Angola’s massive push to A CLASS ACT
KUITO, 1 December 2003 -- When Joana Napeio first took her seat in the new classroom built by her local community, she wanted to cry. So it goes with children all around the world on their first day at school, but unlike most children, her tears were of joy. If Joana Napeio, bright and now being educated, represents the future of Angola, the country is in good hands. She is one of a quarter-of-a-million Angolan children who, at the start of this year, returned to school as part of the ‘Back-to-School’ campaign, an Angolan Ministry of Education and UNICEF initiative. “I have wanted to come to school ever since I was very little,” says seven-year-old Joana, who lives just outside of Kuito, in the heart of Angola. “But the schools were destroyed in the war. Now we have a new classroom and so today I woke up and then walked to school!” One of Africa’s longest-running conflicts destroyed at least 4,000 classrooms and devastated social systems across Angola. Some 44 per cent (or 1.1 million) of Angolan children aged six to nine are out of school, and the country faces a critical lack of teachers. The challenges in rebuilding the education system are many, and so ‘Back-to-School’ centred on the premise that it is vital to rapidly expand education, while upgrading quality over time. Launched in the central Angolan provinces of Bie and Malange, the initiative was made possible by the commitment of provincial and church leaders, community groups and donor support. After the decision was taken to expand education to as many children as possible in two of Angola’s 18 provinces, communities rallied and built 3,300 new classrooms with UNICEF’s support. Empowering teachers with essential training Teachers were needed once the classrooms were ready. The campaign depended on rapid and effective teacher training as the average Angolan teacher has only completed grade eight. UNICEF supported the training of 5,500 teachers with a 15-day seminar in February before the school year commenced. Additional seminars were held in June and November. Joana’s teacher, Domingos Matiage, attended a seminar. As his students sit on the classroom floor, he begins reciting the alphabet, putting the main messages into a song for the children to sing. This is just one of many new teaching methodologies that are part of a training programme aimed at empowering new teachers with essential skills. ‘Back-to-School’ is critical, not only because of the role education plays in reintroducing normalcy and stabilizing communities post war, but because it is a decisive first push toward the United Nation’s goal of education for all. “No sector of society has more influence on other areas than education,” says UNICEF Angola’s Head of Education, Francisco Basili. “It is key to the fulfilment of other human rights. It is at the heart of all development.” Education now: no time to wait There are no blackboards or desks yet for Joana’s class, but she does not seem disappointed. “Today I practised writing my name,” she says proudly. “My teacher has promised he will teach me how to write my parents’ names, and I will be able to write a them a letter saying I love them.” In the biggest announcement in post-war Angola, the government committed $40 million in funds for new teachers for 2004. If successfully implemented, the number of children in grades one to four who are out of school will drop 90 per cent, from 1.1million to 100,000. This may possibly be the biggest (per capita) education drive Africa has ever seen. While some feel a more gradual approach aimed at education for all by 2015 is the answer, UNICEF believes in reaching as many of this generation of Angolan children now while continuing to improve the quality of classrooms and teachers over time. “Waiting for classic classrooms and university-educated teachers would mean yet another generation of Angolan children are denied their right to an education,” says Basili. “Angola simply cannot afford the loss of so much human potential.”
|
