List of Top 10 States with Highest Number of Primary School Drop-Outs in Nigeria

• Kano state in Nigeria's northwest zone leads with the highest number of primary school drop-outs, totalling 25,749, according to a 2022 report by UBEC
• Following closely on the top 10 list of states with the highest primary school drop-outs is Kaduna state with 23,249
• The northwest geopolitical zone as a whole recorded the highest primary school dropouts, totalling 88,200

Legit.ng journalist Nurudeen Lawal has years of experience covering basic and tertiary education in Nigeria

Kano state, one of the prominent states in Nigeria's northwest zone, has the highest number of primary school drop-outs, according to data sighted by Legit.ng.

The data published by StatiSense, a data analysis outfit, cited a 2022 report by the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) as its source.

According to the data, Kano state topped the list with 25,749 drop-outs, while Kaduna state followed with 23,249.

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2022 report: 10 states with highest primary school drop-outs

Below is the top 10 list of the states with the highest number of primary school drop-outs:

1. Kano: 25,749
2. Kaduna: 23,249
3. Katsina: 17,408
4. Benue: 15,229
5. Oyo: 12,249
6. Bauchi: 9,750
7. Lagos: 9,267
8. Taraba: 9,223
9. Adamawa: 8,864
10. Ebonyi: 7,224

Breakdown of primary school drop-outs according to zone

Meanwhile, StatiSense's further breakdown of the UBEC 2022 report shows that the northwest geopolitical zone recorded the highest primary school dropouts.

The breakdown below:

1. Northwest: 88,200
2. North-central: 42,358
3. Northeast: 41,491
4. Southwest: 31,035
5. South-south: 26,559
6. Southeast: 25,239

Primary school drop-outs: Northern Nigeria vs South

Also, a comparative analysis revealed significant disparities in primary school drop-out rates between Northern and Southern Nigeria, with Northern regions accounting for 67.5% of drop-outs compared to 32.5% in the South.

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However, the gap is close in terms of gender comparison.

• Northern Nigeria: 172,049 [67.5%]
• Southern Nigeria: 82,833 [32.5%]
• Male: 126,450 [49.6%]
• Female: 128,432 [50.4%]

Out-of-school children: UNICEF education specialist speaks

Meanwhile, Abdulrahman Ado, an education specialist at the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Bauchi Field Office, has said Nigeria contributes about 15 percent to the number of out-of-school children globally.

Ado stated that Bauchi state has the highest number of out-of-school children in the northeast region.

He explained that according to a Nigeria Education Data Survey (NEDS) report of 2018, Nigeria is unlikely to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 4), adding that the country still maintains the enrollment figures of 1995 (60 percent).

Source: Legit.ng