SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND SPATIAL REALITIES OF EDUCATORS' WELFARE IN THE REALISATION OF SDG 4 IN OSOGBO METROPOLIS, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study examines the critical nexus between urban socio-economic and residential conditions of teachers in Osogbo Metropolis, Nigeria, within the framework of Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) on quality education. The study examines the socio-economic characteristics, assesses housing and living conditions of teachers across different school categories, analyses the differences in socio-economic variables, and evaluates the relationship between teachers’ socio-economic conditions and their work-related outcomes. Employing a mixed-method design, data were collected from 87 teachers across 475 schools, comprising public and private, primary and secondary schools. The findings reveal a deeply feminised teaching workforce (65.5% female), yet disproportionately marginalised in housing, income, and welfare support. Alarmingly, 55.2% of teachers earn below the national minimum wage of ₦30,000, while over 56.3% reside in overcrowded shared apartments. Only 19.5% own homes, and 25.3% are squatting, conditions that erode professional dignity and undermine teaching quality. Private school teachers, who constitute over 58% of respondents, suffer the most: 80.4% earn less than ₦30,000, and none possess more than 19 years of teaching experience. Notably, 66.7% of the total sample has less than a decade of classroom experience, posing a severe threat to pedagogical continuity and mentorship. These spatial and socio-economic inequities are statistically significant (p < 0.05) (including residential occupancy status, teachers' educational background, income of teachers, marital status, and teachers' years of experience in teaching), and they reflect systemic policy disjunctions between urban planning and education sectors. The findings underscore the urgent need for spatially just teacher housing, integrated land-use planning, and income parity across school types. Without coordinated reforms to stabilise and humanise the educational workforce, Nigeria risks derailing SDG 4 targets, particularly in urban peripheries where vulnerability is most acute. Teachers cannot deliver inclusive and equitable education when they are trapped in cycles of spatial and economic exclusion.