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Changes in education levels across generations in Africa are linked to religion

Census data from across Africa reveal that religion is a strong predictor of whether a child is likely to complete more or less education than their parents. The analysis calls into question current approaches to closing education gaps.
  1. Melina R. Platas

    1. Melina R. Platas is in the Social Science Division, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, PO Box 129188, United Arab Emirates.

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Free basic education is considered a universal human right (see go.nature.com/3refkbs), and often seen as essential to economic growth and human well-being. Nevertheless, there are large inequalities in levels of educational attainment both across and within countries (see go.nature.com/3gujyhi). Although less-well documented, there are also inequalities in intergenerational educational mobility — whether a child completes more or less education than did their parents. Writing in Nature, Alesina et al.1 document patterns of inequality in intergenerational educational mobility, in terms of whether children complete primary school, across religious groups in Africa. This region has the highest rates of children out of school, and is also the only region in which this number is growing in absolute terms (see go.nature.com/3kqzgom).

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Nature 618, 31-32 (2023)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-01008-x

References

  1. Alesina, A., Hohmann, S., Michalopoulos, S. & Papaioannou, E. Nature 618, 134–143 (2023).

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  2. Platas, M. R. The Religious Roots of Inequality in Africa. PhD thesis, Stanford Univ. (2016).

  3. Ramirez, F. O. & Boli, J. Sociol. Educ. 60, 2–17 (1987).

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  4. Nyamnjoh, F. B. J. Asian African Stud. 47, 129–154 (2012).

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Competing Interests

The author declares no competing interests.

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