Somali parents take charge of education

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Category: The ClassRoom

Created on Tuesday, 23 July 2013 00:00

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Somali parents take charge of education

For decades, Somalia has had no government and thus no state education system. About 40 percent of Somali children attend school, according to UN figures. Most of these schools are run by parents.

A thick layer of dry leaves rests on the stairs leading up to the classroom. No one has bothered to sweep away the leaves ever since the school in the Somali capital of Mogadishu was severely damaged in the civil war. Since 2011 no one has taught in these classrooms. Lessons are held in a handful of rooms in neighboring buildings.

{sidebar id=11 align=right}For pupils in Somalia it's time for summer holidays, but there's still work being done in the damaged rooms.

"We are currently renovating five classrooms," said principal Hassan Adawe Ahmed. "Last year we got seven back in order."

Money for the project comes from the Somali aid group DGB (Help for All), which receives its funding from the German NGOs Caritas and Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe as well as the German government. The civil war in Somalia has spanned more than 20 years. During that time, the school that Ahmed runs has been severely damaged three times, most recently in 2011. The Islamist al-Shabab militants had barricaded themselves in the school and were attacked by troops from the African Union.

"After the latest attack, the roof was completely destroyed, the shutters and doors were stolen," said Ahmed, adding that some of the classrooms have been remodeled, the benches there freshly painted. They're making progress in the other classrooms, too. "Soon, we'll be able to hold lessons for the pupils again," Ahmed said.

Parents take charge

The school is called "Umulhura," a Somali name given to women. When times were good, 3,000 pupils attended classes here, but now there are only 600. The falling numbers are a direct result of the civil war. The more violent the battles, the more people were forced to flee.

In the past year, the situation has stabilized somewhat. For the first time in more than 20 years, Somalia has a legitimate government under President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. The school that Ahmed leads is much older than the new government: Classes have been held here for 18 years.

Maryam Saleban Abokor was one of the parents who took charge.

"I came up with the idea because I watched the children around me. They were roaming the streets because after the fall of the government, the schools were closed," says the 50-year-old mother of five children. "I was afraid that the children would become criminals if they were not busy and did not learn anything." She turned to the other parents in the neighborhood and suggested that they renovate the school and start teaching.

Learning despite anarchy and civil war

The other parents were quickly convinced, and thus they founded the school together 18 years ago. Everyone got involved in his or her own way. Some donated money, others helped with renovation or cleaned up after the work.

In Mogadishu and throughout the rest of Somalia, many schools were established this way: Parents, religious organizations, civic groups or local aid organizations sprang into action so that children could learn despite anarchy and civil war.

Although a government has been in place for a year, the parents have maintained responsibility for the schools. The parents determine school fees and teachers' wages. By Somali standards, the fees are high at seven to 12 dollars (five to nine euros) per child per month. According to estimates from aid agencies, 40 percent of Somalis are dependent on support from relatives abroad. At "Umulhura," teachers earn $140 per month; the director earns just $10 more.

"That's not enough to cover costs," said Ahmed. But because five of his eight children also attend the school, he carries on.

No uniform curriculum

"We focus on the curricula of various countries," said director Ahmed. "We've taken elements from the curriculum in the United Arab Emirates as well as parts of the Kenyan and Saudi curriculum." A committee of 40 parents then determines the final curriculum. That explains why there are differing lesson plans throughout the country.

Somali school supporters have also established two umbrella organizations that distribute certifications of achievement after final examinations so that the education system is somewhat comparable across the country. Nevertheless, Ahmed and the parents are waiting impatiently for the new government to assume its responsibility for the education sector.

Date 23.07.2013

Author Bettina Rühl, Mogadishu / lbh

Editor Nancy Isenson

Source: Deutsche Welle

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Ghanaian Scholarship Students In UK Starving

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Category: The NoticeBoard

Created on Monday, 22 July 2013 00:00

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Ghanaian Scholarship Students In UK Starving

{sidebar id=11 align=right}Scores of Ghanaian Students on government scholarship in the UK say they are on the brink of starvation and destitution due to the delay by the Ghana Education Trust Fund to release their living allowances for their upkeep.

They say they have also been threatened with court suits by their Universities over their non-payment of fees.

Some of them who sent SOS messages to XYZ News say they have also been prevented from using libraries and other academic facilities of their universities.

The affected students are mainly in the Universities of Hull, Dundee, Aberdeen, Manchester and Robert Gordon.

