Projects are listed by award date. Alternatively, list projects by title.
Guinea Brighter Futures (Community Partnerships for Peace - P.C. Paix)
Reducing tensions in the most conflict-prone region of Guinea
While working in the Forest Region of Guinea (in the prefectures of N'Zérékoré, Macenta, and Lola), World Education reduced the threat or impact of violent conflict and promoted peaceful resolution of differences. The Forest Region is one of the most violent and conflict-susceptible regions of Guinea because of its rich agricultural and mineral resources and proximity to war-ridden countries, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Cote d’Ivoire. With the elevated presence of refugees, immigrants from other countries and regions of Guinea, and foreign mining companies, the Forest Region has witnessed many conflicts over the past few decades, in particular. Under a cooperative agreement with USAID/ Conflict Mitigation and Management, World Education carried out the Community Partnerships for Peace, aka P.C. Paix, focusing on four main objectives: 1) To strengthen traditional community structures and resolve and mitigate conflicts through transparent and inclusive actions, 2) To reinforce the capacity of youth associations and young people to promote a culture of non-violence, cooperation and transparency, 3) promote inter-group dialogue and reconciliation at community levels, and 4) document and disseminate lessons learned and best practices for sustainability. Over the course of the program, multiple success stories were collected about how the P.C.Paix program directly contributed to the resolution of inter-village conflicts, including those that were instigated before the project existed.
At project end, a final evaluation was conducted by an external evaluation team. Overall, the final evaluation concluded that P.C.Paix effectively garnered community participation and support for conflict mitigation and management activities.
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SELECT (Stop Exploitive Labor and Education Children for Tomorrow)
World Education surpasses expectations while combating exploitative child labor and trafficking in Guinea
One of the most pressing issues facing Africa is exploitative child labor and child trafficking. In 2010, the Ministry of Planning in Guinea estimated that 66% of rural children aged 7-14 and 91% aged 15-19 are engaged in some form of labor. Since exploitative child labor and trafficking are interlinked problems, trafficking is pervasive in Guinea. The US Department of Labor awarded World Education the Stop Exploitative Labor and Educate Children for Tomorrow (SELECT) program to combat exploitative child labor and trafficking in Guinea. World Education, as the prime, led a consortium that included two other international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and six local NGOs to identify and withdraw at-risk and victim children, place these children into educational programs, mobilize communities to promote child protection – specifically relating to exploitative child labor and trafficking – and galvanize national efforts to address exploitative child labor and trafficking in Guinea.
By project end, SELECT successfully achieved projected objectives, identifying and withdrawing 5,322 at-risk children and 4,497 victim children, and indirectly benefited more than 12,000 students through school infrastructure projects. SELECT’s mid-term evaluation, which was conducted by an US Department of Labor-hired external evaluator concluded that SELECT was a successful program despite the political instability of the country beginning in the program’s first year of implementation.
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Combating Exploitive Human Trafficking through Education and Civic Participation in Guinea (PROTEGE)
Protecting women and children in Guinea from Human Trafficking and Exploitative Labor Practices
The US Department of State awarded World Education a 2-year grant to contribute to the fight against global trafficking in persons (G/TIP). In Guinea, human trafficking, especially of children, prevails in several forms due to extreme poverty, porous borders and poor basic services provided in education social affairs, security and justice. Focusing primarily in the prefectures of Kindia and Forecariah and Guinea's capital city, Conakry, PROTEGE worked towards and achieved the following results: 1) Improved access to quality education for vulnerable children and victims of trafficking, 2) Increased awareness of grassroots organizations, local elected officials, and religious leaders about the importance of education and the negative effects of child trafficking, 3) Strengthened capacity and collaboration of partner organizations to fight against child trafficking, 4) Strengthened documentation and dissemination of lessons learned and results of action-research on child trafficking, and 5) Establishment of female domestic workers' association for protection and awareness raising in favor of female domestic workers. Through its participatory approach and partnership with the grassroots structures and local leaders, PROTEGE identified 853 children who were either vulnerable or victim of child trafficking. Among the identified children, 225 of them were successfully integrated into schools, second chance centers, or village-based child protection centers.
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Community Action for Education and Literacy Project (ACEB)
The forest region in Eastern Guinea is historically one of the least developed in the country. In spite of the rich natural resources and growing economy, access to education and other necessities are limited.
The Community Involvement in Education and Literacy Project (ACEB) aims to improve the quality of life and opportunities for sustainable development in this region. Implemented in close collaboration with local NGO partners, ACEB extends pilot phase literacy activities to more of the Beyla, N'Zérékoré communities and incorporates post-literacy and initial French literacy programs.
The project reinforces the capacity of a host of local civil society associations to contribute to a culture of literacy, enhance economic opportunities, and to improve retention and pass rates at the secondary school level.
One aspect of ACEB is the implementation of a sustainable savings and revolving micro-credit fund, which is managed by trained Mothers' Associations. An innovation to the second phase of ACEB includes a change in the scholarship component to target secondary school students in Beyla. Finally, at the request of the funder, the Rio Tinto Group, the second phase will be expanded to include the three new communities of Nionsomoridou, Watefredou and Traorella.
The main goal of ACEB is that community-based organizations are able to identify and implement durable solutions to the development challenges they face in their everyday lives.
