Since we introduced the REFLECT programme in Sudan, many thousands of previously illiterate women and their families have benefitted
15 December 2011
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| Two women taking part in GOAL's REFLECT classes in Agok |
“In May of this year, more fighting displaced tens of thousands of people into Agok and the bordering Twic County where they remain still, and where we continue to respond to their needs as best we can.
“Our activities in Agok include the provision of primary healthcare, nutrition, water and sanitation, and livelihoods services. We also run an education programme for women called REFLECT*. After more than 20 years of war in Sudan the literacy rate for women is only 12%. The need for women to learn to read and right is urgent so they can access the information they need to improve their lives and access their rights.
“REFLECT is a programme pioneered by GOAL in Sudan over a decade ago and is designed to empower women in vulnerable communities through raising literacy levels, reducing child mortality, achieving gender equality and ensuring sustainable development. All this considerably raises the welfare prospects of poor families.
“Since we introduced the REFLECT programme, many thousands of previously illiterate women and their families have benefitted and we are now delivering the same service in parts of Ethiopia and Malawi.
“During a recent visit to Agok to oversee the progress of our programmes, we stopped by one of our REFLECT classes, where 16 local women were learning English, the national language of the new country, under the shade of a nearby tree.
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| As part of the REFLECT programme, the women learn to read and write in English |
“The women participate in the REFLECT programme for two years. In year one, they learn to read and write in English with the sessions particularly based around topics such as food and nutrition, hygiene, the prevention of disease, child-raising and the importance of education. During year one, participants will elect a leader among themselves to work hand-in-hand with the facilitator to ensure the sustainability of the programme.
“The second year covers life skills, and aims to further improve the women’s numeracy and literacy skills, in addition to the management of a small business.
“At the end of the programme, the participants are encouraged – and given assistance - to start an income-generating activity, such as establishing and running their own business in the local market.
“This is important as it helps bring income into each family. Every woman in this particular class has at least five children, for example. GOAL also supports the women in their new ventures for a period of three months to ensure that the businesses are running as successfully as possible.
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| Following the two-year course, participants of REFLECT are encouraged to start their own business |
“They also said that their husbands support their attendance at the classes, just as long as the daily work has been completed first.
“While it was very encouraging to see these women learning to read and write in their own community with neighbours and friends, the real challenge for them is to remain in the REFLECT programme for the duration of the programme.
“GOAL will do everything in its power to ensure that they do.”
- Aidan Goldsmith, GOAL South Sudan Country Director
* In 2005, in recognition of its work with REFLECT, GOAL received an international literacy prize from UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) for “particularly effective contributions to the fight against illiteracy, particularly in the developing world”.
GOAL’s REFLECT programme is currently funded in Agok by the UK’s Department for International Development; by the US’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance in Twic; while Irish Aid has supported the programme in other areas of South Sudan and Sudan (formerly North Sudan) for several years.
Recently, the organisation secured a €300,000 two-year grant from the European Union to help support GOAL’s REFLECT programme in Kassala, Sudan.