Education Kirdi children, northern Cameroon

Only one of these five little Kirdi children of northern Cameroon will go to school if present education statistics continue to be valid (18% pf school-age children actually enrolled). Reason? Extreme shortage of teachers. In southern Cameroon, where educational facilities are better developed, 84 percent of primary school children attend classes. One of the most serious disparities in the Cameroon today is in education. Lack of schools is hampering the improvement of living standards, especially in the northern Cameroon, where school attendance is a mere 18 percent of children of school age, as compared with 80 percent in the more developed southern areas. To improve this situation, the government has implemented a crash teacher training programme designed to bring about a dramatic rise in school attendance. The United Nations Children's Fund, along with other UN agencies, is assisting this effort. UNICEF's controbution is equipment for demonstration schools, transport and training grants. Credit UNICEF photo by Alastair Matheson. ICEF Series 5864-5875.