Young
People in the Media (YPM) with technical and financial support from UNICEF
recently conducted a community engagement and mentoring activity within
communities and schools in URR & CRR that have the highest prevalence of
children who are school dropouts.
The
campaign dubbed “Every child in School” was spearheaded by YPM in partnership
with the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education (MoBSE) through its Regional
Education Directorate in Central River Region (CRR) and Upper River Region
(URR).
The
initiative was geared towards outlining a roadmap through the implementation of
community sensitizations program that will help create the enabling environment
for school going children.
The
activities include an after-school mentoring program for Grade 9 dropouts,
radio sessions for parents on the importance of education, community engagement
and mentoring activities with schools.
These
activities were implemented in selected communities in CRR and URR to encourage
parents to send their children to school and to understand the importance of
education.
The
program was intended to help achieve the “education for all” goal in The
Gambia
Abdou
Jatta, Executive Coordinator of Young People in the Media, (YPM), noted that
schools and community dialogues were conducted
with actors such as mothers clubs, school management committees, chiefs,
educational directorate officials, governors as well as with parents and
students.
According
to him, all these efforts were intended to help them appreciate the role of
education in community and national development, as well as to raise awareness
on how to stop the tide of ‘backway migration’.
He
said child protection and safety issues were also addressed.
Jatta
highlighted that the messages were carefully selected and delivered through
public engagements at community level, mentoring sessions with students and
radio programs targeting the public.
UNICEF
Education Specialist, Nuha Jatta, said in 2013, an out-of-school study
conducted in two regions of The Gambia (Central River and Upper River Regions)
reported that up to about 50 per cent of school-aged children were out of
school.
This, he noted, was alarming and worrisome.
MrJatta
promised that UNICEF would not rest until the last child is in school and is
learning. He commended YPM for the great initiative and good partnership.
Deputy
Governor of URR, Cherno Barra Touray, expressed delight in receiving the team and
assured them of his support.
He
lamented that URR as one of the regions in the country that has the highest
rate of young people that fled the country through illegal migration.
He
expressed joy in seeing young people taking the lead to directly talk to their
peers.
“This
will definitely help in the process,” he added.
He emphasised the importance of education and
how to prevent school dropout would really help children be more serious in
school and parents to retain their children in schools.
He thanked YPM on the level of courage and
determination exhibited by the team to carry out such project.
Aja
Na Hoja Sawaneh, highlighted some of the reason why Garawol community has a
very high rate of dropout of school children, citing ignorance as a major cause and depending on
children to perform domestic chores.
Malang
Saibou Camara, Deputy Governor of CRR, attested that CRR has the lowest
enrolment rate of children and therefore, it was a collective responsibility to
help solve the issue.
He
also highlighted some problems facing the communities in terms of education,
laying emphasis on religion as most of these communities are religious
communities, especially Fass and BarraJally who find little or no interest in
formal education and therefore becomes difficult to convince them to send their
children to school.
He
thanked UNICEF and YPM for taking the interest of children as a priority.
The
sessions also brought out illegal migration as a factor contributing to
dropouts in their communities.
The sessions concluded with strong messages on
the need for children to be educated and have quality education needed to
become a good citizen in the future.
This
would contribute immensely to help himself, his parents and by extension the
country as a whole.
The
imam and district chief of Garawol and Bajakunda hailed the efforts of UNICEF
and YPM for such a laudable initiative.
