7.1. Introduction
7.2. Malawi
7.3 Zambia
7.4 Zimbabwe
7.5 Regional and continent wide donor initiative
As elsewhere, when it comes to designing specific policies to redress gender inequalities in education in SSA, cost considerations are a central issue. The World Bank considers that a mix of various measures to promote girls' participation will require some additional cost but that it is difficult to estimate what these might be. The key question is whether low cost options could make a significant difference to the overall problem of gender inequality in education. To some extent this depends on the goals and priorities of policy makers and communities and how decisions on education spending are made. Herz concludes on a cautious note in this regard: 'country level project experience on what works to improve girls' enrolments is too recent to draw firm conclusions. Many projects were more successful at providing more appealing types of schooling than in addressing household or labour market constraints' (Herz et al, 1991:57). It would seem that various strategies have succeeded in raising the enrolment of girls although, as we can see from our Southern African examples, to improve retention and performance on a lasting basis seems to be more of a challenge.
UNICEF has recently recommended that Universal Primary Education (UPE) should be promoted by governments, and that at least 20% of children should proceed to secondary school (Fay Chung, at CAMFED Conference, 1995). Equality of access and process for girls and women are equally important at all levels of the education system. Even if many girls do manage to complete their primary schooling, (as in Zambia and Zimbabwe), they perform far worse than boys in almost every subject except language, and they do particularly badly in maths and science which are essential for many vocationally oriented careers. It is not surprising, therefore, that the small proportion (less than 30%) in all three countries of the female students at universities are mainly concentrated in teaching, arts and humanities. In other words, girls are under-represented in all areas of education except primary. Equally serious, the literacy rates among adult females in all three countries are considerably lower than those of males, this applies especially in rural districts. Malawi's female literacy rate is one of the lowest in Africa.
All three countries have, over the past few years, officially committed themselves to reducing in the gender gaps in education and taken action to promote equality of opportunity, often in collaboration with international aid donors. The governments of Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe have recently taken active and practical steps to redress gender imbalances in their education systems.
7.2.1. The GABLE Project
7.2.2 The Malawi Primary Community Schools Project (ODA)
The new government in Malawi has made poverty alleviation its first priority and provision of basic education is a key component of its poverty alleviation strategy. A comprehensive education sector policy analysis was conducted in April 1994 which identified the key constraints as insufficient resources allocated to education, the primary sub-sector in particular, and to learning materials to support the free universal primary education policy. The report also identified insufficient persistence and achievement of girls through primary education, compounded by the poor quality of educational delivery including inadequate numbers of classrooms, teachers and learning materials and a number of inefficiencies in the primary system (GABLE, 1995). USAID amended its aid programme to support the Government of Malawi (GOM) in addressing these constraints.
Access to primary education has expanded rapidly since the decision to waive school fees was made in October 1994. In order to further reduce the parental costs of primary schooling, uniforms are now longer required. As a result of free primary education, girls' enrolment in Standard 2 now surpasses that of boys. The government introduced a quota of 33% as far back as the 1960's for girls entering secondary school. Due to the restricted nature of provision and low levels of spending on education, this did not improve access to secondary school. However, in 1994, an admissions policy of 1:1 boys to girls was established in government district secondary schools which has apparently improved girls' access (Chipembere, 1995).
HIV/AIDS awareness has been integrated into the school curriculum of all primary and secondary schools. However, HIV/AIDS prevention work needs to address men's attitudes and behaviour and in the longer term create alternative economic opportunities for women (Baden and Green, 1994).
There are currently two major donor funded projects that seek to increase the enrolment of all children, but particularly girls at primary schools.
The USAID funded GABLE project was designed and authorised in 1991. It is a five year project and is a combination of non-programme and programme aid totalling $20 million ($14 million in NPA and $6 million in PA). GABLE'S overall objective is to increase girls' attainment (defined as access, persistence and completion) by achieving widespread improvements in primary education and addressing widely held attitudes which place a low value on the education of girls specifically. The central goal underpinning this project is to reduce fertility in Malawi, the impact of which will be measured by the following indicators: a decline in total fertility from 6.7% in 1993 to 6.0% by 1998; an increase in the mean age of women at first birth from 19 in 1993 to 21 in 1998 and; an increased interval between births such that the percentage of births spaced less than two years apart declines from 21 % in 1993 to 15% in 1998 (GABLE, 1995).
