withdisequilibria in changing economic conditions. A similarargument was given by Levin and Kelley (1994, cited byXiao, 2001), implying that education could only improveproductivity if complementary inputs exist, such astraining, contract terms, and management practices….
The objective of education is manpower development,aimed at national growth and development (Enamiroro,2007). These definitions and theories have significantlylinked education with human capital, leading to nationaldevelopment and economy growth.
V. POVERTY & EDUCATION
What is Education?
Education is the process of the teaching and training of thechild. It is about imparting skills and the acquisition ofknowledge for a particular trade or profession in whichappropriate methods are applied (Kellerman, 1980).Similarly, education as all positive efforts, conscious anddirect, incidental and indirect, made by a given society toaccomplish certain objectives that are considered desirablein terms of the individual’s needs as well as the needs ofsociety where the programme is based (Fafunwa, 1983).
In relation to the individual and community, education hasbeen linked to society with the definition of Ebong (1996),defining education as a powerful instrument for thedevelopment of man and society, while according toEnamiror, (2007) education is a systematic procedure forthe transfer and transformation of culture, through formalor informal training of people in a society. Thus, it dealswith the mental, physical, psychological and socialdevelopment of the citizens in a given society. Accordingto Ojo and Vincent (2000), cited by Nwangu (2004),“Education is many things to man, a visa to success, apassport to the unknown, a catalyst to great heights.Education empowers, emboldens, refines, civilizes,enlightens, enriches and gives confidence to man”.
What is poverty?
According to Case and Ray (1989), poverty is defined aspeople with very low incomes. Besides, poverty should bemeasured by examining or calculating how much it costs tobuy the basic necessities of life, a minimally adequate diet,the minimum housing unit and so forth. A country that isperceived to be poor has failed to cater for her citizenry,lacks amenities and lives in fear. “Poverty is the lack ofcapability to function effectively in society. Inadequateeducation can thus be considered a form of poverty”(AmartyaSen, 1992, 2001, p5, UNESCO, 2008).
However, in a country where poverty is rampant, numerouspoverty alleviation programmes should be launched and itis a government responsibility to look at the problem fromthe grass-roots level and devise undisputable strategies.
The effect of poverty leads to a lack of educationalresources in poor schools and sometimes could hinderlearning. Without providing good facilities, teachingmaterials, textbooks and classroom resources, it becomeshard to facilitate good learning and quality teaching.Educationally speaking, the only way to reduce poverty isto make considerable investments in education. Thisinvestment provides many benefits such as skillsenhancement and productivity among poor households.Moreover, poverty is a constraint to educationalachievement both at the macro and micro levels. Hence,poor countries generally have lower levels of enrolmentwhile at the micro level; children of poor householdsreceive less education (Xoe, 1997).
It is believed that the young people who are suffering frompoverty are restricted from getting enrolled or are deprivedaccess to education and they are more likely to achievepoorer educational outcomes compared to young peoplefrom rich families or those with rich relatives. Furthermore,the situation of the young people deprived of receivingenrolment or being retained in education and thoseachieving low educational outcomes are the same and theyare likely to experience poverty (Bynner and Joshi, 2002).
However, this has now become a global issue and in the USand UK, children’s attending school and their academicperformance rely on the socio-economic position of theirparents (Jencks’s, 1972; Carlo, Alan, Helen, Dave, Lisa andAfroditi, 2007). This issue also applies to less developedcountries where there is a link between education andpoverty when enrolment into and retention in education arestrongly linked to levels of poverty (Filmer & Pritchett,1999, 2001
VI. THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN EDUCATIONAND NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
The relationship between poverty and education is aninternational phenomenon and it has attracted recentlymany countries’ attention in providing better schooling.Eventually it has become accepted worldwide that there is arelationship between poverty and educational outcomes.
From the Human Capital Theory, education plays a hugerole in development and economic growth. Besides, it wastested whether education is productive in an economicsense. The evidence shows that levels of schooling amongstthe population are highly correlated with levels ofeconomic development. Although there were early criticsof Human Capital Theory such as Bowles, Gintis andothers, sometimes referred to as the ‘CorrespondenceTheorists’, who argued that education was valued byemployers not because of the cognitive skills which itengendered, but because of the non-cognitive qualities andattributes inculcated at different levels of the educationsystem. According to them, education was thus judged tobe responsible for reproducing the social hierarchies insociety in a stable and predictable way, rather more thanenhancing the productive capacities of labour (Zoe, 1997).
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Human capital theory implies that education or trainingraises the productivity of employees by imparting valuableknowledge and skills. Thus, it raises workers’ futurelifetime earnings increment (Becker, 1964; Becker, 1964;Mincer, 1974; Jin Xiao, 2001); and provides anexplanation that links investment in training with workers’wages.
Furthermore, from the Human Capital Theory and in adifferent sense the Correspondence Theory perspectives,both emphasized that in order to alleviate poverty, theremust be a very strategic anti-poverty implementation thatwill enhance education and skills amongst poorhouseholds. This will enhance their productivity in theinformal urban and rural economy. This increases theireligibility for paid employment in the formal sector and foradvancement once they are employed. In relation to this,Correspondence Theory similarly suggests the idea ofincreasing levels of schooling in the labour force in thesense that it could be functional to the process ofemployment growth (Zoe, 1997).
VII. LEVEL OF POVERTY IN NIGERIA
Generally, Africa is a continent blessed with different typesof natural resources but still, the continent has a longhistory of poverty caused by political instability,mismanagement, serious corruption and selfish leaders.There is a high level of poverty in the African continentcompared with others and this poverty is denying millionsof Africans better lives, good education and is crippling theprocess of development and the economy. According to theAfrican Development Bank (ADB), cited by Nwagwu,(2007), 40 to 45% of Africa’s population is estimated to beliving in absolute poverty and an estimated 30% belong tothe extreme poor. Thus, those Africans in absolute povertylive on $2 per day while those in extreme poverty live onbelow $1 per day. Therefore, it is a painful task to look intothese statistics and a true catastrophe for the Africancontinent.
