IMPROVEMENT OF EDUCATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND QUALITY OF EDUCATIONAL SERVICES IN KENEMA DISTRICT

ONGOING

IMPROVEMENT OF EDUCATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND QUALITY OF EDUCATIONAL SERVICES IN KENEMA DISTRICT

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Project Fact Sheet
Donor:

THE GERMAN FEDERAL MINISTRY FOR ECONOMIC COOPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT (BMZ) AND TERRA TECH FOERDERPROJEKTE E.V.

Project Implementing Partner:

SEND SIERRA LEONE

Project Location:

SIERRA LEONE

Duration:

1st AUGUST 2020 TO 31ST OCTOBER 2022

Project Number:

5044

Contact details and contact

Send Sierra Leone

8 Morigbeh Street, Reservation Road,

Reservation Road,

Kenema,Sierra Leone

+232 78 206 853

PROJECT PROBLEMS

According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the poverty rate in Sierra Leone is estimated at 77.5%. This high poverty rate can be attributed to a decade long civil war and the Ebola outbreak which further exacerbated poor national structures such as healthcare, education and agriculture. It is estimated that 70% of all school-going children had limited or no access to education during the civil war. School buildings and educational materials were destroyed while students and teachers lost their lives in the war. This incidence has affected the quality of education in the country over the years.

The education sector in Sierra Leone is characterized by teachers not having the requisite qualifications, lack of access to equal quality education, ineffective educational structures, lack of adequate educational infrastructure, and the absence of capacity-building systems to improve the capacity of available teachers. The Government's introduction of the Free Quality Education (FQE) in 2018 was welcomed as it guaranteed all children from pre-primary to senior secondary level access to education. This is a necessary step for the development of Sierra Leone, as the school enrolment rate and school completion rate remain low, and the illiteracy rate persistently keeps rising over the years. There is also an imbalance between gender-equitable access to education. However, the FQE policy's effectiveness in the Kenema region is under threat as the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE) is faced with a low operational capacity as a result of the Lack of qualified teachers, ineffective organizational structures, and poor and inadequate educational infrastructure.

PROJECT SOLUTION

This project aims to mitigate the pitfalls in implementing the new education initiative (Free Quality School Education) of the Sierra Leonean government in Kenema. With this action, SEND will improve the institutional capacity of key departments in the MBSSE to effectively play its designated supervisory and management role. This will aid in the deployment of policies, standards, guides, and the development of related frameworks in support of quality education service delivery in Kenema District. This capacity enhancement will enable the institution to manage teachers` records, transfers, deployment, assessment, promotions, and monitor the staff's performance for improved governance and delivery of education service provision.

Furthermore, SEND Sierra Leone will address the unequal access to education by girls of school-going age in Kenema district by constructing a Model Senior Secondary school. The school will be equipped with state-of-the-art learning facilities such as a fully resourced IT lab to promote the learning of IT skills amongst girls and the continuous training of teachers with online educational resources to ensure the delivery of quality of education to students. The construction of this girls' school in Kenema will address low secondary school completion rates for girls and improve the differences in performance between boys and girls.

There will be awareness on child protection policies for community support structures to know their roles and responsibilities. The proposed project also contributes to Goal 2 of Sierra Leone's Medium-term National Development Plan 2019–2023 which aims at ensuring that Sierra Leone. It ensures Sierra Leone as a nation is equipped with educated, empowered, and healthy citizens who are capable of realizing their fullest potential to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

PROJECT ACTIVITIES

BELOW ARE THE ACTIVITIES TO BE IMPLEMENTED UNDER THE PROJECT:

Improvement of quality education and strengthening the effective delivery of education service

  • Construction of Kenema Senior Secondary School for Girls.
  • Establishment of Computer Training Centre (CTC)
  • Improvement of Quality Education.
  • Computer training for teachers.
  • Didactic-methodological training for teachers.
  • Training of CTC trainers.
  • Improving the operational capacity of the MBSSE and Strengthening regional structures

  • Capacity building for MBSSE.
  • Strengthening the Sierra Leone Teachers Union in Kenema District (SLTU).
  • Annual Conference of Principal and Council of Head teachers District-level meetings.
  • Development of a "Lessons Learned" document.
  • Project support measures, coordination and monitoring

  • Mid-term and final evaluation.
  • THE DIRECT TARGET GROUP OF THIS PROJECT CAN BE DIVIDED AS FOLLOWS

    ABOUT SEND SIERRA LEONE

    SEND Sierra Leone is non-governmental organization registered with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development of the Republic of Sierra Leone with a vision to contribute to a Sierra Leone where people’s rights and well- being are guaranteed. SEND Sierra Leone is part of a West African structure with a headquarters in Ghana and offices in Liberia and Sierra Leone where approaches and experiences are shared. SEND Sierra Leone is an independent structure, a local NGO registered in Sierra Leone with a local Board, which has its own project portfolio and budget separate from Ghana.

    SEND’s portfolio includes community development, WaSH, health, nutrition/agriculture and women’s empowerment. Intervention areas are in the districts of Kailahun, Kenema, Kono, Western Areas Urban, and Rural districts and more recently, the district of Bonthe.

    Read Project Report

    Read Nyapui Senior Secondary School of Excellence Brochure