During the last three years, the government has increased the share of the education budget in overall public expenditure and, within the education sector itself, the share of expenditure devoted to primary schooling has increased significantly. Actual expenditures on education as a proportion of GOM budget rose from 13.1% in 1991/2 to 17.5% in 1993/4 while the share of primary education as a percentage of education expenditure rose from 50.4% to 54.5% over the same period (GABLE, 1995). In addition, specific measures to increase access and improve persistence of girls in primary education, such as school fee waivers for non-repeating girls have been introduced.
As part of the GABLE project, a Social Mobilisation Campaign has been launched to change attitudes and elicit support of parents and communities to educate girls. Other initiatives include a Primary Pupil Registration system to provide essential information concerning the flow and performance of students throughout the standards; competitive procedures for the procurement and distribution of learning materials in order to provide more at a lower cost; revision of the primary school curriculum so that it is more gender sensitive; and a pilot programme through Save the Children Federation (a U.S. based NGO), to test new approaches to community participation in primary education. More recently, GABLE has extended scholarships to disadvantaged girls for secondary schooling.
The GABLE Social Mobilisation Campaign to convince parents of the benefits of sending their girls to school is about to enter its second phase. The campaign phase in Machinga followed the pilot study by Hyde and Kadzamira (1994). In this campaign heavy reliance is being placed on participatory research and participatory theatre, as well as focused group discussions with parents, girls, boys, community leaders, and teachers led by community development assistants (Kadzamira, personal communication, 1995).
The GABLE project has claimed considerable success during the first phase. Waivers for non-repeating girls benefited approximately half a million girls each year. Between 1991 and 1992 girls' enrolment increased twice as much as that of boys, so that 55% of school aged girls are now enrolled. (However it should be recalled that in October 1994, primary education fees were withdrawn by GOM). Substantial progress has been made in revising the curriculum in Standard 1-4 so that it is more gender sensitive. Research has shown that distance is an important factor inhibiting girls' school attendance. For this reason, GABLE II will support the establishment of community primary schools that will bring education closer to young children. These schools will accommodate the four lower standards of primary school and will be managed by the local community. Qualified female teachers will be recruited to these schools. The main emphasis, therefore, in GABLE II, is to improve the quality of education as well as provide more primary school facilities located close to the communities that need them. Although GABLE claim success for their first phase, it is certainly too early to reach firm conclusions about its overall impact on girls' education, particularly as the second phase is only just underway.
The ODA's 1993 Country Strategy Paper with its strong emphasis on poverty alleviation and human development identified primary education as a high priority for British aid to Malawi. This project has been designed to develop and disseminate cost-effective and replicable approaches for the delivery of primary education. A key objective is to develop effective learning strategies suited to the realities of schools in rural and peri-urban Malawi by implementing a new style of MOE-community partnership in 100 new community schools. Children completing four years of education at these schools will acquire basic literacy and numeracy. The project emphasises whole school effectiveness which is proxied by a repetition rate target of 5% and a completion rate of 90%. The project will provide 48,000 new places in Standards 1-4 by 1999. Special consideration is being given to the needs of girls.
The community schools will be integrated into the existing primary system under the administration of District Education Offices. Community schools established under the project will have the following basic characteristics:
· Serve clearly defined disadvantaged communities in all parts of the country.· Operate up to Standard 4 - a minimum requirement for the attainment of basic literacy
· Be integral parts of the national primary education system enabling children to move on to the second four year cycle of primary education.
· Involve the community in school building, design and construction and, through a school management committee, in the management of the school and in provision of appropriate and available resources.
· Adopt a child centred teaching method taking into account the needs of both boys and girls.
· Serve as places for community activity outside of school hours.
· Be built to simple, low cost, Ministry approved specifications paying close attention to the availability of water and good sanitation.