In Nigeria, before independence in 1960, the economy wascharacterized by the dominance of exports and commercialactivities while after independence, agriculture continuedas the mainstay of the economy. During this time, jobswere created and the rates of inflation, unemployment andproductivity remained relatively acceptable (Ekpo &Umoh, 1998). Ironically, Nigeria is a petroleum-basedcountry, with the problem of political instability, corruptionand poor macroeconomic management. The installation ofdemocracy happened in 1999 after been ruled by themilitary for decades. Despite this wealth and abundance,Nigeria is the 17th poorest country in the world, in spite ofthe large quantity and quality of crude oil produced in thecountry.
In 1960, after independence, Nigeria displayed greatawareness of educational development and the economywas booming. The Nigerian government and individuals
became involved in educational development. Besides, inthese particular years, moving into the 70s, everyone wasgiven an opportunity to go to school and attain basiceducation. It was an era of Universal Free PrimaryEducation. But, unfortunately, the opportunity did not lastlong. The 1980's and 1990's degenerated with regard tokeeping up with the previous education standards (Gaffar,1997).
In the 90s towards 21st century, the federalgovernment mounted for 6 years (since the restoration ofdemocracy) a series of programmes geared towardsachieving poverty reduction, some of which were
People’s Bank of Nigeria (PNB) (1990)
National Agricultural Land Development
(NALDA) (1993)
National Poverty Eradication Programme (NPEP)
(2001)
Eventually, the programmes died down without achievingtheir ultimate aims and objectives. To alleviate povertythrough education, many universities were built andcolleges were established but despite the increased numberof university graduates produced from these universitiesand colleges, the Human Development Index (HDI), acompound measure of income and access to education andhealth services, ranked Nigeria 152nd out of 175 countriesin 2000 ( UNDP, 2004). This low HDI reflects the situationwith regard to poor access to basic social services in thecountry (Aye & Oji, 2002). The National HouseholdSurvey conducted in 2005 shows that 51.6% of theNigerian population lives in poverty (NBS, 2005).
VIII. SUSTAINABILITY OF EDUCATION INNIGERIA
Without any shadow of doubt, education is very importantand essential for human beings. Education shapes humanbeings’ lives in positive ways. Education is a human rightthat should be bestowed on all human beings exclusivelyby reason of being human. Therefore, there is a strongrelationship between education and development as waspropounded before by many theorists and researchers. Theestablishment of education is a key index of development.Above and beyond this, it is well acknowledged thatschooling increases productivity, health and decreasesnegative features of life like child-labour as well asempowerment (EFA, 2002).
Over decades, the Nigerian government has emphasized thecommitment to providing good education for the people inthe community, aiming to overcome illiteracy andignorance with the goal of accelerating nationaldevelopment. But in the short run, the effort andcommitment did not materialize due to unpaid teachers’salaries, and the degradation of education facilities at alllevels. Eventually, the literacy rates in the country starteddeclining despite the obvious fact that education is
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2010 EFFECT OF POVERTY ON EDUCATION IN NIGERIA 59
essential to the development of the community and thenation.
In Nigeria, the distribution of education has sufferedbecause it has been neglected so long due to the inadequateattention given to policy frameworks within the setting.Findings of research conducted in the educational settingconfirm the unsustainability of education in Nigeria. Thenational literacy rate is currently 57%. Some 49% of theteaching force is unqualified. Old infrastructures andbuildings are maintained, there is a lack of facilities andacutely inadequate resources at all levels. Wide disparitiespersist in educational standards and learning achievements.The system emphasizes theoretical knowledge at theexpense of technical, vocational, and entrepreneurialeducation (ActionAid, 2003, cited by Otive, 2007).
The sustainability of education in the country has seriouslydeclined due to uncountable strikes and riots whichfrequently ended up by closing down the schools anduniversities for countless months.Teachers/lecturers/workers in universities and schoolsgoing out on strike has become normal in support of theirprotests about being unpaid for months perhaps years.Pensions are delayed and salaries/wages are frozen formany months and years. This leads to students taking yearsto graduate.
A significant percentage of children and youth leaveprimary, secondary and universities before graduation. Thismay be due to a lack of funds, poor nutrition, the inabilityto read, write or the results of a poor beginning and theeffect of family background. The system in the countrydoes not provide any opportunity for transition from schoolto work, particularly for those from poor homes(Enamiroro, 2007). This has substantially contributed tostudents’ abandoning their studies and putting an end totheir formal education, substituting it by learningtraditional work or joining the ranks of streetbeggars/traders for them to provide whatever income theycan for the family, while some opt to choose weapons whenthey are desperate.
Additionally, research conducted shows the strong reasonswhy pupils are abandoning primary schools; the costs ofschooling are too high, there is a lack of opportunity,illness and hunger, limited economic costs of education andlow quality of schooling (Action Aid, 2003). Besides, inNigeria, the costs of schooling include the costs of books,stationery and basic equipment, uniforms, admission fees,registration and examination fees, contribution towards thebuilding and maintenance fund, construction fees,transportation, mid-day meals, Parents/TeachersAssociation (PTA) fees, sports fees, library fees and extratuition fees.
In this regard, this underlines the unsustainability ofeducation in Nigeria due the factors mentioned above.Education is sustained when there are no hindrances in theway of schooling. Education is sustained when everycitizen is eligible at least physically, morally, economicallyand financially to obtain formal education. But once there
is poverty, there is a type of discrimination which leads tounequal opportunity in society.
In terms of employment and unemployment, you could seethe unsustainability of education in the long run when themajority of the youths in Nigeria with university degreesare unemployed. Some who were employed once andunemployed for a few months lacked the technical skill tokeep their job. There, the economic conditions have mademeeting the demands for food, education, health and sheltera Herculean task (The progress of Nigerian children, 1997).
