The economic recession is not news to Nigerians, as there is hardly any who has not felt the pinch. The latest sector to feel the pinch is the educational sector. Primary and secondary students across several states are expected to resume school today, but the recession is causing the following issues for them
- Unavailability of textbooks: the economic recession has meant that the cost of producing textbooks is now notably higher and many publishing houses are baulking away from their previous production volumes. Mrs. Chinonso Shina, who runs Shina Bookshop was quoted by Vanguard Newspapers as stating that some of the textbooks demanded were not available. “The publishers are complaining about high cost of material and papers, prompting them to reduce the quantity published.” she said.
- Cutting Costs On Schooling Materials: Parents have resorted to cutting costs on all possible materials for resumption of their wards. The recession most of them have complained is responsible for this. A mother, Mrs. Florence Ajayi, said she had to forego [some] school items because “the prices were outrageous’’, while another parent said only ‘essential’ notebooks and textbooks were what he bought.
- Rise in School Fees: In an attempt to cut costs, parents are resorting to looking for the cheapest possible schools for their wards. However, given that the recession is a nationwide problem, most schools have upped their fees, making the search a tedious one for parents.
With such cost-cutting measures being applied to the education of the Nigerian child, one cannot but wonder if Nigerians are not already planning another recession for the coming generations.
Parts of this article originally appeared in Vanguard Newspapers.
