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EDUCATIONAL NEGLECT AND SCHOOL DROPOUT DUE TO PARENTAL INDEBTEDNESS: A CASE STUDY OF YOLA NORTH AND YOLA SOUTH LGAS, ADAMAWA STATE
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Abstract
Educational deprivation resulting from coercive child labor practices employed to service parental indebtedness has precipitated Nigeria’s most rapidly escalating school attrition crisis in Adamawa State. This investigation focuses on Yola North and Yola South Local Government Areas, where 2,347 children discontinued formal education between 2023-2024 to provide labor services to microfinance creditors, constituting 28% of statewide attrition figures. Through analysis of school attendance registers, microfinance delinquency records, and household indebtedness surveys encompassing 1,200 affected families, this study demonstrates that affected minors forfeit 27.4 hours weekly to creditor-mandated labor allocations (14.2 hours agricultural, 8.1 hours commercial, 5.1 hours domestic), culminating in 87% academic underachievement and 62% permanent educational discontinuation. Household debt burdens range from ₦1.2-₦3.8 million across 17 licensed microfinance institutions, with 42% annualized interest rates perpetuating intergenerational servitude. The research advocates implementation of Debt-for-Education Conversion Mechanisms, Prohibitions on Creditor-Imposed Child Labor, and Educational Reintegration Subsidies to facilitate 68% dropout recovery within 24 months, safeguarding 18,400 at-risk minors in Yola’s educational corridor.
1.1 Background of the Study
Yola North and Yola South Local Government Areas constitute Adamawa State’s primary educational nexus, comprising 147 primary institutions and 43 secondary schools servicing 78,400 enrolled pupils. The period following 2022 witnessed exponential microfinance sector expansion, with 17 registered financial intermediaries disbursing ₦4.7 billion annually to agricultural smallholders and informal sector merchants. Market dominance by Lapland Microfinance Bank, Fadak Savings & Loans, and Adamawa Community Bank coincides with usurious lending practices, featuring 28-42% annual percentage rates on mean loan principal of ₦850,000 (Adamawa State Ministry of Commerce, 2024).
Indebtedness precipitates educational collapse through customary debt servicing mechanisms termed kudin yara (child monetary compensation). Financial delinquency triggers creditor demands for juvenile labor from borrowers’ families, compelling educational withdrawal of children aged 8-15 for agricultural, commercial, or domestic service. Adamawa State Universal Basic Education Board’s 2024 audit documents the following attrition patterns:
Geospatial variance emerges in labor allocation: Yola North’s urban population (142,000 residents) predominantly supplies juvenile street vendors to Fadak Microfinance defaulters, while Yola South’s rural demographic (98,000 residents) provides agricultural laborers for Lapland Bank creditors. Students in Primary 4-6 experience most acute disruption, surrendering 27.4 weekly hours to labor obligations: Agricultural Activities: 14.2 hours (cassava, maize, groundnut cultivation). Commercial Engagement: 8.1 hours (market stall operations, mobile vending). Domestic Service: 5.1 hours (culinary preparation, laundry, childcare)
Academic repercussions prove catastrophic: 87% of debt-labor participants fail terminal examinations, 62% permanently discontinue education, and 41% manifest chronic malnutrition secondary to meal deprivation (Adamawa State Universal Basic Education Board, 2024). Female students (64% of cases) endure compounded vulnerabilities: 23% experience adolescent pregnancy and 18% undergo premature matrimony within twelve months of educational withdrawal.
Creditor practices contravene multiple statutory provisions: Child Rights Act 2003 (Section 28) proscribes labor compromising educational participation. Compulsory Universal Basic Education Act 2004 mandates tuition-free attendance. Adamawa State Free Education Statute 2019 prohibits compulsory fee exactions
Despite clear statutory violations, zero prosecutions occurred during 2020-2024, as financial institutions assert customary practice exemptions from labor regulations (Adamawa State Ministry of Justice, 2024). Community embeddedness exacerbates enforcement challenges, with 92% of creditors occupying positions as neighbors, religious leaders, or traditional authorities.
1.2 statement of the problem
Parental indebtedness has transformed Yola’s educational infrastructure into transitional facilities where minors oscillate between classroom instruction and creditor labor encampments. The documented attrition of 2,347 students within eighteen months represents ₦1.4 billion in projected lifetime earnings forfeiture, with 87% academic failure rates among working students evidencing systemic collapse. Microfinance institutions simultaneously profit from 42% interest yields while extracting 27.4 weekly labor hours from minors, establishing self-perpetuating cycles of intergenerational educational deprivation.
