Nick Kristof reports from the Congo Republic in the NYTimes on the choices that parents make.
“if the poorest families spent as much money educating their children as they do on wine, cigarettes and prostitutes, their children’s prospects would be transformed. Much suffering is caused not only by low incomes, but also by shortsighted private spending decisions by heads of households.”
Wow.
The incendiary nature of the conclusion above is supported by an enlightening discussion with a local Congolese man whose kids have repeated first grade five time for lack of a few dollars of school fees. Kristof’s conclusion is the only one possible, harsh or not.
The Local Paper 