One of them, Fred Doodoo of the University of Hull told XYZ News on Monday July 22, 2013 that there are six Ghanaian students in that University suffering that plight.

He said their colleagues in the other Universities have also confirmed to him that their living allowances have not been released.

The Government confirmed about two weeks ago that funds had been released for disbursement to the students on scholarship.

Source: Radioxyz

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Clashes at Cairo university turn deadly

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Category: Youth News

Created on Tuesday, 23 July 2013 00:00

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Clashes at Cairo university turn deadly

Several have died in clashes near a Cairo university that broke out soon after the interim president appealed for calm. Meanwhile, the family of ousted President Morsi has threatened legal action if he is not released.

The death toll in Egypt rose on Tuesday as Health Ministry officials confirmed six fatalities from clashes that had taken place close to Cairo's main university overnight.

Fighting had broken out between supporters of deposed President Mohammed Morsi who were staging a sit-in nearby, and opponents of the ousted leader.

{sidebar id=10 align=right}Al-Ahram newspaper reported that six had died, citing a health official speaking on the conditition of anonymity. The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party also confirmed the reports of new deaths.

"Leaders of the military coup continue to terrorize the peaceful protesters in Egypt," the Muslim Brotherhood claimed on its website Tuesday.

The latest violence came on the anniversary of Egypt's 1952 revolution, which overthrew the country's 150-year-old monarchy, and just hours after interim President Adly Mansour had used the occasion to appeal for calm and reconciliation.

"We want to open a new page in the book of the history of the nation without rancor, hatred or confrontation," Mansour said Monday night. "It's high time to build a country that has reconciled with the past in order to build the future."

Tensions have worsened on the street between those calling for Morsi's return to power as Egypt's elected president and those who support the the formation of a new government. Violence sparked by the unrest has claimed over 100 lives since the military removed Morsi from power in early July.

The Muslim Brotherhood has rejected the authority of interim government, led by President Mansour, Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi and a 35-member Cabinet.

Family wants to see Morsi

Morsi's disappearance has contributed to the turmoil gripping Egypt. The military has neither disclosed his location, nor allowed him to show any sign of life to the outside world in almost three weeks.

The deposed leader's family has threatened to seek international justice if Morsi continues to be held in isolation and without charge.

"We accuse [Egyptian army chief Abdel Fattah] al-Sissi and the group that supported the coup of kidnapping the citizen and president, Mohammed Morsi," his son Osama told a Monday press conference in the capital city.

"We are taking local and international legal measures against Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, the leader of the bloody miltiary coup, and his putschist group," Morsi's daughter, Shaimaa Mohamed Morsi, said.

The military maintains that it has chosen to withhold information on the ex-president's whereabouts as a safety measure.

On July 3, the military seized control of the government in direct response to mass demonstrations calling for Morsi's removal. The opposition - driven by a group called Tamarod that accumulated millions of signatures, according to its own account - had demanded new elections because Morsi had failed to uphold the goals of the revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

Source: kms/tj (AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)

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Pegging Marriage Age At 23…We May Live To Fight Battles Of Sexual Misconduct

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Category: Youth News

Created on Friday, 19 July 2013 00:00

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Pegging Marriage Age At 23…We May Live To Fight Battles Of Sexual Misconduct

Government Statistician, Dr. Philomena Nyarko, this week proffered that the legal marriage age should be fixed at 23 years to ensure that young women become physically, socially and psychologically prepared before procreation.

Dr. Philomena Nyarko made the remarks at the launch of the 5th African Youth and Governance Conference in Accra under the theme “Youth inclusive governance: Harnessing Africa’s Demographic Potential”.

During the launch, she stressed the need for the nation to put in place measures against child bearing in order to improve the living conditions of families.

"It is well known that health outcome for both mother and child improve, if pregnancy is delayed until when the young woman has matured for marriage an childbearing, to help save the lives of both mother and child," she said

The new age, she stated, will also help to check the population growth of the country.

But Ursula Owusu, who also doubles as the NPP Member of Parliament for Ablekuma West, sharply disagrees and finds the proposition absurd.

According to her, scientifically, the libido in adolescents tends to rise in their youthful years and therefore should there be any upward adjustments in the marriage age, the country may live to fight the battles of sexual misconduct.

She pontificated on Oman FM that the youth may become promiscuous if the current marriage age entrenched in the constitution is reviewed and fixed at 23 years.

In her view, the ripe age should remain at 18 years but left to the discretion of the spouses to determine the period to seal their relationship in marriage.

Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com

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