FAWE believes it is important to demonstrate through practical interventions what works in enhancing girls' education in sub-Saharan Africa.
Though great strides have been made in improving the participation of girls in education, challenges persist in terms of their access, retention and performance.
Among the barriers that exist in the majority of African countries are poverty, long-held negative attitudes and practices and their consequences such as early marriage, poor management of sexual maturation, the impact of HIV/AIDS at household level, teenage pregnancy and the disempowerment of girls.
In addition, gender insensitive school environments as well as the lack of gender-responsiveness in education delivery negatively affect girls' participation in education.
This results in high rates of drop-out and repetition as well as poor performance for girls in all subjects and particularly in Mathematics, Science and Technology.
We believe that improving retention and performance for girls demands the transformation of ordinary schools into gender-responsive environments aimed at empowering girls with skills to overcome the various forms of gender discrimination and inequalities they face.
We have developed interventions that aim to provide greater educational opportunities for girls and to positively transform the environment in which girls learn. We also work to achieve the mainstreaming of the best practices emerging from these interventions into national education systems and practices.
FAWE’s interventions include:
- Demonstrative models. Our Centre of Excellence, Tuseme Youth Empowerment, Gender-Responsive Pedagogy and Science, Mathematics and Technology models have been introduced in a number of countries to demonstrate what works in improving girls' access, retention and performance in school.
- Bursaries. We provide bursaries to disadvantaged girls and boys to support access to and completion of a full cycle of primary or secondary education.
- Targeted programmes and projects. We target specific contexts and issues affecting girls’ education through interventions such as Girls’ Clubs, HIV/AIDS programmes, Mothers’ Clubs, technical and vocational education and training, and education in conflict and post-conflict situations.
- Research. FAWE undertakes research on issues related to gender and education in sub-Saharan Africa to buttress its advocacy work and more effectively direct its programme activities.