Ensuring Safe Learning Spaces for Children During Unprecedented Conflict
In April 2023, military clashes broke out between the national army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), mainly in the capital Khartoum, the Kordofan region, and the Darfur region. According to reports from the United Nations and other sources, as of May 2024, the death toll has surpassed 15,000, with internally displaced persons numbering a world-high of 6.8 million. Among these, 4 million are displaced children. The new school year has yet to start, leaving 19 million children without access to education. Additionally, declining crop yields and soaring food prices have caused a severe food crisis. The lack of adequate international support is worsening the already critical situation for children.
Activities in 2023 in Kadugli
Providing access to education and safe spaces for children in conflict zones
Due to reasons such as displacement from conflict and financial difficulties, many children have missed out on school, which prompted us to establish the Alternative Learning Program (ALP) schools in four regions. In addition to basic courses in Arabic, math, and English, we provided safe environments where children can feel safe. For children affected by repeated conflicts and displacement, we offered psychological support through social workers and organized recreational activities such as dance, sports, and drawing. Light snacks were also provided. To improve the quality of education, we trained teachers and guided their supervisors. Monthly teacher meetings were held to share best practices and challenges to enhance the program’s effectiveness.
ALP classes (Kadugli)
Building systems for community support in education
In areas where we set up the ALP, we organized caregiver groups to accomplish tasks such as building shelters for learning spaces in areas without school buildings, collecting water, cleaning, and following up on absent children. We also formed youth groups to provide life skills and management training, as well as created opportunities for them to work with local authorities. The youth who received training expressed a desire to organize awareness activities to convey the importance of education. The project implemented awareness-raising activities while coordinating with the community and providing operational support. As a result, these awareness efforts reached a total of 2,811 participants.
Educational awareness activities organized and managed by the youth (Kadugli)
Results & Challenges in Kadugli
Children are left without a place to go since regular school classes remain unavailable
Despite the unstable social situation, the ALP schools had a high attendance rate, with 95% of enrolled students passing their final exams. The education awareness campaigns led by the youth drew many parents, who had never been educated themselves, to participate in school programs. This interest in learning increased, leading to the start of adult literacy programs in several regional communities. The regular school where children can transfer after completing the ALP has been closed due to the conflict. We continue to offer safe places for children in seven regions, including those we have previously supported. If the regular schools do not reopen, the children will have nowhere to go, so the challenge is to provide continuous educational opportunities to as many children as possible.
Activity Plan for 2024 in Kadugli
Protecting access to education and children’s rights
Even after one year, the military clashes have not yet been resolved, and people’s lives are still in danger due to air strikes, shellfire, and other fighting in and around Kadugli, which has restricted the movement of goods and people. In addition, new displaced persons are pouring into Kadugli, and many children do not have access to education. We plan to continue operating the ALP and protecting children from immediate dangers, while ensuring fundamental literacy, improving the educational environment, and expanding educational opportunities through community support and management.
ALP classes (Kadugli)
Activities in 2023 in Yida
Ensuring continued schooling after project completion
This was the final year of our project in Yida. We provided school fees, school lunches, school supplies, hygiene products, and sportswear to children from difficult family circumstances to support their school attendance. We also held three awareness sessions on the importance of education, which were attended by a total of 98 participants, including parents and local administrators. During these sessions, we coordinated with parents, relevant authorities, the community, and schools to clarify their respective roles after JVC’s withdrawal. In addition, we conducted home gardening activities to teach children about nutrition and cultivation and held special classes during long school breaks to reinforce their education and protection.
Children weeding in home gardening training (Yida)
Results & Challenges in Yida
Improving educational quality and supporting preschool retention
In the Yida refugee camp, even though many children lost their parents to conflict or suffered physical or mental disabilities, the educational environment and level of child protection conditions were extremely poor. Educational support from the UN and other NGOs was lacking. However, through our repeated kindergarten teacher training, the quality of education has improved; providing support for school supplies and facilities ensured an appropriate learning environment, contributing greatly to the establishment of the kindergartens. Furthermore, by providing educational support to children in need of protection, there is hope that they will eventually return to Yida and their home country of Sudan, where they will be able to contribute to the development and stability of their communities in the future.
Voices and Messages
I finished the ALP by overcoming my visual disability. I want to learn more!
Abdulkareem, an 11-year-old child who participated in the ALP
I evacuated to Kadugli in 2022. I had never attended school before and was just helping out at home before joining the ALP. Now that I’m done, I want to keep learning at school. But because I can’t see, I need someone to help me go to school. I want to become a doctor in the future, so I need to study a lot more.
Report from Team Leader, Ismeil
Despite the disadvantage of being blind, he worked hard and was in 6th place in his grade on the final exam. He also showed his singing talent during recreation time and performed a song at the graduation ceremony.
You can hear Abdulkareem singing on JVC’s YouTube channel.
Education cannot wait
Mona Hassan, Deputy Country Director
Although education is the key to fostering sustainable peace, Sudan is amid the world’s worst education crisis if current conditions persist. The longer children are out of school, the more unlikely they are to return to school. We simply can’t put education on hold. I have been displaced four times since last year, and the pain has been so intense that I sometimes wish I could erase those terrible memories. Despite this, I hold on to hope that this war, which has caused so much destruction and separated so many families, will come to an end. I eagerly anticipate the day when the reconstruction of a new Sudan can begin.
The author : center
[Source: JVC Annual Report 2023]
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