UNICEF's Child-Friendly Schools: Gambia Case Study

From the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), this case study examines UNICEF's role in integrating child-friendly schools (CFS) into the government of Gambia's Girl-Friendly Schools Initiative (GFSI). "A measure of this initiative's success is that girls' enrolment now exceeds boys' in some areas, and partners are considering how to adapt many 'girl-friendly' activities into 'child-friendly' activities that would attract out-of-school boys."

The case study begins with a description of the educational context in Gambia, with a description of the policy goals set at various points since 1976. Next, programme elements are described. In short:

1. The Gambia Girls' Education Project (1999-2001), supported by funding from the government of Japan and the World Bank, in the 4 most deprived regions: Central River Division (CRD), Lower River Division (LRD), North Bank Division (NBD), and Upper River Division (URD) - Within 2 years, UNICEF reported that it had reached all girls nationwide, more than 74,000, with one or more of these activities:
   • Scholarship trust fund for girls;
   • Mothers' clubs, which seek to create opportunities for women to contribute to the promotion of access, retention, and performance of girls in schools clubs to identify the needs of their daughters in school, both in terms of counselling and materials, and then to carry out income-generating activities;
   • All-girls' conferences providing opportunities for girls to interact freely among themselves and discuss issues affecting their lives in school, such as sexual harassment and abuse in schools;
   • Mathematics and science clinic for girls, which affords girls the opportunity to identify themselves with role models in science, partake of practical activities, and visit places of scientific importance; and
   • Remedial training initiative for female teachers.
2. The Girl-Friendly School Initiative (2002-2006), through which UNICEF funded the development of 50 girl-friendly schools in 3 regions - Central River, Lower River, and Upper River - and later secured UNICEF girls' education thematic funds to expand the project. "More than just effective for learning, the ideal girl-friendly school was also inclusive, health promoting, gender responsive, participatory for both children and their parents, and supported by a series of policies that addressed the most egregious obstacles to girls' participation." According to the case study, many of these activities had effects beyond the school; for example, in 2003, the Gambian government agreed to launch "The State of the World's Children" (SOWC) 2004, which focused on girls' education, in Bakadaji, a small conservative community where less than 25% of school-age children and just 11% of girls were enroled in formal schools. The launch coincided with an annual intensive campaign conducted by the Department of State for Education (DoSE) that included activities such as: statements by the Secretary of State for Education and the son of a renowned Muslim religious leader who is currently the Attorney General and Secretary of State for Justice; a commitment by the country director of UNICEF to support Bakadaji's school; community radio programmes to sensitise communities on the importance of girls' education and encourage their participation in the launch of SOWC 2004; presentation by local religious leaders on the importance of girls' education; skits by a peer health club and traditional women animators to raise awareness on the importance of girls' education; and performances by local cultural groups and traditional folk dancers depicting the value of education generally and for girls in particular.




3. Child-Friendly Schools Initiative (2007-2011) - In recognition of having met the gender parity goal in most of the country, UNICEF's new 5-year education programme was organised under 3 work plans: the Child-Friendly/Girl-Friendly School Initiative and Early Childhood Development (ECD) School Readiness; Education Policy Support; and Life Skills. In 2007, as it had for several years, UNICEF trained many ECD facilitators, school authorities, and parents. It also established 10 model ECD centres and 15 ECD support centres in an effort to develop a model of early childhood education that is comprehensive and holistic, including play and recreation, and that recognises the role of children's physical well-being in their cognitive development, emotional maturity, and social skills.

A 2003 evaluation highlighted the number and diversity of partners who worked with the government of the Gambia and UNICEF to implement an array of activities in support of GFSI. However, as noted here, programme achievements have been reported mainly in terms of increases in the gross enrolment rate at the national and regional levels; the initiative has not undertaken to measure the effects of teacher training and of school improvements in learning. The final sections of the case study explore "the future", explaining that: UNICEF has now supported efforts to improve child-friendliness in almost 75% of schools in the Gambia's three most disadvantaged regions; the DoSE has taken over support and monitoring of CFS activities in two-thirds of these schools; all of these schools do not yet incorporate the Essential Learning Package - additional work must be funded through partnerships with other international agencies, and with international and local non-governmental organisations.