Understanding the Inaccessibility of Education: Causes and Impacts

Oprah Winfrey referred to education as “the passport to freedom.” Yet when over 600 million children are deprived of the ability to read and write, they are denied the opportunity to shape a better future for themselves.

Poverty affects about 44% of the global population according to a World Bank Report, either due to natural disasters, economic and political instability, or war-stricken areas. The latter two being affected by politics, but it becomes an even more serious problem when we let the dueling of men affect a child’s right to a pencil and a book.

Children living in poverty-stricken areas don’t even have time to think about going to school, all their energy is spent on surviving. When they are supposed to be running around in playgrounds, they are collecting scraps to sell and digging the dustbins to find food. Affording quality education is a far-fetched dream—they can barely afford clean water. Life is halted in war-stricken areas, children who once had ambitions are either forced to be displaced, or become a victim of the war. E.g. in Gaza, at least 17,400 children have been killed. At least, seventeen thousand and four hundred children. These children had every right to learn and read and make the world a better place. Instead, they are buried under the rubble.

It is our job to make sure no more lives are hurt, no more face injustice, dear reader I want you to realize that these were 17,400 children probably going to school, but they are deprived of that ability now. Many remain displaced with no access to food and water let alone education. If this continues we will lose so many potential leaders, scientists, innovators, so many amazing people who could have changed the world for the better.

Even where education is available, lack of resources offers a serious constraint. In today’s growing age of Artificial Intelligence and new technologies emerging every day, it is quite difficult to get by just on paper and pen. Children need to be equipped with the proper tools and knowledge to be able to integrate into the world we live in. But most of the world’s school-aged children don’t even have internet connection, and schools lack trained teachers, adequate education materials and the proper infrastructure.

On top of that, child labor is a prevalent issue. Many children are pulled out of school so they can help the family earn more money so they can put food on the table. These children often face harassment and violence, which has severe psychological affects on the children and hinders their ability to grow due to a lack of mental health resources. Little girls are often demotivated to get an education as they have to be married off, so they might as well learn housework. Unfortunately, child brides are still common throughout the world. Instead of expanding their horizon of knowledge, these women are forced to expand their families, having more kids than families can usually afford, which first of all leads to infant deaths (babies often born premature), a risk to the mother’s health, and in many cases, death. Secondly, it cycles back to the same issue of children living in poverty-stricken areas with inadequate resources, as mentioned above.

On the topic of women, let’s not forget that women in Afghanistan are banned from education. The region is struggling economically, hindering resources in the first place. We also need to recognize that when women do not get education, they do not get qualified, they cannot help the community. No female healthcare workers are trained in the country. According to WHO, in 2020 alone 24 women died every day in Afghanistan from pregnancy or a childbirth-related issue. That is 8,784 women, dead. Just because no qualified female health workers exist as education for women does not exist.

When women are not properly academically qualified, they can have difficulty finding jobs, and are often reliant on a man’s income, and while there is nothing wrong with it, nearly 10 million women and men become victims of domestic violence, which makes it harder to leave such an unsafe environment. This is due to the gender disparity in youth literacy.

Another problem is unemployment, as ~71 million 15 to 24-year-olds are unemployed.

Countries need well-educated workers to increase economy and workforce, which benefits everyone in the country. This unemployment forces people to resort to dangerous jobs, where there is high criminal risk involved. Women often have to turn to methods of exploitation to earn a livelihood. This is not secure work and often involves misuse and ill-treatment. To top it all off, a lack of resources keeps these people stuck in the poverty loop, making it difficult to escape these circumstances.

I have been given the privilege to converse my ideas easily. If you are reading this, you probably have the privilege too. It is our job to speak up for and act for the ones who do not enjoy the same comfort as us: “education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” —BB King

Written by Ifrah Sajid