Ok, I can speak to Nigeria and what the options are for schooling. Gonna be a bit of a long post. I want to be as comprehensive as possible.
Let's start with the basics. You have public funded schools and private schools. Education is broken down into Kindergarten, Primary School and Secondary School (Junior and Senior). Primary school is the equivalent of 1st grade to 6th grade. Junior Secondary School (JS1 - JS3), 7-9 and Senior Secondary School (SS1 - SS3) 10-12.
Both public and private schools are set up in the same structure. Public schools are funded by the government so often times the quality is lacking. Poor facilities, unpaid teachers, etc. Public schools are funded by the Federal government through the Ministry of Education which in need of dire reform.
Private schools are now the way to go for people with means. The quality of Private school education varies by school and often times by price. When I completed high school in Nigeria (Senior Secondary School) my school fees (tuition, lodging, books, etc) was about $8,000 a year. Some schools where closer to $12-$15k a year (British International School, American International School etc).
However, where the education system really shows it's cracks is at the university level. There are numerous public universities in Nigeria but private schools are the way to go. Public universities are poorly funded, constantly on strike (teachers go on strike due to wages not being paid etc), and have been eroded of standards.
Real life example: My cousin started freshman year of college at the same time I did. I went to visit him my sophomore year in college and he hadn't finished his freshman year due to strikes. Degrees that should take 4 years end up taking 6-7 years. So now, the popular option is to study overseas (if you have the means).
The popular options are:
UK: London specifically. This is usually where you'll see more of the Nigerian elite go study. UK has always been the top destination for overseas studies. Largely owing to the colonial legacy. Law, Medicine, Engineering, Economics etc. The Nigerians I tend to see go to the UK are usually the ones that are well connected in Nigeria so they have the prospect of coming back and finding work.
Canada: Toronto especially. Canada really burst on the scene in recent years for Nigerians to study. The big pull for Canada is the prospect of working visas and permanent residency after schooling. What you have are Nigerians that come to study at 18 and by 26-28 they are full Canadian citizens with the same access to the Western world that Brits, Americans, Germans and French have. It's becoming a more and more attractive option because of the prospect of getting a work visa post graduation and not having to return to Nigeria.
US: The Nigerians that study in the US tend to have stronger ties to the US (e.g. lived here, born here, have family here) The US' system of education is different from Nigeria's which is modeled after the British. Nigerians tend to be more spread out when they come to study in the US. You'll see them in the big hubs though, NYC, ATL, DC, Houston, Chicago, Dallas etc. Funny thing is the US used to be the 2nd most popular option after the UK but Canada has kind of taken that spot. The US is probably the No. 1 in terms of post-grad education though, especially MBAs.
I would say those are the big three. Outside of that, you have Scotland (particularly for petrochemical engineering), South Africa, Ghana, Turkey, Australia, Wales, India, Malaysia and other European nations (Germany, Switzerland, France) etc.
Private universities in Nigeria are better than public universities but are still sorely lacking in terms of funding, scholarship and rigor.
In summary:
Public schooling is underfunded, disjointed and very basic. Private institutions have quality and repute for the K-12 years. Tertiary education is sub-par both at the public and private level when compared to the international standard. Even your basic community college has better facilities than 90% of the universities in Nigeria. Your flagship state school would be like a Harvard in Nigeria.
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