NAIROBI, Kenya, June 15, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bridge International Academies is marking the Day of the African Child by celebrating the potential of each and every child in Africa.

The school network, which includes Bridge Kenya, Bridge Nigeria and Bridge Uganda, supports children and parents in underprivileged communities through quality education.

The day, commemorating a series of demonstrations and protests in 1976 led by thousands of South African school children, is synonymous with taking action in education, and 2023 marks a historic opportunity that if missed will be a great loss for Africa and the world.

2023 is the year when Sub-Saharan Africa leads the world as the region with the most young people (0-14) – the size and acceleration of this age cohort are historically unprecedented. Additionally, 60% of the region's population is under 25 years of age.

Bridge Kenya pupil reads to class

Reuben Wambugu, Bridge Group Managing Director, said, “This demographic tipping point marks a historic moment of opportunity. With effective education, a skilled and energised future labour force could emerge from Africa and drive transformation both on the continent and around the world. Crippling rates of learning poverty threaten to derail this prospect however. Only 10% of children in sub-Saharan Africa are able to read a simple sentence by the age of 10.”

A recent study in Kenya of Bridge International Academies pedagogies, led by Nobel Prize winning economist Professor Michael Kremer, confirmed its “highly standardised education has the potential to produce dramatic learning gains at scale.”

Speaking on the success of Bridge’s methods, Bridge Nigeria Managing Director, Foyinsola Akinjayeju, said, “Bridge Nigeria schools produce some of the top students in the Nigeria National Common Entrance Exam. 80% perform above the average sample for literacy compared to just 18% in public schools. For eight years now Bridge Kenya pupils too have exceeded the national average in their primary school exit exam. With results like these it is clear that all African children can and must benefit from access to a quality education which drives learning. Their potential is unlimited. All African parents want their children to learn. Bridge International Academies is supporting thousands of them to do so.”

To learn more about the Bridge methodology - visit their website here.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4e8d812f-05b8-4922-ad83-a183bef5b20f