It is envisaged that community schools will have two streams. The impact of class size has implications for an open access policy and defining catchment areas. The MOE's target pupil:teacher ration of 60:1 will provide the basis for discussion.
Teachers appointed to community schools from within school communities will receive pre-service teacher training appropriate to their experience. An INSET programme for teachers will also be designed which will involve the inspectorate. Non-teaching headteachers will be trained for school management and community liaison and in-set responsibilities. The administrative capacity of the Ministry with regard to community schools at the District Level will be strengthened through training. Furthermore, the community schools will develop strategies for good practice in respect of girls' education, in particular by taking account of the circumstances of girls in the community and of prevailing parental attitudes. Women will be encouraged to be committee members. If appropriate, there will be flexibility in respect of school calendars and timetabling to promote attendance. Pre-service and in-service teacher training will incorporate gender training. Women teachers will be encouraged and supported to serve in community schools and to benefit from in-service training. The innovative experience of community schools will be monitored carefully (ODA, CSP, 1994).
Lessons about how to support girls and women teachers in schools can be disseminated widely throughout the primary system. The CSP is a process project with three distinct phases:
1st phase (1995/6): Communities are identified, sensitised, consulted and involved in the process of school development and management to develop a strategic plan for the whole project. During the second phase (1996-99), up to 100 community schools will be established taking account of all aspects of school development: including construction staffing, learning materials, management and financing. A joint review which will determine the design of the third phase (ODA, CSP, 1994).
The challenge facing Malawi is to expand enrolments rapidly while at the same time providing education of sufficient quality that parents will not only send their girls to school but ensure that they complete their education. Both GABLE and the ODA funded projects involve transforming community attitudes towards schooling. However, in my view this cannot be done effectively without introducing an adult education component. In a country with such low rates of female literacy, the desired objective of community involvement in decision making around education will not be achieved if the active participants continue to be men. Similarly, in Zimbabwe, while CAMFED insists (as the ODA will do with regard to the community schools) that women are well represented on committees, apparently these women are passive and rarely participate in discussions (Ann Cotton, personal communication). The only way to ensure that mothers value education for their daughters is to provide some kind of literacy and/or income generating training which will endow them with skills so that they may be active participants in community decision making.
The basic causes of the educational crisis in Zambia are economic decline, lack of resources and institutional inefficiencies. The Ministry of Education's new National Policy on Education is directed towards an environment within which quality, efficiency and accountability will be the benchmarks of educational provision (UNICEFb, 1995). In its recent policy paper on education, the Republic of Zambia has committed itself to the liberalisation and decentralisation of its education system. The paper refers to the rapid population growth and unfavourable economic conditions that have led to a serious decline in the quality of education. The new education policy seeks to make the education sector more responsive to the needs of individual learners and the labour market and to ensure collaboration between government institutions, NGOs and industry. It also advocates a rationalised cost-sharing system between the state, beneficiaries and communities.
In the short term, the ROZ intends to:
· Bring primary completion rates up to 100%. Basic education will cover a nine year period, running from grades 1 to 9.· Strengthen continuing education as a second channel to a nine year basic education.
· Achieve gender equity in school enrolment and in management posts at all levels.
The lack of school places is identified as a major problem for the education system in Zambia, particularly at the secondary level. The government is committed to providing better educational infrastructure in the form of new schools and training institutions with the provision of adequate running water and sanitary facilities. It will also repair existing facilities. A user levy will be employed to expand infrastructure (ROZ, 1995). However, introducing user charges in education such as levies will negatively affect girls' access and persistence.
The government has adopted the following measures with regard to equity and girls' education:
· Remove gender disparity in both access, progression and accomplishment at all levels of the education system.· Review and enforce penalties against school pupils, teachers and other educational personnel engaging in sexual harassment and making school girls pregnant.
· Effect legislation which will make it a punishable offence for parents and guardians who withdraw children from school prematurely. 0 Continue to admit girls to secondary school with lower grades than boys.
· Create more boarding places for girls.
· Establish special bursary schemes for girls.
· Readmit girls who are forced out of school prematurely.
