Representatives of Dubai Cares initiative, the Government of Djibouti and the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) revealed details of the primary education programmes to be rolled out in Djibouti.

This marks the first outcome of a Dubai Cares-Unicef partnership announced earlier this week, said a top government official.

Addressing a press briefing in Dubai, the three partners announced that the programmes will be funded by Dubai Cares and implemented by Unicef and further the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG) of providing universal access to primary education, promoting gender equality and ensuring the empowerment of women.

Beneficiaries of the programmes in Djibouti will include 30,000 children in five communities where schools will be built or rehabilitated.

An additional 10,000 children will gain from a better school environment, while over 60,000 children between the age of 6 to 16 will benefit from better quality education through the use of pedagogical innovations and life-skills education. More importantly, 1,700 teachers will be provided with training to deliver better education to children.

Today’s announcement reaffirms the commitment of Dubai Cares launched on September 19, 2007 by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice president and prime minister of the UAE and ruler of Dubai, to educate one million children in developing countries around the world. 

Abdi Ibrahim Absieh, Djibouti Minister of Education, Dr Aloys Kamuragiye, Unicef representative in Djibouti, and Omar Shehadeh, advisor-external affairs, Dubai Cares attended the press conference.

“The Dubai Cares initiative is a welcome one for the people of Djibouti and is expected to support the government in fulfilling its obligations to provide quality education to all Djiboutian children, especially the most disadvantaged living in rural areas and slum quarters of the capital city,” said Ibrahim Absieh.

 “Dubai’s contribution will allow the government to move from promises to children to concrete achievements in the basic education sector,” he added.

The programmes will aid the construction and rehabilitation of primary schools in underprivileged areas, and ensure the provision of school equipment, solar power energy, safe water and sanitation, as well as hygiene and life skills education.

Dr. Kamuragiye said: “Djibouti’s development is contingent on its ability to deliver quality primary education to children. Unicef’s partnership with Dubai Cares provides the African nation a golden opportunity to implement steps for achieving this objective while ensuring gender equality in primary and secondary schools.”

The Unicef-Dubai Cares programme will effect an increase in net school enrolment in primary education from 66 per cent to 75 per cent by the end of 2009; a two percentage point fall in dropout rates in all regions; narrowing of the enrolment gap between girls and boys; a preschool education agenda within a national programme; and the development and adoption of a national strategy for non formal education.

Since its inception in 1946, Unicef has pursued an aggressive agenda to further its mission of advocating the protection of children's rights, help meet their basic needs and provide wide opportunities to ensure the realization of their full potential as mandated by the UN General Assembly.-TradeArabia News Service