2025 ADEA: Africa must invest more in education and rely less on donors – Haruna Iddrisu

Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has urged African governments to take ownership of the continent’s educational development by investing more domestic resources and reducing dependence on donor funding.

Speaking at the ADEA Triennale 2025 in Accra on Wednesday, October 29, the Minister questioned Africa’s readiness for the future, citing persistent challenges such as overcrowded classrooms, inadequate infrastructure, and teacher shortages.

“Is Africa ready? And is Africa ready for the future? When Africa is still grappling with congested classrooms, a shortage of teachers, lack of infrastructure to support and speed up digital, inclusive, equitable, and quality education, I’m certain that with your presence in this room, we will find answers to many of these questions,” Mr. Iddrisu said.

He lamented that, unlike other regions of the world where the number of out-of-school children continues to decline, Africa’s figures are still rising.

“I’m told that it’s only in Africa that we have the number of out-of-school children growing and increasing. In every other part of the world, in every other continent, the number keeps decreasing. But for Africa, the number is growing,” he stated.

Mr. Iddrisu therefore called for stronger political will and commitment from African leaders to prioritise education financing as a cornerstone for sustainable development.

The ADEA Triennale 2025 brought together education leaders, policymakers, and stakeholders from across the continent to explore transformative strategies for Africa’s education systems under the theme: “Strengthening the Resilience of Africa’s Educational Systems.”

The ADEA Triennale on Education is one of Africa’s premier high-level forums for political dialogue, peer learning, and the exchange of knowledge and impactful experiences in education. It brings together African policymakers, educators, development partners, and researchers to reflect on critical themes shaping the transformation of education systems for sustainable social and economic development across the continent.

The Triennale aims to, among others: (1) Celebrate progress and successes: Showcase efforts and achievements in building resilient, equitable, inclusive, and relevant education systems across Africa. (2) Take stock of challenges: Reflect on persistent bottlenecks, emerging issues, and opportunities related to foundational learning, skills development, financing, and innovation. (3) Facilitate dialogue: Enable learning and exchanges between countries and partners, with an emphasis on innovative approaches, leadership, and accountability mechanisms. (4) Chart a collective path forward: Agree on priority actions to accelerate the transformation of Africa’s education and training systems.