· Introduce legislation making it a punishable offence for any adult who has carnal knowledge of a pupil.
· Strengthen and reorient guidance and counselling programmes which address the social/cultural problems which may hinder the progress of girls in education.
· Enhance enrolment of female teacher trainees in science, mathematics and technical subjects.
· Liaise with Ministries, NGOs and other stakeholders on the need to influence parents/guardians to release girls from domestic chores in order for them to have time to study (ibid).
Bursary schemes will also be introduced, particularly for girls and these awards will be directed at those girls who excel in industrial arts, sciences and mathematics. The government has also set a number of targets to improve the quality of education which would have an indirect affect on girls' educational outcomes: setting of standards and guidelines for early childhood education, limiting enrolment to 40 pupils per class at the primary level and 35 at the secondary level; a pupil-textbook ratio of 1:1 and 1:5 for supplementary reading materials at all grade levels; improvements in the teacher/inspector ratio to internationally accepted standards and; establish performance indicators as guides for monitoring standards and quality of education.
To date there has not been a great deal of donor activity in Zambia aimed directly at promoting girls' education. A number of donor projects directed at raising the quality of education could, however, have the effect of encouraging the participation of girls. One such project funded by the ODA, is the Action for Improving English, Mathematics and Science (AIEMS) project. This project is designed to improve the quality of the learning environment in all primary and secondary schools in Zambia in: English, mathematics and science by strengthening and further developing the existing system of in-service education and training (INSET) and by establishing mechanisms to increase and maintain supplies of learning materials (ODA, project description). The UNICEF 'Adolescent Girl Child Initiative described below is already operating in Zambia. The project proposal for the girls child will concentrate most of its resources and activities on redressing the problems of gender inequality in education and demonstrating results in selected primary schools (UNICEFb, 1995). The goals of phase II of the 'Proposal for Girl Child Education' are:
· To promote and create public awareness of the importance of girls' education, participation and empowerment at the national level, within the framework of the EFA programme.· To support the MOE to monitor nationally and analyse data on girls' education.
· To improve the efficiency and effectiveness of classroom practices in providing learners, especially girls with the basic competencies in two provinces, Eastern and Lusaka.
· To implement specific interventions that directly impact on access, retention and achievement of girls in selected schools in Eastern and Lusaka provinces (ibid).
To overcome the racial imbalance in education provision during the colonial and UDI periods, Zimbabwe adopted a policy of education as a basic human right in 1980. The resulting rapid expansion of education provision brought Zimbabwe close to achieving the goal of Universal Primary Education, but this was not without its costs. The quality of education fell in the 1980s as pupil-teacher ratios increased and expenditure per pupil dropped. Overcoming these problems has diverted attention from questions of relevance, gender equity and community based initiatives, including early childhood education which lagged behind. The challenge of the 1990s is to improve the quality and relevance of educational provision (UNICEF, 1994).
The Government of Zimbabwe, in collaboration with international aid donors has recently taken steps to address directly the question of gender inequity in education. The overall aim of current education policy is to upgrade the quality and relevance of primary school education and increase the proportion of trained teachers from 64% to 80%. Bringing about gender equity throughout the system is a goal of the National Programme of Action for Children (NPA) which is assisted by UNICEF. The programme has three major components - community based education, (initiated through the early childhood education and care and adult literacy programmes), quality and relevance of basic education, and gender equity. The gender equity programme focuses on the following areas:
· A Social Development Fund (SDF) has been established in order to ameliorate the economic constraints that adversely affect the participation women and 'vulnerable groups'. The Fund assists pupils whose parents are unable to pay either primary or secondary tuition fees. (However, its implementation has been dogged by bureaucratic and logistical problems so that particularly those poorer groups living in rural areas have been unable to make use of the fund.) The use of this fund offers the possibility of assisting both girls and boys.· The removal of gender stereotyping in school textbooks along with training teachers to be gender sensitive. The aim is to effect positive changes with regard to teacher attitudes towards the education of boys and girls and patterns of role ascription.