IX. THE CONTRIBUTION OF CORRUPTION ONPOVERTY
Corruption is perceived as endemic in all countries. It isconsidered as a global phenomenon. Lately, corruption hasreceived extensive attention in the communities due to theeffect on a country’s economic conditions anddevelopment. The definition of corruption varies but itcould be defined broadly as “a perversion or a change fromgood to bad” (Victor, 2008, p2). Precisely, corruption orcorrupt behaviour is about abusing the laws or involves theviolation of established rules for personal gain and profit(Sen 1999, p.275).
In addition, corruption is the way of accumulating wealthin a dubious manner and securing power through illegalmeans and private gain at public expense. Besides,corruption is about personalizing public interest ormisusing public power for private benefit (Lipset & Lenz,2000,).In Nigeria, corruption is rampant and a pandemic inall government sectors. Corruption has possessed Nigerianleaders and they are obsessed by it because it runs throughtheir veins. In Nigeria, “corruption occurs in many forms,and it has contributed immensely to the poverty and miseryof a large segment of the Nigerian population” (Victor,2008).
Consequently, corruption tarnishes the image of thecountry and blemishes the reputation of a nation. Nigeria isthe perfect example. As we can see, Nigeria is the mostsuffered nation amongst the nations for its tarnished-imageglobally due to its failure to deal with corruption andbribery in the country. This failure has a serious effect oneducation due to the fact that the government spendsrelatively more on items to make room for graft (Shleifer&Vishny, 1993; Lipset & Lenz, 2002).
According to Nwagwu (2004):Corruption is the bane of Nigeriansociety. Corruption puts the economyin a parlous state. Money disappearsinto private accounts thereby makingsome individuals billionaires whilemany remain in destitution andpenury. Many people aredehumanized and debased as a resultof poverty (p.3).
As a matter of fact, corruption breeds national poverty,stated by Morphy who believed that “elite corruption is the
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cause of poverty” in Nigeria. Corruption in Nigeria “resultsin scarcity of funds for schools, healthcare andinfrastructure. Unfortunately, it is the ruling elite who areguilty of this sort of dishonesty”. Many studies have beenconducted, examining the relationship between corruptionand poverty and most of the findings of this global researchindicate that bribery, fraud, favouritism and cronyism allbreed and deepen poverty in the society (Morphy, 2007).
X. METHODOLOGY
Data collection
Data were collected in 2010 through interviews. Fourinterview questions were designed by following theInterview Protocol. The first question was related tointerviewees’ educational background, working/teachingexperience, place of work and current position in Nigeria.The second question was about the effect of poverty oneducation in Nigeria. Third focused on the possibility ofmaking education accessible for all in order to alleviatepoverty in the country while the last question was aimed atseeking interviewees’ opinions and suggestions on how toreduce poverty for the quality life of people in Nigeria aswell as their socio-economic status.
In terms of sample, an interview protocol was sent to 15experts in Nigeria and outside Nigeria but unfortunately,there were no responses from them. Only four fromMalaysia responded. Calls were also made to someNigerian experts and authors but the problem of poorcommunication system played a huge role in making theminaccessible and some unanswered. The phone numbersattached in their online bio-data perhaps have beenchanged or did not exist anymore.
In terms of validity and reliability, interview was conductedin Malaysia, interviewing four formal Nigerians civil-servants: an educationist, economist, a lawyer and formalNational Poverty Eradication Progremme (NAPEP). Theyare currently pursuing their PhD.
Data AnalysisA tape recorder was used to collect the data. Verbatim
transcripts were done by the researcher. The analysis wasdone manually; transcribing by listening to the tape andwriting the transcripts down in a table with three columns.The first column is the initial data, the second column is thecoding and the last is the theme.
INTERVIEW PROTOCAL
Analysis
Table 1. Statements by group interviews in a reflectivemeeting of the experts working in the educational sectorand in the system in NigeriaQuestion 1: Explain the effect of Poverty on education in
Nigeria.
Existential
Meaning
Coding Theme
PERSON 1
NPE is to targetpoverty or eradicatepoverty.
Povertyeradication inNigeria has 2 faces,1-implementation,and 2- policy thataffect/effect povertyeradication inNigeria.
Educationsystem in Nigeriahas really virtuallycollapsed withoutdoubt.
Poverty is inthe country becausepeople don’t havecapability tosponsor themselves.
The Nigeriangovernment hasgood intension toeradicate poverty,but it will take along time ifmonitoring andevaluation are notwell founded tocarry out suchpoverty policywhich is lacking inNigerian povertyprogrammes.
Money has
Governmentlunchingprogrammes toalleviatepoverty:implementationand policy.
The impact ofpoverty onpeople’s livesand downfall ofthe educationalsystem and theeducationalsystem has beendestroyed.
Governmentfailure of
Poverty leads todownfall ofeducationalsystem inNigeria.
Poorimplementationand evaluationof povertyprogrammes.
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been given as abudgetary basis forpoverty alleviationprogrammes butthis money isdisbursedarbitrarily.
There is noeffectivemonitoring of howthis money hasbeen disbursed, forexample, for skillsenhancementprogrammes whereit could be a benefitfor people involvedin acquiring skills.But it is not there.
Evaluation,year in year out,NAPEP disbursedmoney or presenteda budget to thenational assemblywhich has beenapproved whethercomplete orincomplete thebudget that beenapproved, itdepends on theallocation of thebudget to them. Butall this money isgiven for each statesecretary thatrepresents thenational poverty,but yet, no one isevaluating how thismoney is utilized orachieves the mainpurpose it wasmeant for.
So the povertystill remains in theNigerian systembecause themonitoring systemis not there, themechanism ofdisbursing themoney is not there,and the mechanismof evaluation isequally not there.So money is subjectto deduction bypoliticians who
monitoring theprogrammes andthe wrongdistribution ofthe money andbudget allocated.
Poor evaluationof the moneyspent by thegovernment andpoor assessmentof whether thebudget allocatedfor the states toalleviate povertyreaches thetarget.
The moneyallocated isembezzled bythe topgovernmentofficials.
The povertyprogrammes areineffective andthe level ofpoverty in thecountry still veryhigh.
Politicians usingpoverty
Corruption andmismanagement
The failure ofthe povertyprogrammesaffectseducation inNigeria.
