Global Journal of Education, Finance and Management (GJEFM) · Research article · Open access
School Plant Maintenance in Public Secondary Schools: A Comparative Study of Rural and Urban Schools in the North West Region of Cameroon
Kimal Joseph Gam
28 May 2026 · Vol. 2, Issue 5, pp. 69-75
DOI: 10.65150/EP-gjefm/V2E5/2026-07
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What is this article about?
Facility maintenance is widely recognised as central to educational quality, yet public secondary schools across Sub-Saharan Africa continue to operate with buildings and equipment in various states of disrepair. Chronic underfunding and weak administrative structures have made this problem persistent and, in many cases, invisible to policymakers.
Article at a glance
- Published
- 28 May 2026
- Volume / issue / pages
- Vol. 2, Issue 5, pp. 69-75
- ISSN
- 3117-6771 (online) · 3117-6763 (print)
- Licence
- CC BY 4.0 — free to read and reuse with attribution
- Peer review
- Double-blind, at least two independent reviewers
- Publisher
- EP Journals Group
Abstract
Facility maintenance is widely recognised as central to educational quality, yet public secondary schools across Sub-Saharan Africa continue to operate with buildings and equipment in various states of disrepair. Chronic underfunding and weak administrative structures have made this problem persistent and, in many cases, invisible to policymakers. This quantitative study compared the level of school plant maintenance in rural and urban public secondary schools in the North West Region of Cameroon. A descriptive survey design was adopted, and 262 teachers were selected through systematic random sampling across all seven administrative divisions of the region. Data were gathered exclusively through a validated 4-point Likert-scale questionnaire comprising five items focused on school plant maintenance. Mean scores, Pearson Product Moment Correlation, and an independent-samples two-tailed t-test (α = 0.05) were used for analysis. Maintenance levels were found to be low in both urban schools (mean = 1.36; r = 0.132) and rural schools (mean = 1.41; r = 0.132). The null hypothesis was retained (t = 1.909 < t-critical = 1.960, df = 190, p > 0.05), indicating no statistically significant difference between the two settings. Both school types are equally and uniformly deficient in maintenance practice. The study recommends joint government, PTA, and SMB financing, formalised maintenance planning, and structured principal capacity-building across both rural and urban settings.
Keywords: school plant maintenance, school effectiveness, rural-urban comparison, public secondary schools, Behavioural Science Theory
Cite this article
Kimal Joseph Gam (2026). School Plant Maintenance in Public Secondary Schools: A Comparative Study of Rural and Urban Schools in the North West Region of Cameroon. Global Journal of Education, Finance and Management, 2(5), 69-75. https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-gjefm/V2E5/2026-07
@article{Kimal2026,
title = {School Plant Maintenance in Public Secondary Schools: A Comparative Study of Rural and Urban Schools in the North West Region of Cameroon},
author = {Kimal Joseph Gam},
journal = {Global Journal of Education, Finance and Management},
year = {2026},
volume = {2},
number = {5},
pages = {69-75},
doi = {10.65150/EP-gjefm/V2E5/2026-07},
url = {https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-gjefm/V2E5/2026-07}
}Questions about this article
Who wrote this article?
Kimal Joseph Gam.
Where and when was it published?
In Global Journal of Education, Finance and Management, Volume 2, Issue 5, pages 69-75, published by EP Journals Group on 28 May 2026.
Is this article free to read?
Yes. It is open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) licence, so anyone can read, share and reuse it with attribution.
What is the DOI of this article?
10.65150/EP-gjefm/V2E5/2026-07 (https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-gjefm/V2E5/2026-07).
How do I cite this article?
APA: Kimal Joseph Gam (2026). School Plant Maintenance in Public Secondary Schools: A Comparative Study of Rural and Urban Schools in the North West Region of Cameroon. Global Journal of Education, Finance and Management, 2(5), 69-75. https://doi.org/10.65150/EP-gjefm/V2E5/2026-07
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