A fire with serious consequences occurred in the city of Maradi in the south of Niger: three classrooms in a school caught fire and at least 24 children were killed.
Another 80 girls and boys were severely burned.
The school, made of wood and straw, burned down.
The fire broke out on Monday afternoon, Governor Chaibou Aboubacar told the dpa news agency.
The cause of the fire is still unclear.
Photos of the scene of the accident were shared on Twitter.
According to the United Nations, Niger, with around 25 million inhabitants, is one of the poorest countries in the world and has one of the lowest literacy rates in Africa.
Due to a small education budget, there are not enough schools in the country;
many school buildings are made makeshift wood, straw or corrugated iron.
In some rural areas, classes take place in the shade of trees.
A similar incident occurred in a school in a suburb of the capital Niamey in April.
At that time 20 children died.
ala / dpa