Sub-Saharan Africa faces $70 billion annual education financing gap – UNESCO 

Sub-Saharan Africa is grappling with a growing education crisis fueled by chronic underfunding and inequitable spending, both domestically and internationally.

According to UNESCO’s report, “Closing the global SDG4 financing gap: Accelerating sustainable financing solutions for education”, The region accounts for the largest share of a $97 billion annual gap needed to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4) in 79 low- and lower-middle-income countries between 2023 and 2030.

“A 2023 costing exercise revealed that achieving SDG4 in 79 low- and lower-middle-income countries would require US$461 billion annually from 2023 to 2030. However, these countries face a substantial financing gap of US$97 billion per year, with Sub-Saharan Africa accounting for the largest share—US$70 billion annually,” the report stated.

UNESCO warns about the costs of underinvestment as governments around the world, particularly those in low- and middle-income countries get to lose $1.1…