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Faisons Ensemble
Bringing the Values of Good Governance and Democracy into the villages of Guinea
Soon after the major political instability incident in January 2007, Faisons Ensemble was launched to address the country’s good governance and democracy issues. As a member of a consortium led by Research Triangle Institute, World Education played a vital role in the Faisons Ensemble participatory and grassroots level approach. World Education led Faison Ensemble’s NGO capacity building efforts in organizational development and management, including with the civil society organizations (community, regional and national levels). The goal of these efforts was to empower these organizations with the skills to hold their local and national governments accountable. Through functional literacy courses, community mobilization, and local media, World Education increased citizens’ access to information regarding their rights, roles, and responsibilities, especially in regards to social and government accountability. Specifically in the Education sector, World Education worked with the Ministry of Education to create a civic education curriculum for use in the public schools, and raised awareness in communities about the importance of transparency and fighting corruption within the schools and school system.
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Women's Literacy and Livelihoods Pilot
It is estimated that 81% of women in Guinea are illiterate, with the highest concentration of illiteracy in rural areas. The impact of these high illiteracy rates, particularly in Guinea's rural areas, is felt in numerous sectors including education, health, natural resource management and throughout the local economy. Rural women are particularly affected by illiteracy, which, combined with the lack of access to microcredit serves to deepen their vulnerability and marginalization. Approximately 70 to 80% of rural women in Guinea suffer serious financial difficulties and have no access to credit.
World Education's Women's Literacy and Livelihoods Project is a 14-month pilot designed to improve the well-being of rural Guinean women and their families through increased access to basic literacy and the promotion of sustainable livelihoods. The pilot integrates lessons learned from years of experience in Africa and Asia working with community-based organizations to create innovative tools and strategies that address critical needs for functional literacy and microenterprise.
Working with 10 women's groups in the Mamou region, the project aims to develop women's basic skills in literacy and livelihoods. Functional literacy training is held local-languages and integrates sustainable livelihoods and includes practical exercises, allowing participants to immediately use mathematics and microfinance skills learned in literacy sessions. To complement literacy training, women receive additional skill-training in locally relevant income generating activities and gain access to microcredit funds.
The pilot encourages sustainability by strengthening women's groups to manage literacy activities, sustain small savings programs and provide ongoing assistance to their members. As with many of World Education's programs, women receive cross-cutting training on HIV and AIDS and its impact on livelihoods and development.
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Ambassadors' Girls' Scholarship Program (AGSP)
(2004 - 2011)
Through schooling, children are equipped with skills that improve the quality of their lives. Skills such as reading and working with numbers as well as accurate information on health and science, provide opportunities to students that would otherwise not exist. Unfortunately, due to social, cultural, and financial constraints, access to primary and secondary schools for young girls in many African communities is restricted.
A program of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the President's Africa Education Initiative/Ambassadors' Girls' Scholarship Program (AEI/AGSP) was implemented throughout Sub-Saharan Africa between 2004 - 2011. World Education managed the program in 13 West African countries in collaboration with local NGOs. The AEI/AGSP provided more then 188,000 scholarships to cover educational costs for 73,000 girls and boys who are economically disadvantaged, disabled, orphaned, and/or affected by HIV and AIDS. Many of the beneficiaries would otherwise be out of school, or at risk of dropping out.
In addition, each girl enrolled in the scholarship program was mentored and encouraged in her educational pursuits, while participating in activities that focused on HIV mitigation and prevention, and community participation and democracy.
World Education's AGSP programming represents a notable example of our well-known and recognized expertise in building the capacity of local community counterparts. Because grants to community organizations and NGOs play a significant role in World Education programs, in addition to our own strong internal systems for providing and monitoring sub-grants, World Ed trains local organizations in how to meet reporting requirements, draft and manage agreements, and monitor sub-grants. Via our NGO partners, we train sub-grant recipients in how to account for funds, ensuring transparency and accuracy in accounting. AGSP was an excellent example of this since it is implemented through sub-grants to over 41 local NGO partners in 13 countries in West Africa. World Ed worked with these 42 NGOs partners to provide scholarship and mentorship support, such that the NGOs not only delivered their technical services, but also maintained records and reports that meet USAID standards. Sagefox Consulting Group, LLC, the M&E subcontractor on AGSP, maintained the program database, FieldLink.
Read the following success stories about the project:
Educating and Inspiring Girls in Africa
On the Frontlines of Girls' Education
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Community Participation in Education for Equity and Quality (PACEEQ)
There is a large disparity in Guinea between urban and rural area school enrollment and quality of education due to complex historical and socio-economic factors. Retention rates for girls and rural children are low throughout the country, but increased parental involvement in education has offered opportunities for improvement. Decentralization has also played a pivotal role with regard to basic education policy and parents have become the primary advocates for educational resources for their children.
In collaboration with Save the Children, Educational Development Center (EDC), Research Triangle Institute (RTI), and Academy for Educational Development (AED), World Education has increased community participation in basic education in order to improve quality and gender equity. PACEEQ developed the skills and institutional capacity of Guinean nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to implement effective community development activities through training and support services. In addition, the program worked closely with NGOs to strengthen parents' associations to enhance their role in improving quality of and access to education for their children. Also integrated into PACEEQ were rural radio activities, adult literacy training, and strategies to prevent and mitigate the spread of HIV/AIDS.
In August of 2005, PACEEQ was extended for a supplemental year to ensure that parents associations and local government institutions sustain project activities for years to come. The focus for the 2005-2006 year also included substantial training and capacity building support to national level institutions.
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