Angola outlines strategies to reach Children Outside the Education System.

Children who do not attend school are among the most vulnerable, exposed to risks such as forced marriage, child labor, and recruitment by armed groups. In addition, they are deprived of the right to education, security, health, and future opportunities. School exclusion also has economic repercussions, with an expected global cost of $10 million annually by 2030.

To reverse this scenario in Angola, the Ministry of Education, in partnership with UNICEF, organized an Intersectoral Workshop from 25 to 26 September. The aim was to develop an action plan to implement recommendations and strategies for data collection between the different bodies responsible for harmonized data collection.

The event was attended by Representatives and technicians of the Ministry of Education, Representatives of different Ministerial Departments, municipal administrators, technicians from UNICEF, the National Council for Social Action, and Representatives of the National Children's Institute. 

During the opening speech, Fábio Manno, UNICEF's head of education, highlighted the importance of inclusive and equitable education as an essential pillar for the country's development: 

"Investment in education is not only an obligation, but a bet on the country's human capital," he said, recalling that education policies should focus especially on vulnerable children. 

 He also highlighted the link of the initiatives to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 4, which calls for quality and accessible education for all.

Harmonization of the data collected and collaboration between different sectors are essential steps to address the challenge of children outside the education system, ensuring that all children in Angola have access to their right to education.

During the workshop, the relevance of harmonizing the collection of data on children outside the education system was addressed, allowing greater accuracy and comparability while identifying patterns that contribute to school dropout, such as poverty and other social issues.

Challenges in data collection and future expectations

Data collection in Angola has faced several challenges during the sessions, issues such as non-compliance in the timely delivery of statistics from some private schools, the lack of forms by some projects have contributed to the lack of accurate data.

Accurate data facilitates planning, monitoring, and resource allocation, helping to address the challenges that children outside the education system face, such as forced and child marriage, child labor, and lack of future opportunities.

For Paulo Maka Zabi, deputy administrator of the municipality of Viana, the contributions obtained at the workshop will be fundamental for the implementation of more effective policies: "I hope to see, soon, satisfactory results that will meet the needs of our school-age children."

Barros Gabriel, head of the Education Section at the Municipal Directorate of Education of Cazenga, highlighted the need to improve data collection mechanisms: 

Today we face the problem of children outside the education system, and we do not have effective mechanisms for collecting information. This workshop came at a good time, as we need to improve and follow up on the children so that we can avoid and support these children.

During the closing ceremony, Irene Neto, National Director of the Infrastructure Office of the Ministry of Education, representing the Minister of Education, highlighted the important role of data collection and management as a basis for creating effective policies. 

"We need rigorous coordination between the different actors, so that the information collected is credible and useful in the creation of public policies that solve the problem of out-of-school children," he concluded.

School exclusion is not only a social problem, but an obstacle to the country's development, with long-term consequences for both the economy and the well-being of families. Implementing effective strategies, supported by accurate data and cross-sector cooperation, can be the way to ensure that all children have access to the fundamental right to education.

UNICEF works closely with the Government of Angola, providing technical support to improve data collection capacity and promote inclusive and quality education policies.