Education - UNICEF in action
UNICEF works closely with the Ministry of Education and other national and international partners to support educational policy development and national capacity building. The aim is to ensure that all children have access to quality primary education, with emphasis on enrolling more girls in schools and helping them stay and perform better. UNICEF support addresses the many barriers to quality education. Supported activities include training for teachers and school directors in didactics and management. Teachers are also trained on the new curriculum, which provides for gender-sensitive education and systematic HIV/AIDS prevention lessons. UNICEF is also supporting the establishment and strengthening of school councils, consisting of teachers, administrative staff, parents, community members and pupils. The school councils serve as a link between the school and the community. They make sure that education policies are followed, that the curriculum is relevant and that schools are safe places for girls. They are also instrumental in following up with families whose daughters tend to drop out. Another important area of UNICEF support is the installation of safe water facilities and of separate latrines for boys and girls. The absence of proper sanitation facilities has proven to be an important contributing factor to girls dropping out of schools. In coordination with the Ministry of Health, UNICEF furthermore supports the implementation of a school health programme through which teachers and community activists are trained to promote malaria, cholera and diarrhoea prevention. Progress in 2004 • More than 4,500 teachers, 1,800 school directors and 7,000 school council members in 33 districts of Nampula, Manica, Gaza, Zambezia, Sofala and Inhambabe, were trained in child friendly teaching methods, HIV/AIDS prevention and school management, with the programme’s support. • A total of over 95,000 children in these targeted areas received pupil kits with basic school materials such as notebooks and pencils. • The creation of a gender-sensitive school environment was also supported through the construction of separate latrines for boys and girls in over 200 primary schools. Using school facilities as a platform to promote safe hygiene practices, UNICEF and partners continued to support the expansion of school health programmes and child to child sanitation clubs.
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