What study did UNICEF fund in Niger State related to education?

UNICEF funded a study titled 'The Impact of Insecurity on Access to Education in Katsina, Zamfara and Niger States,' which examined how insecurity affected school attendance and learning continuity in affected areas.

UNICEF Denies Predicting Niger State Boys Will Leave School for Mining

The agency states it did not commission a report claiming that by 2027, Grade 7 enrollment in Shiroro and Munya LGAs would be empty of boys due to artisanal mining.

Flat illustration of School building, Pickaxe, Shovel, Books, Rock, Dust

2026-10-06 · Updated 2026-10-06

Governor Umaru Bago of Niger State claimed that a UNICEF report predicted a complete absence of male students in Grade 7/JSS1 in Shiroro and Munya local government areas by 2027. He attributed this projected decline to children abandoning classrooms for artisanal mining activities.

However, UNICEF Nigeria has refuted this claim, stating that it has not conducted or commissioned any study specifically on the impact of artisanal mining on children's school attendance in these areas. The agency's Communication Specialist, Samuel Kaalu, confirmed this in an email to PREMIUM TIMES.

While UNICEF did fund a broader study titled "The Impact of Insecurity on Access to Education in Katsina, Zamfara and Niger States," published in July 2025, this report does not contain the specific prediction attributed to the governor. This study, supported by UNICEF and prepared for the Ministries of Education in the respective states, examined the effects of insecurity, including banditry and attacks, on education.

The funded study did cover Shiroro, Munya, and Rafi LGAs in Niger State and acknowledged that mining activities, particularly gold discovery, have contributed to community tensions. It noted that some qualitative evidence suggested mining-related developments led families to withdraw children from school. However, the report did not project that all boys would leave Grade 7 for mining by 2027, nor did it state that UNICEF specifically commissioned this aspect.

The report did, however, mention that boys, while affected by violence, are more susceptible to recruitment by armed groups or forced into child labor when displaced. The governor's assertion, as reported by Channels Television, appears to be an misinterpretation or misrepresentation of the findings of the study UNICEF funded.

FAQ

Did UNICEF conduct a study on artisanal mining's impact on Niger State school attendance?: UNICEF Nigeria stated it has not conducted or commissioned a study specifically on the impact of artisanal mining on children's school attendance in Shiroro or other local government areas in Niger State.
What study did UNICEF fund in Niger State related to education?: UNICEF funded a study titled 'The Impact of Insecurity on Access to Education in Katsina, Zamfara and Niger States,' which examined how insecurity affected school attendance and learning continuity in affected areas.