Our research shows that education in North Kordofan was not of a high enough quality to fully benefit the children attending school. In addition, economic and social barriers hindered enrolment and completion rates of students and this subsequently resulted in high illiteracy rates.
no students have dropped out during the last 3 years
In response to these issues, the School Improvement Plan has been running since 2010 in the area. Plan International Sudan has worked alongside community members and local government to create a committee which worked to improve schools to make them a safe, attractive and friendly environment to help children learn.
By involving community members and giving them a sense of ownership of the project, funds were quickly raised to renovate 6 classrooms, school furniture and fences. Also, to address the shortage of teachers, money was raised to pay extra staff.
Raising community awareness about education
Awareness raising sessions have also been taking place with community members. Discussions around the importance of girls’ education and the dangers surrounding harmful practices such as early marriage are designed to keep girls in school. Steps have also been taken to subsidise the school fees of children from the poorest families. As a result, the number of girls dropping out of school has fallen alongside the rate of early marriages.
The programme has also seen 2 kindergartens built which are attended by 90 children who have access to clean water and paid teachers on a daily basis.
Nahid Merghani Plan International Sudan’s North Kordofan Program Unit Manger said, “Thanks to the efforts which were exerted by the committee in the community the school became more attractive for the children and their families and no students have dropped out during the last 3 years.”