· The strengthening and training of the School Development Committees (SDCs) to enable them to take an increasingly important role in the planning and management of the education system at the local level. Parents, educational administrators and teacher trainees are to be sensitised on gender issues and convinced of the benefits of girls' education through workshops organised through the SDCs (UNICEF, 1994).
· In conjunction with various donors (including NGOs), the award of scholarships and bursaries to girls, (and particularly the poor and gifted) in the hope that their success will influence others.
· Relaxing conditions and criteria for girls admission to certain levels of education by means of positive discrimination, which involves a quota system at advanced level and university education.
· Giving pregnant school girls a chance to go back to school after delivering and nursing the baby.
· Family life education will be maintained in the curriculum to cultivate children's awareness of their sexuality and to help them avoid early marriages, teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS.
· Giving female teachers priority in promotions so that they can become role models for girls to emulate and aspire to similar or better achievement.
UNICEF sees gender sensitising as almost pure advocacy for the girl child. In Zimbabwe, this advocacy will involve mass media campaigns directed at rural populations to encourage girls to go to school. A number of ministries will be involved in the gender equity project apart from the MEC. UNICEF is the main donor supporting this programme, although close links will be maintained with other donors working in the field of education, notably CIDA, CODE, UNESCO, SIDA, World Bank, Netherlands Government and the Bernard van Leer Foundation (UNICEF, 1993).
SIDA has for some time played a central role in supporting Zimbabwe's education sector. The current agreement between SIDA and the GOZ ends in 1995. It will be replaced by a more concentrated programme in which gender concerns are paramount. For example, the gender aspects of education management will have their own budget for training in gender planning. The school building and rehabilitation programmes in the communal areas will be continued as they have helped to increase enrolment and participation, especially for girls. The secondary school scholarship programmes for children from these areas will also continue with the scholarships being disbursed at a 4:1 ratio in favour of girls. The areas of maths and science education for girls have been highlighted and the current development support will be mainly concentrated in these subjects. SIDA is also exploring the possibility of offering education support through NGOs which, it is hoped, could improve the quality of education and thereby attract more girls to school. In this respect, they are likely to draw on their experience of working with NGOs in India and Bangladesh (McNab and Sundberg, 1995).
7.5.1 UNICEF
7.5.2 The Forum of African Women Educationalists (FAWE)
7.5.3. The Donors to African Education (DAE)
UNICEF is playing a major role in East and Southern Africa in developing initiatives both to support the education of girls and to change negative attitudes towards girls and women more generally. UNICEF took a decision in 1993 to concentrate on primary education and its approach is innovative in that it considers both formal and non-formal ways of providing education. UNICEF has recently launched a significant new project, the Adolescent Girl Communication Initiative which is being organised in 10 participating countries (Botswana, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa. Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe). This regional communication package on female children in the Eastern and Southern African region (ESAR) is an attempt to confront attitudes giving rise to gender discrimination at all levels which affect girls children's education, access to health care and social services as well as workloads in the home and outside. The view of UNICEF is that women and girls are increasingly caught between two worlds, no longer offered the protection of traditional society nor armed with the confidence, skills and knowledge to meet the demands of a changing world. UNICEF, in developing this project in ESAR has decided to follow some elements of the successful 'Meena Communication Initiative' of South Asia.
UNICEF argues that the complexity of factors required for successful behaviour change indicates the need for a multi-media approach (with a heavy emphasis on film and video) which will be aimed at capturing the attention of the public in these ten countries. The general objectives of this communication package on the girl child are as follows:
· Support the social mobilisation process designed to realised the potential of female children and to foster their participation in development;· Create awareness and advocate for the reduction of existing disparities in the status and treatment of girls;
· Produce a dynamic role model for girls through which they can acquire self-esteem and learn life skills essential for empowerment;
· Provide a model for improved relationships between the sexes, beginning at an early age;
· Communicate information regarding the survival, protection and development of girl children, including specific messages on her education, health and nutrition;
· Bring major international broadcast and production establishments into social development activities and build a sustainable base for the initiative.
