India sees 28 million children become first-generation learners

An Oxford University study conducted by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) reveals that 28 million children in India are the first in their families to complete six years of schooling. This milestone represents a significant shift toward social and economic change for these households.

Globally, approximately 71 million children aged 10 to 17 across 108 countries have reached this first-generation learner status, with nearly half residing in South Asia. In the region, India leads this trend, followed by Bangladesh with over 3 million, Nepal with 837,000, Afghanistan with 508,000, and Pakistan with approximately 2 million.

Despite these educational gains, the report highlights severe overlapping challenges. Of the 136 million school-age children worldwide who remain out of school, over 80% live in multidimensional poverty. Furthermore, the study found that nearly half of the 518 million children under five analyzed experience malnutrition, multidimensional poverty, or both, suggesting that educational progress must be supported by improvements in nutrition and basic living conditions to be sustainable.