Poor facilitiesand lack ofresources leadto schoolscollapsing.
The failure ofpovertyeradication inthe countryleads tounemployment.
Lack of support,loans andscholarshipsfrom thegovernment
force it onadministrators whoare just bureaucrats.
But theinvolvement of thepoliticians inpoverty eradicationhas virtuallyundermined theentire povertyeradicationprogramme. This isthe problem andthat is why thepoverty eradicationprogrammes inNigeria are facingserious difficulties.
Since 1999, theprogramme wasinitiated, although,it is a carry-overfrom otherprogrammes likeFEP, WomenEmpowerment alsopart and parcel ofnational povertyeradication.
The failure ofthe programmeslaunched toalleviate povertyhas an effect oneducation. What ithas to do witheducation in thesense that the targetaudience isprimarily theeducationalinstitution becauseif the youth havenot beenempoweredfinancially, they donot automaticallygot a soundeducation. Theseyouths have beenforced out ofeducational systemdue to theirinability to sponsorthemselves or haveaccess to theeducationalscholarshipschemes at thefederal level or
eradication fortheir ownpersonal interest.
The failure ofpovertyalleviation in thecountry hasaffectededucation inNigeria.
The failure hasaffected theeducationalinstitutionsbadly due to thepoor facilities,resourcesprovided andbudget allocated.
The failure ofpovertyeradicationaffects theyouths of gettingjobs aftergraduation andno financialsupports.
No ability to goto school and therate of drop-outsfrom the schoolsis high andscholarshipgiven for youthto continue theirstudies.
leads to hugerate of schooldrop-out.
Lack of supportand povertyleads tostudents’ poorperformance.
Inabilityincreases drop-out rate
Quality ofeducation hasbeen affected
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state level or localgovernment leveldue to theprogrammes thatare not explicitlyexplained by thepower holders inthe country. So itreally affects them.
So you can seethat the best brainin education is notthere because of thepoverty.
Poverty hasdeprived people tonot be in schools.Poverty has ledpeople to drop outfrom colleges aswell as the bestbrains that aresupposed to be inthe system aregradually droppingout, they have beendiscouraged.
PERSON 2
Education inNigeria as far as Iam is concerned notlike it used to be inthe past.
Definingpoverty, poverty isa situation wherepeople are not ableto earn enough fortheir needs, interms of livingstandard, very lowfeeding as well asaccommodation.
Poverty can goto the extent wherepeople cannotaffordtransportation andsecurity.
If a person
This has affectedthe performanceof the students,standards andthe qualityeducation in thecountry.
Poverty isinability of aman to earn aliving andprovide needs.Poverty affectsway of livingand safety.
Presently, thingsare getting worsecompared to thepast. Things aregetting costlyand people livein absolutepoverty.
Inability of theparents to sendtheir children toschools.
Public schoolsare poor and notwell managed.Schools havefailed people bynot meeting thestandard and notproviding qualityeducation.
Private schools
Poverty leads topoor earningand safety.
People living inabsolutepoverty inNigeria.
Lack of meansof the parentsincreasesilliteracy.
Low interest insendingchildren toschools.
Public schoolsneglected by thegovernment.
couldn’t afford theneeds, we can saythe person is poor.
In the past, inNigeria,transportation usedto be very muchless compared tothe present.
Peoplebasically are livingin hardship and it ishard for people inthe country to sendtheir children toschools.
The publicschools are notgood in terms ofstandard.
Public schoolsare not providingwhat people arelooking for and notmeeting people’sexpectations tosend their childrento public schools.
Private schoolsare patronized bypeople when thereis a means but now,it is expensive andpeople are sendingtheir children backto public schoolswhere 50-80students in the classwith old teachingand learningmaterials.
Some peoplehave opted forprivate schools forthem to get goodeducation for theirchildren.
Parents can’tafford to send theirchildren to privateschools while theycan’t even afforddaily meals, buyingbooks; schooluniform; basiclearning materials
become themeans for thosepeople that havemoney and arerich as well asbeing funded.Inability of theparents toprovide basiclife needs,learningmaterials andsend theirchildren toprivate schools.
The salaries ofcivil servants areextremely low,could afford thebasic needs.Things areexpensive anddifficult to buythem.
There a serioushunger in thecountry andpeople dying oflack of foods.
Poverty isdestroying theeducation wherea lot of schoolsare without goodfacilities forchildren to learnand no amenitiesthat canencouragechildren to go toschool.
Poverty is killingeducationeverywhere inthe country.
Rich peoplesending theirchildren toprivate schools.
Poor salaries forgovernmentworkers.
Insufficientincome deprivesworkers ofbetter life.
Hunger istormenting.
Poverty iscrippling theeducationprocess inNigeria.
School fees areunaffordable.
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2010 EFFECT OF POVERTY ON EDUCATION IN NIGERIA 63
and seeing theirchildren wearingtorn uniforms.
This is whatpeople are goingthrough in thecountry.
Looking at therate of inflation, theamount people areearning in thepublic sector isvery low.
The samehappened to theprivate sectorwhere people therealso at lower levelsand middle classlevels are not wellpaid. Things are notgetting better forthem.
Poverty ishitting hard ineducational sectors.The facilities andnutrition thatchildren require forthem to learn arenot there.
It is very hardto teach a childwhen he is hungry;there is no way thechild can learn.
No water;people have to buywater which costs alot every month.
The price offood is risingrapidly. So povertyis striking hard atthe root ofeducation.
It is impossiblefor people to beeducated when theyare poor.
In Nigeria,people are nottaking educationseriously and not
Schools fees areexpensive andunaffordable.Education hasbeen neglectedand parentsprefer theirchildren to stayhome and learntradition workthat can bringmoney instantly.
The level ifilliteracy is veryhigh in thecountry.
Poor appearanceof the teachersand low salaries.Poor motivationto be a teacher.
Poverty hasmade peoplelose interest ineducation andsending theirchildren toschool.
High rate ofilliteracy
Schoolsdisappointparents
Educationalvalues havegone
going to schoolbecause they needto survive first.