Since February 1994, twelve regional UNICEF offices in ESAR have expressed interest in supporting the project by acting as research bases, supplying research and artistic talent for the regional design process. Through Phase I, media access information will be gathered through the region to determine the most effective media to be utilised. Phase II will entail taking the initiative to scale through the production and dissemination of stories on other priority themes in multi-media, widescale dissemination by each participating country and creation of partnerships with international media firms and broadcast networks. The launching of this major initiative took place in October 1994 at a workshop in Machakos, Kenya. The twelve participating countries identified researchers, gender specialists, educationalists, producers and artists from their countries to participate. UNICEF's methods are to ensure that behavioural change is linked with the empowerment of girls (see UNICEF 1995a).
UNICEF also operates a 'Girls' Education Programme' in 15 countries of SSA, the countries covered in ESARO include Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Eritrea. The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) is currently the main bi-lateral donor to this programme which is at different stages of development in the respective countries.
FAWE, founded in 1992, is a membership organisation which brings together African women ministers in charge of national education systems, women vice-chancellors of universities in Africa and other senior women policy makers in education. The Rockerfeller Foundation supported its founding activities. Its goals are:
· Mainstreaming gender concerns into national education programmes.· Convincing society, governments, donors and NGO's of the need to invest more resources in girls' education.
· Supporting women administrators, researchers and teachers so that they in turn can impact positively on female education.
· Integrating gender studies into tertiary research, curriculum, and policy decisions (FAWE Newsletter, Nov. 1993, p.2).
The current FAWE membership consists of thirty two members from 25 African countries. This influential forum of women policy makers is 'well positioned to stimulate education policy reform in order to create a conducive environment for increasing parental demand for girls' education. Underpinning the work of FAWE is an explicit effort to contribute towards the achievement of EFA goals. FAWE is registered in Kenya as a non-profit making NGO and is headed by an Executive Director whose work is guided by an Executive Committee comprising eleven members. The small secretariat is assisted by a twelve person technical committee of leading scholars in Africa, and by well known international social scientists and education specialists who serve as consultants. FAWE works closely with and seeks support from the Donors to African Education (DAE) secretariat in Paris.
FAWE's terms of reference include the following: identification of a practical approach to female drop outs; creating linkages between research and education policy making; identifying relevant policy questions and priorities to which research should be directed; ascertaining the state of, and developing mechanisms for strengthening the capacities in ministries, universities and research units for the analysis and development of policy and action on female education and; identification of ways of maximising the utilisation of resources within the overall education system. In the countries where FAWE operates it collects data on female education and networks around the central issues affecting girls (FAWE Information Booklet, 1994).
FAWE is both a think tank and a pressure group. Its work covers five main areas: strategic resource planning; seed grants to innovative country experiments; awards for innovators; targeted capacity building and leadership programmes; and advocacy and public education. Achievements to date include supporting the gender sensitisation of the Government White Paper on Education by the Uganda Association of University Women; a gender sensitisation workshop by the Seychelles Association of Women Professionals; a successful ministerial consultation held in collaboration with the Mauritius Ministry of Education on 'School drop out and adolescent pregnancy'; and in 1994 coordinating the Africa education input to the 1995 World Conference on Women in Beijing (Odaga and Heneveld, 1995 and DAE Vol 6, No 4, Oct-Dec. 1994).
Inter-donor cooperation in education and educational research is increasingly common both at a regional and country level. An example of this move towards greater donor collaboration is the DAE. Prompted by the need for educational improvements in Africa, several agencies came together in 1988 to form DAE which at present comprises about 40 international, national and private agencies. It has its own secretariat in Paris and is organised around ten task forces (ibid). One of these initiated in 1990 is the 'Working group on female participation' composed of 23 multilateral and bilateral funding agencies which together, in cooperation with African education officials and academics, seek means for developing education policies to increase the enrolment of girls in school and enrich their learning experience. The organisation also supports research in the following areas: the determinants of female participation, interventions that work, cooperating with women's indigenous organisations in promoting women's education, and promoting the participation of girls in science and mathematics at secondary schools. The most dynamic element of the working group is FAWE (ibid). Another subcommittee led by CIDA will look at the role of NGOs in promoting and providing for girls' education. In 1995 this is just beginning to get underway.
