Some schoolchildren from low-income families in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are missing classes as rising transport fares make daily travel to school increasingly unaffordable.
Some parents and schoolchildren who spoke to journalists in an interview on Friday in Abuja said the development has made regular school attendance increasingly difficult to sustain.
According to them, transportation expenses have increased significantly in recent times, forcing them to adopt various means to cope.
Solomon Enemona, a parent in Dutse Alhaji, said he previously spent N800 daily on transportation for his two children to get to their school in Kubwa but now spends N2,000 to the same location.
Mr Enemona noted that consequently, he reduced the number of days his children attended school from five to three weekly, to enable him to meet other essential household demands.
“I have no choice but to take this measure because, if I don’t, I may not be able to feed the family, pay our rent and other utility bills,” he added.
Danjuma Musa, another parent, said he was considering transferring his children from a private school in Wuse to a government school closer to his residence in Mpape, following the rising cost of transporting them to school daily.
“Sometimes, they miss school because I am unable to pay for their transportation. I now spend three times what I used to pay for their transportation. I cannot cope anymore because how much is my salary?” he queried.
Andrew Innocent, another parent, said he sometimes had to decide which of his children’s transportation costs he would pay when he had a limited amount to cover all their fares.
He said he sometimes resorted to borrowing money to ensure his children attended school regularly, as prolonged absenteeism could affect their academic performance.
In her contribution, Rachel Musa, vice-principal, Goke Akinwale International Academy, Dawaki, said rising transportation costs had increased absenteeism among pupils and negatively affected their academic performance.
She noted that transporting four children to school could cost as much as N4,000 daily, making it difficult for some parents to sustain regular attendance.
The vice principal added that transportation costs also affected the teachers, some of whom spent about N2,000 daily commuting to school.
According to her, the school sometimes organises make-up tests for absentee pupils and allows them to copy notes from classmates to help them catch up on missed lessons.
She said the school had withdrawn some of its buses because of rising operational costs and parents’ complaints about transportation charges.
Similarly, Oneyi Edwin, principal of Smartmind Success Academy, Jikwoyi, said the school had discontinued its bus services for pupils living far away because of operational costs.
He explained that the service had become unsustainable, and the school eventually lost some of the affected pupils after discontinuing it, as their parents could no longer afford to send them to school.
Similarly, Samson Daruwana, a senior secondary school (SSS) student, explained that he had missed school twice in the past two weeks because of transportation issues.
Master Daruwana noted that on one occasion he missed a test after arriving late following a long walk to school because he could not afford the fare.
Another student, Jonah Jock, said he felt bad about missing classes, while his classmates attended school.
Master Jock said the situation was also affecting his academic performance.
Tony Nwachukwu, a junior secondary school (JSS) student who lives in Giri but attends school in Gwagwalada, said he now attends classes four times a week because of the high cost of transportation.
“It used to be N200 from Giri to Gwagwalada, but now, they collect N500, so I just trek Mondays to Thursdays and start my weekends on Fridays so that I can rest properly,” he stated.
Other parents, students and school administrators called on the government to address rising transportation costs and improve road infrastructure.
Transportation costs have risen sharply in recent months, with transport operators attributing the rise to persistent fuel price increases.
(NAN)
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