A non-profit advocacy organisation, Tilova for Africa (TFA), has condemned the brutal flogging of a three-year-old pupil by her teacher at a private school in Enugu, describing it as a disturbing reflection of poor oversight in Nigeria’s private education sector.

The United States-based organisation said the incident, which left visible marks on the child’s legs, underscored the urgent need for the government to enforce stricter regulatory measures across private, community, and faith-based schools in the country.

In a statement by its co-founder, Mr Martin Nwabueze, TFA urged authorities to standardise the operations of non-state schools to ensure compliance with national benchmarks on infrastructure, teacher quality, curriculum, and accountability.

“The proliferation of private schools in Nigeria’s education space is a confirmation that all is not well in the sector,” the group said. “All manner of people are now establishing schools in Nigeria. This should be a major source of worry for all.”

TFA expressed concern that many private institutions, particularly at the nursery and primary levels, operate without professional standards or adequate facilities. It lamented that some classroom structures are “metaphorically like poultry sheds,” while many teachers employed are barely literate.

The group alleged that school ownership has become a means for unqualified individuals to make easy profit or launder money, resulting in declining educational standards. “People open schools in their backyard, and parents dump their children there in the name of sending them to school,” it stated. “Some of the so-called classrooms look as if they are poultry or chicken farms.”

TFA further noted that many pupils complete primary education without mastering basic arithmetic because their teachers lack proper training. It also cited the absence of a clear operational framework for school management, with some operators merely engaging children in storytelling and songs rather than structured learning.

The organisation described the condition of toilet facilities in some schools as deplorable, saying they often expose children to diarrhoea and other health risks. It added that inadequate teacher vetting has led to the employment of unqualified and abusive personnel, such as the Enugu teacher who allegedly assaulted the three-year-old pupil.

“Education is good, but it shouldn’t be at all costs. A child’s life should not be endangered in the quest to offer them education. The government should tighten the loose ends of the regulatory mechanism,” TFA said.