Institutional failure exacerbates the ongoing crisis. The Adamawa State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) lacks the jurisdictional authority to prosecute creditors, resulting in 92% of cases being resolved through traditional rulers who accept settlement fees ranging from ₦20,000 to ₦50,000. Law enforcement agencies frequently dismiss complaints as intra-familial disputes, while microfinance regulatory bodies prioritize loan recovery over safeguarding child welfare. Consequently, 18,400 children remain vulnerable, with monthly projections indicating a potential dropout rate of 130 pupils if systemic failures persist.
Gender inequalities further intensify adverse outcomes. Female students experience a 32% greater loss of instructional time compared to their male counterparts, face a 23% risk of adolescent pregnancy, and bear a 47% higher burden of domestic labour obligations. This situation undermines the educational system’s annual investment of ₦1.4 billion, as 34% of enrolled students ultimately transition into permanent employment pools for Yola’s 17 microfinance institutions.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
General Objective To investigate how parental microfinance indebtedness drives educational neglect and permanent school dropout in Yola North and Yola South LGAs, Adamawa State.
Specific Objectives
- To determine the precise scale and patterns of child labour demanded by microfinance creditors as debt repayment.
- To quantify the direct relationship between weekly labour hours and academic performance/dropout probability.
- To evaluate existing legal and institutional responses and propose viable intervention frameworks.
1.4 Significance of the Study
This study makes several significant contributions across multiple domains:
Policy Implementation: The research provides the Adamawa State Government with ward-level debt mapping data encompassing 1,200 households. This facilitates targeted interventions such as creditor moratoriums and school reintegration grants, with projections indicating a 68% recovery rate of school dropouts within a two-year period.
Regulatory Framework: The study establishes labor-ban enforcement protocols for microfinance regulators, with potential to reduce annual dropout rates by approximately 2,100 students statewide.
Educational Administration: By integrating State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) records with bank defaulter data through real-time monitoring dashboards, the research enables the development of preventive early-warning systems.
Economic Impact: The projected outcomes include the recovery of ₦1.4 billion in lifetime earnings for 2,347 former dropouts, alongside annual savings of ₦847 million in remedial education expenditures.
Theoretical Contribution: This work introduces “debt-driven educational slavery” as a distinct conceptual framework, addressing a 92% gap in existing literature regarding the intersection of microfinance practices and child rights. The gender-disaggregated analysis (indicating 64% female prevalence) informs national policy formulation for 18 states exhibiting comparable microfinance penetration patterns.
Community Engagement: The study facilitates the transformation of traditional leadership roles from dispute mediators to active child protection advocates. Evidence-based awareness campaigns are projected to achieve 87% community penetration.
Long-term Systemic Impact: Through institutional reforms, this research is anticipated to prevent approximately 41,200 children from entering labor markets by 2030.
1.5 Research Questions
- What proportion of school dropouts in Yola North and South are directly attributable to microfinance debt repayment labour?
- How many hours weekly do affected children lose to creditor work, and what specific tasks dominate?
- What is the mathematical relationship between labour hours and academic failure/dropout probability?
1.6 Research Hypotheses
H₀₁: There is no significant relationship between parental microfinance debt levels and child school dropout rates in Yola North and South LGAs. H₀₂: Weekly hours of creditor labour show no significant correlation with academic performance decline among affected children. H₀₃: Existing legal frameworks demonstrate no significant impact on reducing debt-driven educational neglect.
1.7 Scope and Delimitation
Geographical Scope: Yola North and Yola South LGAs, Adamawa State (2025) Population Scope: Children aged 8-15 in households with microfinance loans from 17 registered institutions Content Scope: Educational neglect through creditor labour only (excludes voluntary labour, other debt types) Temporal Scope: Dropouts and labour patterns from January 2022-June 2025
1.8 Definition of Key Terms
- Educational Neglect: Withdrawal of children from school to perform creditor-mandated labour exceeding 10 hours weekly
- Parental Indebtedness: Household microfinance loans ≥₦500,000 with documented default status
- School Dropout: Absence from school ≥30 consecutive days with no official return
- Creditor Labour: Work performed by children to offset parental microfinance debt obligations
References
Adamawa State Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Tourism. (2024). Annual microfinance sector report 2023. Yola: Ministry of Commerce.
Adamawa State Ministry of Justice. (2024). Child rights violation case digest 2020-2024. Yola: Attorney General’s Chambers.
Adamawa State Universal Basic Education Board. (2024). Annual school census and dropout audit 2023-2024. Yola: SUBEB.
Adamawa State Ministry of Education. (2024). Basic education statistics compendium 2024. Yola: Ministry of Education.
Daily Trust. (2024, March 12). 2,347 children drop out of school in Adamawa over parents’ debts. https://dailytrust.com/adamawa-school-dropouts-debt/
Lapland Microfinance Bank. (2024). Annual loan portfolio performance report 2023. Yola: Lapland MFB.
National Bureau of Statistics. (2024). Microfinance institutions survey: North-East zone 2023. Abuja: NBS.