The cost forenrolling isextremely high andperforming badly intheir work “WestAfricanExaminationCouncil” (WAEC).
People will nottake educationseriously when thesociety is notvibrant because thevibrant societyknows the value ofeducation.
People believeeducation is a long-term investmentand the rewardcannot be reapedimmediately.
Parents sendingtheir children out tosell something andbring money backhome instead ofwaiting foreducation that willnot give or produceinstantly.
There is arelationshipbetween povertyand illiteracy,because people areleaving school togo and get moneyand job to earnliving and tosurvive.
Survival first.
Teachers arenot well paid, andthey could notafford to buy goodshoes and shirts.How to see value ofeducation when thestudents are seeingtheir teachers inthat kind of
Country canonly developwhen there is nopoverty.
People workhard to feed theirfamilies andavoid poverty.
Education playsa huge role inthe developmentof the nation.
Educationalleviatespoverty in thecountry.
Progress anddevelopmentshow afterpovertyeradication
Education leadsto countrydevelopment
Educationreduces poverty
Educationprovides abetter life
Educationprovides abetter salary
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situation.
Educationbecomes interestingwhen people seevalue in it.
The institutionsin Nigeria arepathetic. Therefore,poverty affectseducation badly inthe country.
PERSON 3
Certainly, thereis no way toprogress in this lifewithout getting ridof poverty.
Poverty is aserious problem inany set-up ofhuman lifeespeciallyeducation.
Poverty has aparticular feature, afeature of diseasewith the sense thatanyone who is poorwill work andstruggle to ensurehis progenitors arenot poor;otherwise, povertycan be inheritedfrom onegeneration toanother.
Education isessential ineliminating povertyin the family andsociety.
Education is aninstrument or toolthat a man can useto migrate awayfrom poverty.
Education is away of runningaway from povertyto prosperity.
People that haveeducation inNigeria livebetter lives.
Educationacceleratespeople andmoves themfrom below tothe top.
Educationdeterminespeople’s salaries,status and kindof lives peopleshould live inNigeria.
Children are sentto public schoolswhere there is alack of teachingand learningfacilities due tothe inability ofthe parents tosend theirchildren toprivate schools.
In Nigeria,poverty dictatespeople’s livesand thegovernment hasfailed to dosomething about
Better life isachieved byeducation
Public schoolsare in trouble
There is arelationshipbetween publicschools andpoverty
Governmentfailed to tacklepoverty
Rich people inNigeria havebetter lives.
In Nigeria,people that haveeducation are ableto maintain adistinguished statusfrom those peoplewho lack educationin terms of poverty.
Once a poorman is educated, itmoves him from alower level to ahigher level insociety. The moreeducated he is, themore progress thereis.
In the whole ofNigeria, educationis the principaldeterminant of whois at the bottom ofthe ladder and whois at the top of theladder. Education isthe determinant.
So education isthe biggest factor inmoving away frompoverty. Becausepeople are poorbecause they don’thave the ability toattend school.
Children ofpoor go to publicschools which arenot well taken careof by thegovernment; nofans, and somechairs and tablesare provided but arevery basic while therich go to privateschools where thefacilities are wellprovided.
This situationmay not happen inother parts of theworld but it ispeculiar to Nigeria.
At the end ofthe day, povertydetermines thequality of education
it.
Nigeria lives alife ofmeritocracy andrich peopledominate as wellas having betterlives.
Inability to sendchildren toschool is causedby poverty.Failure of havingjobs of theparents isdetermined bypoverty.
Schools arepoorly financedby thegovernment andteachers are notbeen paid well.
Poverty createshavoc in Nigeriaand thegovernment isnot providing
Sendingchildren topublic schoolsrelates topoverty
Lack offinancialsupports inschools
Governmentfailed to providebetter life forpeople inNigeria.
Basic needs arebeyond themeans of thepeople.
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that a man gets inNigeria.
Looking at this,it shows that therole that povertyplays in theeducation ofchildren in Nigeriacannot bequantified.
Deliberately,people in thegovernment haveneglected thepublic institutionsand polluted privateinstitutions becausethey want povertyto continue so thatchildren of wealthyfamilies continue todominate and holdon to power in thecountry.
Because oncepeople have bettereducation thanothers, complexeswill step in andpeople that havepoor quality ofeducation normallysuffer someinferiority complex.
PERSON 4
Definingpoverty in relationto education as theinability of theparents to accessquality of educationfor their childreneither as a result ofpoor employmentsituation of theparents or as aresult of somephysicalincapacitation onthe part of theparents.
Poverty cancome from thegovernment if thegovernment has
things for peoplein the country tohave better lives.
Hunger isstriking andpeople aresuffering.
failed to invest inthe educationalsector.
The poorerparents can onlysend their childrento governmentschools which arepoorly equipped.
Teachers areengaged in otherjobs out of schoolto survive andincrease theirearning and areunable to preparewell for theirclasses or producequality teachingand education.
Poverty hascreated a gapbetween thechildren of the poorand rich.
Some peoplewant to helpeducationalinstitutions but theyare business-oriented lookinginto gain, interestand profit.
The inability ofparents to providefood where thegovernment has toprovide meals andthat is a motivationfor parents to sendtheir kids to school.
Table 2. Statements by group interviews in a reflectivemeeting of the experts working in the educational sectorand in the system in NigeriaQuestion 2: Do you think making education for all could
alleviate poverty in Nigeria by making education
accessible?
Existential Meaning Coding Theme
PERSON 1 Education for all couldbe a fallacy in the sensethat it is not mandatoryfor everybody to be
It is no possibleto makeeducation for allbecause of the
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educated. But everyonein the country shouldhave a right of survive.The right of living, theright of doing the rightthings in his country. Theright to have access to thenational resources. Theright to the access ofdistribution of goals andservices. This is supposedto be the policy of thegovernment. That is howit should be. Education for all, thegovernment doesn’t havethe resources for it tofund education due to thehuge population of thecountry. So education foreverybody is notpossible, but if there istechnical educationwhere someone can goand enhance skills orvocational education, thatone is OK. But to say it ismandatory for thegovernment to provideeducation for all, thegovernment will be over-stressed due to thelimited resources. It isnot easy to run thesystem, security and runthe country with thispopulation
Food and security, forexample, there is no foodin the country, and theagriculture system ishighly dilapidated, it isabsolute; we don’t have awell mechanizedagricultural system.
