A new report indicates that 2.2 million school-age children in South Sudan are out of school.

The report was conducted by the Ministry of General Education in collaboration with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

It blames the situation on the ongoing political and economic instability in the country, with displaced children making up to 60% of 1.9 million IDPs.

The Global Initiative on Out-of-School Children survey also attributes this to use of children by armed groups and child and early marriages across the country.

“This number may increase to 2.4 million if we do not intervene quickly in order to remedy the situation,” said Deng Deng Hoc, the Minister of General Education.

According to the study, approximately 75% of girls in the country are not enrolled in primary school.

It gives four recommendations to address issues of Out-Of-School Children. These are  creating an enabling environment, addressing supply-side barriers, addressing demand-side barriers and improving the quality of education.