Obasanjo warns 20m Out-of-School children threaten Nigeria’s security

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has raised alarm over Nigeria’s growing out-of-school children crisis, describing it as a serious threat to the country’s security and future development.

Speaking at a commissioning ceremony in Bauchi State on Sunday, Obasanjo pointed out that over 20 million Nigerian children are currently without access to education, making them vulnerable to recruitment by extremist groups like Boko Haram.

“The World Bank estimates that 20 million children are out of school, which is roughly 10% of Nigeria’s 230 million population,” Obasanjo said.

He warned that these children represent a “ticking time bomb” that could lead to the growth of extremist groups in the next decade if the issue is not urgently addressed.

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Obasanjo’s remarks align with findings from Human Rights Watch, which detail the devastation Boko Haram has inflicted on education in Nigeria’s northeast since 2009.

The group’s attacks have killed 611 teachers, displaced 19,000 others, and destroyed over 910 schools. This has further worsened access to education in already vulnerable regions.

The former president emphasized that solving Nigeria’s education crisis is key to national development, stressing that the root of Africa’s poverty lies in failed leadership, not fate. “We should focus on wealth creation, not just poverty alleviation,” he said.

Reports from the World Bank and UNESCO provide conflicting numbers—11 million and 20 million out-of-school children, respectively—but both highlight the urgent need for targeted interventions to prevent the worsening of this crisis.