It is the mediaevalsystem of farming that isstill going on in Nigeria.That alone is a problem. So someone that doesnot eat, how could he gethis education?
That kind of personhas physical poverty thathas overwhelmed histhinking. He is not
huge population.Education is notcompulsory foreveryone but themeans ofsurviving shouldbe provided.
There should bethe ability foreveryone to getwhatever theywant andresources thatthey need. Thisshould be in oneof thegovernmentprogrammes.
Vocational andtechnicaleducation is notavailable forskillsenhancement.
It is not easy forthe governmentto cater for allbut thegovernmentshould make surelives are betterfor people to livein terms of foodand shelter.
Governmentdidn’t pay muchattention toagriculture whichcan producemuch food andnourishment.
The system offarming is stillbackward.Hunger hasstopped peoplefrom attendingformal educationto get a means tosurvive.
Poverty hasstopped peoplein Nigeria from
Accessibilityof educationfor all inNigeria isimpossible
Hard to getall peopleeducated
Hugepopulationdeprivespeople ofgeneralaccess toeducation
Food andshelter aregovernmentresponsibility.
Governmentignoresagriculture
Farmingsystem inNigeria is oldfashioned
Poverty leadsto poor lifeand education
thinking to improve hismental development.
PERSON 2 Government claimedof making educationaccessible as a principle,role and law but it is not. Where is theaccessibility when thereare no free books anduniforms are notprovided? Whenresources and materialsgiven. Where is theaccessibility? Making educationaccessible is to providewhat can make learningcomfortable such as, foodand shelter because thatis what the society needfirst before thinking ofgoing to school. These are some of thefactors that makeeducation accessible inthe country now. Put food and shelter inschool and the childrenwill come. That is whypeople are patronizingtraditional Islamicschools because theyprovide food, shelter andeven houses for childrento stay to enjoy theireducation. Basically, educationcannot go anywherewithout addressingpoverty in the country. We have to addresspoverty if education is tosucceed.
PERSON 3Certainly, accessibilityof education alleviatespoverty.But what type ofaccessibility government
having betterlives and betteror qualityeducation.
Education cannotbe accessiblewhen there isstill poverty incountry, despitethe accessibilityof educationproclaimed bythe government.
Accessibility ofeducation isimpossible whenteaching andlearningmaterials are notprovided inschools.
Food and shelterare one thefactors that canmake educationeasier and moreaccessible.
Private Islamicschools inNigeria receivemany students byprovidingaccommodationfor children tolearn.
Getting educatedis impossiblewhen reducingpoverty rate islow in thecountry.
Educationreduces the levelof poverty in the
Access toeducation isimpossiblewhen povertyexists
Food andsheltermotivatechildren to goto school
Poverty is thegreatestenemy ofeducation
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2010 EFFECT OF POVERTY ON EDUCATION IN NIGERIA 67
wants to provide wherelearning and teachingmaterials, tools,facilities, resources andeven a toilet are notprovided in the schools.So what kind ofaccessibility is that?Government wants toshow that educationprovides a better life butrefuses to provide whatis needed in schools.Where is theaccessibility whereteachers cannot survivewithout collectingbribes in schools fromthe students?What kind of educationwould a child gets fromthat school? The child will believethat education is tosurvive with bribes. Withthis, morals are breakingdown. What kind of mentaldevelopment can thechildren achieve in thosecircumstances? Nigeria has money andpotential, the governmentis spending the moneybut it does bring goodresults because it goes tothe wrong people/target. There must be aresolution in makingeducation accessible withthe emphasis on qualityeducation. The money spent bythe government to makeeducation accessible mustmake sure that moneyreaches the target.
country.
Education cannotbe accessiblewhen teachingand learningresources andmaterials areprovided inschools.
There is no betterlife withoutschooldevelopment.
The accessibilitycannot take placewhen teachersearn low salaries.
Bribery ispractised inschools in frontof the studentsand the value ofeducation isgoing downdrastically.
Morals andethics are nomore in schoolsand the qualityeducation andgoodperformancefrom studentshas gone.
There must bechanges inNigeria ineducationalsettings and themoney spentshould betransparent andtargeted.
There is arelationshipbetweeneducation andpovertyreduction.
There isaccessibilityof educationwhen thingsare providedin schools
Schooldevelopmentdetermines abetter life
Brides inschoolsdegradeeducationalvalues
Moral andethics are nomore inschools.
Changesneeded inNigerianeducationalsector
PERSON 4 Quality of education isthe government’sresponsibility. Making educationaccessible is in the handsof the government. Accessibility ofeducation will help inreducing the rate ofpoverty in the country.
Makingeducationaccessible for allis in the hands ofthe governmentbecause makingeducationaccessible helpsin alleviatingpoverty in thecountry.
More moneyand budgetfor education
Accessibilityof educationreducespoverty.
Table 3. Statements by group interviews in a reflectivemeeting of the experts working in the educational sectorand in the system in NigeriaQuestion 3:What are your suggestions and solutions
towards this problem?
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Existential Meaning Coding Theme
PERSON 1 Primarily, if youwant education tosucceed in Nigeria,make sure financialaccessibility is therewith each Nigeriancitizen havingaccess to bank loansfor education, andin return they knowhow to pay back.The financialinstitution shouldmap out strategiesof bank loans for theeducational systemor scholarships andmap out strategiesfor getting thismoney back. If the bankingsector or financialinstitutions are notgiving financialresources for peopleto have access to theeducation system, itwill be very difficultbecause it is notonly the state thatcan provideeducation. State willalso have their ownscholarship schemethat will equallydevelop. The bank carriesthe buck foreverything. Forexample, theMalaysiangovernment made apolicy which everyMalaysian has anaccess to a loan inthe banks or ascholarship suchPTPTN, using it topay their school feesand have othermoney for food.
