What is a slum?
A slum is defined by UN-Habitat as a household where people live together in an urban area without any of the following; durable housing of a permanent nature, sufficient living space for not more than three people to share the same room, easy accessibility to safe water in sufficient quantities at an affordable price, adequate sanitation facilities in the form of a public or private toilet shared by a reasonable amount of people, and security from eviction. A slum is usually not recognised and addressed by local authorities as an integral or equally important
part of the city.

Numbers of people living in slums
According to estimates by UN agencies, approximately 200 million people lived in slums in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in 2010. The National Library of Medicine estimates that about 62% of Sub-Saharan Africa’s urban population resides in slums. The uncontrolled population of African urban areas has led to slums across SSA. The phenomenon has been described as the urbanisation of poverty. Urban poverty and deprivation are characterised by high levels of residential crowding, exposure of residents to environmental hazards, and poor social conditions. There is also no financial infrastructure from the government to help citizens get reasonable housing.

For children, the matter is much worse. In slums, education takes a backseat to more pertinent struggles like fetching water, a roof above one’s head, and meals for survival. Children in slums cannot access the basic services required for child development. Most kids in slums don't go to school. Even though they still live with their family, their parents don't have the financial means to support them financially. According to UNICEF, the youth residing in slums are some of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable youth globally.

Education in slums/adopting Child-focused policies
With an estimated one billion young people living in cities today, the future of urban kids and teens is central to global development. Poor children make up a significant proportion of the urban poor population in Sub-Saharan Africa. They are usually those who are most vulnerable to the environmental conditions and social conditions of informal settlements. Adopting a child-focused educational approach to interventions in slums in sub-Saharan Africa provides an opportunity to improve the well-being of large groups of young people. Focusing on the education of children living in slums will help millions improve their lives. It gives these
children the chance to overcome urban inequalities and secure safe and successful futures.

There is hope
Hope for solving the big social problems associated with urban poverty seems to be centering increasingly on educating the depriv-ed children of the slums. Bringing sustainable change in the lives of underprivileged children and youth starts with improving access to education. Education in many African nations has been lagging behind education standards in other parts of the world for quite some time. Underinvestment, corruption, and poor policies are some of the many reasons. Things could change if we adopted more slum child-focused educational policies. It is the only way to increase social mobility and close the rapidly widening income gap on the continent.