Effect of Armed Banditry on Educational Outcomes in Affected Rural Communities of Katsina State, Nigeria

Abstract

Measuring educational outcomes in terms of enrolment, attendance, academic performance and teacher effectiveness, the effect of armed banditry was investigated in affected rural communities in three Local Government Areas of Katsina State, namely; Jibia, Batsari, and Danmusa. Obtaining cross-sectional data from 450 respondents encompassing parents, students and school administrators in primary and post-primary schools in the affected communities, the Ordinary Least Squares regression technique was deployed for the analysis. Armed banditry was found to have a negative effect on educational outcomes, and this effect was found to be significant for all the educational indicators. Based on these findings, policy interventions including increased security funding, community engagement, and targeted training are recommended to mitigate these impacts. Specifically, deployment of local vigilantes, embarking on mass orientation on various response measures that can be adopted by citizens before, during and after attacks are recommended. Overall, addressing armed banditry in all its ramifications is imperative in order to improve educational outcomes in the affected rural communities of Katsina State in particular and Nigeria in general.