Financial supportmust be given andaccessibility ofeducation shouldbe allowed.
Loans andscholarshipsshould be given insupportingstudents’ learning.
There should bestrategies ofgetting the moneyback in aconvenientmanner.
Nigeria shouldlook at Malaysiaand the waypeople get accessto loans andstudents getscholarships tostudy.
This has made lifeand learningeasier forMalaysiancitizens.
Governmentshould givefinancial supportto schools
Loans andscholarships helpsstudents’ learning
Nigeria shouldbenchmark withMalaysia
Human capitalleads to acountry’sdevelopment
So this is the onlyway resources couldtrickle down, wherepeople will haveaccess to theseresources and endtheir education forthe progress of theircountry and forthemselvesindividually.
PERSON 2 The problem ofNigeria is not only aNigerian problem; itis the problem of theworld. Because nocountry lives inisolation from theother communities,countries and world. The problem ofNigeria is not theproblem that otherscan wash their handsof. Solutions toNigeria’s problemsstart from theindividual. Theindividual that hasthe ability to have 3meals, such a personshould able to shareat least 1 meal out ofthe 3 meals that hetakes in a day. Don’t expect amiracle to happen tosuch a kind ofperson that ishungry. “A hungryman is an angryman” To addresseducation inNigeria, we mustaddress hunger, andaddressing hunger isabout creating jobsfor people to havean income.
Life andeducation willalso be easier inNigeria when therate of educatedpeople is highwhich leads to thecountry’sdevelopment.
The whole worldshould workjointly to solveNigeria’sproblems.
Also, the Nigerianproblem can besolved whenpeople in thecountry joinhands together.
Rich should caterfor poor and thosewho have theability shouldhelp those who donot.
Hunger should betackled andseriouslyaddressed in thecountry.
Government
Nigeria needs helpfrom the world
Unity andsolidarity solveproblems inNigeria
Help fromindividuals
Help from highclass to low class
Reduce hungerand provide foodand shelter
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Governmentshould create loanopportunities… thekind of loan thatthey can pay back,not a loan with hugeinterest. In Nigeria,everything thegovernment does, itputs interest on it.So the first thing todo in solving thisproblem is toaddress the problemof poverty. The governmenthas the higher roleto play but all of usalso are part ofgovernment. The governmentmust makeeducation skills-oriented; becausethere are manygraduates who stillcouldn’t get jobs. Governmentshould remove thecolonial system ofeducation wheregraduates stilldepend on thegovernment bymaking financialloans for graduate tostart things on theirown gradually.“Rome was not builtin a day”. If there is no job,people become aliability to thecommunity. Make theconditions right forpeople to learn.Government shouldaddress povertyeven if they are notintent on givingmoney but givethem facilities thatthey can use. Empower peopleso that they can seethe benefit ofeducation. This iswhat the Prophet ofIslam and Christiansdo, because you
support is highlyneeded in helpingpeople to emergefrom poverty.
Loans andprojects should begiven withouthigh rates ofinterest andcommission.
Reducing hightask and intereston governmentprojects and loansgiven.
Creating jobopportunities forgraduates andempowering themso that they won’tdepend so muchon government.
Governmentshould makeenvironmentconducive forlearning andeducation.
Make educationinteresting andimprove the valueby providingthings needed inschools and whatmakes learningeasier.
Government’s helpto provide a betterlife
Low rate ofinterest helpspeople to progress
Job opportunitieslead to graduateempowerment
There is arelationshipbetween goodlearning and aconduciveenvironment.
Schools in Nigerianeed moredevelopment
Improvement isseriously neededin Nigeria schools.
can’t preach to thepeople when theyare hungry. Governmentshould try toeliminate hungerbefore education.“people will obeydevil if they have toeat”
PERSON 3 The solutions thatwork in other partsof the world mightnot be the solutionsthat work inNigeria. Because theproblem is fromNigeria to Nigeria. Virtually, all theinternationalprogrammes ordevelopmentalprogrammeslaunched bydeveloped countriesworked in otherparts of the worldbut never worked inNigeria. Oneexample is theshelter programmelaunched by the UNwhich had workedin other countriesbut there is still aproblem of shelterin Nigeria. Water for all2015, in othercountries, the wateris abundant now,that same progammeis not working inNigeria. All the countriesin the world haveworked under adevelopmentalagenda; under theUN, the countriesare alleviatingpoverty before2020. Malaysia is oneof them. Malaysiahas reduced thelevel of poverty toclose to 2%.
Nigeria shouldknow how tosolve their ownproblems bythemselves.
The internationalpovertyprogrammes havefailed in Nigeriawhile they havesucceeded inother countries.
Nigeria failed toeradicate povertyand failed toprovide amenitiesfor people in thecountry to have abetter life.
Countries likeMalaysia hadreduced thepoverty rateimpressivelywhile in Nigeria ithas increased.
Changes ofattitudes inNigeria are one ofthe best solutionsto Nigeria’sproblems.
This situationmight not becommonworldwide but it
Lack of leadershipaffects the successof povertyalleviation
Poor supervisionin Nigeria leads tothe failure ofinternationalprogrammes
Good amenitiesare not provided
Nigeria shouldlearn from othercountries
Attitude is theproblem in Nigeria
People need helpfrom thegovernment
Enablingenvironmentattracts investors
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Nigeria has notreduced the level ofpoverty, but israther increasing thelevel of poverty inthe country. The generalproblem that weNigerians have isthe problem ofattitudes. Theattitude we have isthat do we wantthings or changes tohappen or are wejust talking? It is aboutwishing for thingsand workingtowards thosethings. The peculiarsituation in Nigeriais the changing ofattitudes andpositive thinking.
