Nkurenkuru: Kavango West Regional Education Director, Pontianus Musore, highlighted that boys in Kavango West are outperforming girls in senior secondary exams but are also dropping out of school in higher numbers. He warned parents to keep children in classrooms and out of the streets.According to Namibia Press Agency, Musore addressed an engagement session for the boy child at the Kavango West Regional Council in Nkurenkuru, revealing recent statistics that show a worrying trend of boys leaving school despite overall strong academic performance in the region. The region remains one of the best-performing nationally at Namibia Senior Secondary Certificate and Advanced Subsidiary level, with boys now edging girls by one percentage point in examination results.However, in 2025 a total of 1,371 learners dropped out of school, of whom 746 were boys and 625 girls. During the first term of 2026, 650 learners left school, with boys again accounting for the larger share at 342 and girls at 308. Musore emphasized that this contradiction-boys performing slightly better academically but leaving school more-demands urgent attention from parents, communities, and authorities.According to Musore, the main causes of dropout among boys include poverty, economic hardship, poor parental involvement, child-headed households, long walking distances to school, lack of hostel facilities, indiscipline, substance abuse, and physical or emotional abuse at home.'The ministry plans to strengthen school-based counselling and psychological support, expand mentorship and boy child empowerment programmes, improve parental engagement meetings, and ensure timely school feeding to keep learners in class,' Musore stated. He urged schools to provide extra academic support to struggling boys and to implement early warning systems to track learners at risk of dropping out.Musore reminded parents that, by law, children under 16 must be in school. 'If your child is 16 and you are sitting with a child at home, you must know that you are violat ing the law. And when you are violating the law, we know what is next, isn't it? The law enforcement must come in to deal with such errors,' he warned.He called for 'collaborative and sustained commitment' from parents, traditional leaders, and communities to keep the boy child in school.