Education
for all Campaign Network the Gambia (EFANet) with support from the Civil
Society Education Fund (CSEF) yesterday commenced a three-day capacity building
training for their member civil society organisations (CSOs) at the Regional
Education Directorate 1- Kanifing Conference Hall.
The
three-day training will also strengthen the capacity of the EFANet members on
leadership and organizational management, advocacy skills and techniques,
monitoring and evaluation, the MOBSE education policy 2016-2030, and the
sustainable development Goal 4.
In
her opening remarks, EFANet Board Chairperson, Zono Jammeh, said the training
is in line with her organisation’s mission to mobilize, build and strengthen
the capacity of its members to advocate effectively for the realisation of the
educational goals for all in The Gambia.
She
said the three-day training will give the participants the opportunity to
consult and share advocacy strategies as well as information and best practices
with one another, saying: “It will also help build the capacity of our members
in various areas of advocacy.”
The
EFANet chairperson also extolled the cordial relationship between the Ministry
of Basic and Secondary Education and EFANet, adding: “Our cordial relationship
with MoBSE goes to show that government and civil societies can work in mutual
agreement even though we are supposed to be their watchdogs.”
She
said further: “We all know what is enshrined in the country’s constitution
concerning education, which is free education but the question is: when is the
compulsory part of it going to be applied? Are we as members of the EFANet
coalition advocating for the compulsory part to be enforced?”
She
called on government to invest more on education to ensure that, for instance,
the child in Nyakoi Lower Basic School is offered the same type of curriculum
that the child at Marina International is enjoying.
The
national coordinator of EFANet, Siyat Gaye, said education being the business
of everyone cannot go without the involvement of the civil society.
He
said the meeting was also in response to their mandate to bring together
organisations that are advocating and promoting education in the country.
“We
deemed it fitting to come together and discuss on how we can advocate for the
promotion of quality education for all,” he said.
“Access
to education is more realistic now, but sustainability remains the biggest
challenge in the country’s educational sector.”
For
his part, the programme specialist for education in ActionAid, Bakary Fadera,
said it is paramount for the parties advocating for education to engage the
country’s politicians in the best way so they could also put more focus on the
education sector.