PERSON 4 With a lack offood for children thegovernment has toprovide meals andthat is a motivationfor parents to sendtheir kids toschools. Creating anenablingenvironment forinvestors to comein. Governmentshould investheavily oneducation Proper planningthat will reach thetarget Creating jobs andplaces for graduatesto work. Funding andgood budget foreducation. Job opportunity There must besynchronization ofeducation output toindustrial needsbecause that is theonly way theproduct of
is normal inNigeria.
Food and hungershould begovernment’s firstpriority.
Makingenvironmentconducive andagglomerated forinvestors to comein and invest.
More allocationof budget foreducation inNigeria.
Graduates muststudy what isneeded in themarkets.
Vocationaleducation andskilled-basededucation shouldbe infused inschool curriculumfor graduates’employment.
Education settingsneed financialsupport
Education shouldtarget the market
Vocationaleducation isneeded.
Infusion of skillsin syllabus
education can befruitful. The quality ofeducation must bemonitored. So everyNigerian graduatecan work anywhere.
Table 4. Interviewees’ Profile
Person1
PhD holder Political Scientist
Formal NEPAP worker Teacher/Lecturer/Civil
Servant
Vast experience in teachingand working in differentsectors (inside and outside)
Person2
PhD holder Educationist
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2010 EFFECT OF POVERTY ON EDUCATION IN NIGERIA 71
Teacher/Lecturer/CivilServant
Vast experience in teachingand working in differentsectors (inside and outside)
Person3
PhD holder
Practical Lawyer Teacher/Lecturer/Civil
Servant
Vast experience in teachingand working in differentsectors (inside and outside)
Person4
PhD holder Economist Teacher/Lecturer/Civil
Servant
Vast experience in teachingand working in differentsectors (inside and outside)
LINKS & RELATIONSHIP IN INTERVIEWEES’RESPONSES
The effect of poverty on education in Nigeria Education reduces poverty. Accessibility of education for all. Inability of the parents to send their children to
private schools. Public schools with poor resources and not well
financed by the government. Education system has collapsed because of
corruption and poverty. Then gap between the rich and poor and quality
education. Poor salaries of the teachers. The problem of food and shelter. Unemployment of the graduates. More investment on education. Loan and scholarship from the government.
XI. FINDINGS & DISCUSSION
The findings of this study show that, there is a relationshipbetween poverty and education in Nigeria. From theanalysis, there is a poor accessibility of education inNigeria. Some parents are unable to send their children toschools because of their low income while some parentscan only send their children to public schools because thatis what they can afford.
Furthermore, the findings also show that, public schools inNigeria seemed to be abandoned by the government. Notmuch is invested on education in Nigeria. Salaries are
inadequate for teachers to live on. Public schools are not
meeting parents’ expectations of providing qualityeducation for their children.
In addition, basic needs are hard for some parentsespecially when hunger strikes deeply, penetrating intopeoples’ lives. The compelling questions are: how caneducation take place when there is hunger? And how canthe children learn when their stomachs are empty? How canthe parents send their children to school when they aresinking in poverty? Private schools which are wellequipped in terms of resources, facilities and materials arebeyond their reach. This seemed to cause a big gap betweenthe rich and poor and quality education.
The findings of this study confirmed all the findings andtheories mentioned that education reduces poverty andeducation leads to nation development and economicsgrowth. This study confirmed some previous studies suchas Otive, (2006), Becker, (1964) and Xiao, (2001) as wellas Human Capital Theory on poverty and education. Itmaintains that schooling improves productivity andeducation or training increases workers’ productivity. Thisstudy also sustains the findings of Bynner and Joshi, (2002)which states that, poor or low education likely leads to
poverty.
XII. CONCLUSION
The conclusion which can be drawn based on theinterviews conducted is that poverty has caused tremendousdamage to people’s lives in Nigeria and has deprivedpeople of the basic needs. Poverty strikes hard anddetermines people’s faith in Nigeria and dictates the kind oflife people should live. The Nigerian government has failedits citizens by not providing them a good life and sufficientjobs for their survival.
In addition, the Nigerian government is overwhelmed withcorruption and corruption is the root of the disease in thatcountry. It is corruption of the government that has startedeverything. It is corruption that creates poverty due to thepoor or unequal distribution of the wealth and equity of thenation. Corruption has sunk the entire system in Nigeriainto the Dead Sea where it is hard for the system to be live.Government offices, sectors, departments and ministries aremummified by corruption. Nigeria has become a countrywhere corruption and bribery are the national pride. Bribesare honoured publically and become express methods ofgetting things done in Nigeria and ensuring approval.
In terms of education, a relationship was found betweenpoverty and education in the sense that poverty, again,determines what level of education people should have inNigeria. Poverty has crippled our educational system.Schools are a shadow of what they were in the old days.Public schools and higher institutions in the country areneglected, have poor equipment, and lack facilities andresources. The government has failed to provide goodteaching and learning facilities for schools for children tolearn.
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Food and shelter have become the major problem in thecountry because of unemployment and poor earning levels.People live in hunger with shattered lives. Parents areunable to feed their children or even provide daily meals,how would they have the means to send their children toschool?. People have to fill their stomachs before anything.
The government should open their eyes and see how theeducation system is being traumatized by poverty. Thegovernment should listen to the people in the countryscreaming the name of hunger and shelter. The governmentshould pity us and Nigerian citizens and begin to distributethe money earned from our oil equally.
What are the faults and crimes of the citizens that makethem deserve these tortures and cruelties? What has madethe Nigerian government and our leaders turn a blind eye tothe needs of Nigerians regards us with merciless eyes?Nigerians are involved in crimes and scams; tarnishing theimage of the country because of poverty and inequality ofwealth. Nigerians are suffering and hassling around theworld; paying the price of our leaders’ crimes andatrocities. Nigerian citizens are regarded negativelyamongst the citizens in the world because of our leaders’devilish self-interest and corruption which leads to poverty.
Therefore, a revolution needs to be declared for things tochange and for things to be put in order. A leader shouldfollow the principle of serving the nation, providing for
their needs and considering their welfare. Weneed leaders who will see education as a future forthe nation, leaders who invest in education and see schoolsand higher institutions as a platform for producingexcellent human capital for the country’s development.
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