Child Development
Education is recognized as a key determinant in human development. Access to education opens more opportunities and enhanced earnings. Unequal opportunities in access to education have long-term consequences that include intergenerational persistence of poverty and social and economic inequalities. The level of education of the household head is a key determinant of future earnings, child health, and other social and economic outcomes (Bourguignon et al. 2007, Kovacevic, 2010). Higher educational attainment and more equal access across all segments of the population should enhance participation in the labour market, increase economic growth and contribute to more equitable distribution of incomes in the long term. There is considerable evidence that even in settings where people are deprived of other essential services like sanitation or clean water, children of educated mothers have much better prospects of survival than do the children of uneducated mothers. Education is therefore typically viewed as a strong factor in levelling the field of opportunity as it provides individuals with the capacity to obtain a higher income and standard of living. By learning to read and write and acquiring technical or professional skills, people increase their chances of obtaining decent, better-paying jobs (Exploring Kenya’s Inequality, KNBS, 2013).
More than 1.2 million primary-school-age children in Kenya do not attend school (UNICEF Kenya). In Uganda many children do not complete their schooling nor have the competencies needed to do well in life. Only 1 in 4 children who starts primary school makes it to secondary school. Secondary education is still inaccessible to most adolescents. Less than a quarter (24 per cent) of adolescents are enrolled at this level. Early marriage, teenage pregnancy, abuse at schools and school fees keep many teens, especially girls, out of secondary schools. The school environment also plays a role in keeping children out of education. Schools lack adequate toilets and washing areas, and sexual abuse (UNICEF Uganda). Large numbers of Kenya’s out-of-school children have disabilities. However, lack of data makes it impossible to quantify the extent of the problem. The factors that keep children with disabilities out of school are found both in the home environment and in the education system. Both in Kenya and Uganda providing state education for children in the informal settlements around cities and towns is problematic if the Government does not recognize settlements: this opens the way to low-cost private schools that may not meet national quality standards.
One quarter of Kenya’s population have no education. Slightly over half of the population has primary education only and only 23 percent of the population has secondary education and above. In rural areas, one-third of the population has no education and slightly over half have primary education only. Only four out of every 25 people in rural areas have secondary education.