DRC: PRIMARY EDUCATION AND PSYCHOSOCIAL SUPPORT FOR REFUGEE CHILDREN
The Democratic Republic of Congo is one of the largest states in Africa, but also one of the poorest. The daily life of the population is marked by the struggle for survival. Despite the fact that schooling is compulsory, schools and universities are often reserved for the wealthy few. Yet, for the country's development, it is imperative that all children are able to acquire basic knowledge. Not even one child out of three finishes basic school and about 4.7 million children do not go to school at all. And to top it all off, political instability remains high, especially in the eastern Kivu province. In their desperate situation, many people have abandoned everything and are now living in refugee camps in the interior of the country where they are waiting to return to their homes. Until the political situation calms down, people need help.
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Our project in Goma
The project in brief
Through this project, 1,000 internal refugee children are accessing quality education. Many of them have just learned to read and write and are at risk of losing this knowledge if they do not continue to attend school.
As of 2019, primary education is free, so families no longer have to pay tuition. School materials are provided to the children by the project. Since some children are often traumatized by what they experienced before or during their travel, they receive, if necessary, individual psychological follow-up.
To ensure quality education, 200 teachers (50/year) participate in regular training and receive the necessary teaching materials. The principals of the schools also participate in trainings.
The objective of the project is to improve the well-being of refugees, displaced persons and indigenous communities in the project area, as well as to improve their future prospects through access to quality primary education.
Meetings with parents and teachers ensure that there is a real pedagogical and psychological follow-up, contributing to a better efficiency of the project.
An important facet of this project is the sensitization of parents on various themes, such as the importance of education for girls or against sexual abuse.
Regarding the infrastructure, 10 classrooms will be rehabilitated and equipped and 5 libraries will be installed in the schools.
Project budget:
Total cost of the project (2021-2024): 181.650 euros
80% of this amount is covered by the Luxembourg Foreign Ministry government. The remains (36,330 euros) are financed by CSI and the local partner.