REFUGEETHE Does the world know about Dadaab?

The Refugee Newsletter gives a voice to refugee stories to empower and inform the community.

ISSUE No. 9

The views expressed in this newsletter do NOT reflect those of FilmAid, UNICEF, UNHCR, or BPRM.

Education is one of the goals for Dadaab Refugee communities as well as

the host community. Education institutions in the region are either run by individuals or organisations.

Sunshine Academy is one of the Private Schools in Dagahley run by Sunshine Youth Group registered under the Youth Umbrella of

KNOWLEDGE IS POWERSunshine Academy Students Graduate

MOHAMED BASHIR (AFRICA)

Dagahley. The school was established in December 2005 with 20 boys and 4 girls. After a long struggle and hard work the school’s headmaster, Mohamed Sheik Yussuf, and the tutors managed to make the school a self supported and a recognised in the area.

On 16th-April-2013 the school held its 7th Graduation since it

INSIDEDO NOT BLEND, STAND OUT!

YOUR SAY ON EDUCATION...

Meet the first refugee girl who made it to a national schoolPage 5

Refugees have their say in our new column.Page 10

When we talk about education, we think about school. We often

view school in a traditional, formal sense. Many people believe that true learning can only take place in a formal classroom setting. Others feel education occurs in many different forms and environments. There may not be a definitive answer to the question of, ‘What is Education?’ However, we can start thinking about the purpose of education. Is it to educate youth to be responsible citizens? Is it to develop individuals, as well as society, in order to ensure a society’s economic success? Or is the purpose of education to simply focus on developing individual talents and intelligence? Perhaps it is the balance of all three that defines education? While our answers may differ, we can perhaps agree that education

CONTINUES ON PAGE 4

Is There Value In Education?

Excerpt from http://issues.tigweb.org/Education

BY REFUGEE TEAM

Find out the benefits of having a good education

PHOTO: Girls in a formal education. More girls are nowdays enrolled in formal schoolsCONTINUES ON PAGE 6

EDUCATION SPECIAL

This Refugee Newsletter is supported by

The Refugee Newsletter has been written and published by refugee youth under FilmAid’s Journalism Project in Dadaab Refugee Camps

A gift of theUS governmentBPRM

PHOTO: asomalichild.blogspot.com

The Refugee Editorial

CONTACT US For any issue, comment, feedback or articles send as a mail to; therefugee.news@yahoo.com or therefugee.news@gmail.com.You can also interact with us through our blog www.therefugeenewsletter.blog.com and our facebook fan page-the refugee@facebook.comor drop us a letter at any of our FilmAid field offices.

It is our great pleasure to once again bring you another edition of your

favorite read, The Refugee Newsletter. In our previous edition we brought you interesting news articles and features that we hope were educative and fun for you.

We looked at issues surrounding gender based violence, featured a group of women who went out of their way to earn a living through looming and bead work. We also introduced an opinion column where our readers were free to air out their views on issues affecting them or the community. The 8th Edition was a success.

The 9th Edition is a special

edition that is dedicated to education in Dadaab. It looks at all aspects of education in Dadaab, the factors that affect education, education for all, harmonious existence, and the community and education.

We have also included some inspirational features on education. We feature in the first refugee girl to ever make it to a national school and score an A-(minus) in her final exams. We have also added more fun and games for the young readers as well as you.

Let us all come together and make the refugee more interactive and educative by sharing your inspirational stories, news, opinion and any other piece of writings with the over 500,000 refugees living in

Dadaab by writing to us on our below contacts.

Always remember that the Refugee Newsletter is a community initiated project that is supported by FilmAid International and every member of the community is free to join and or write article for the newsletter.

Once again I wish to appreciate individuals and organizations who have assisted us to grow to where we are today by contributing ideas and material support to ensure the smooth running of the paper.

With that, it is our hope (the refugee team) that you will enjoy reading this edition and also find it informative and educative. From the editor’s desk, Enjoy your read.

The Refugee NewsletterIssue no. 9

Do you have a story to tell? Do have a passion for Journalism? Do you want to interact with your peers and share information or have fun?Send your articles to therefugee.news@yahoo.comtherefugee.news@gmail.comORDrop them off at any of our field offices in all the camps. You can also interact with us through the refugee newsletter blog.

The Dadaab refugee camps have now been in existence for over 20 years and the provision of education services has grown

steadily during this period. There are now 32 public primary schools, seven secondary schools and four YEP centres serving the Dadaab children and youth. The Education partners in Dadaab under the joint leadership of UNHCR and UNICEF came together in 2012 to formulate the Joint Dadaab Education Strategy (2012-2015) for a more harmonized response to the education challenges in the refugee camps and the host community. The objectives of the strategy are to:Increase equality of access to education

Improve quality of educationCultivate the value of education as a

protecting and empowering force in children’s life

Increase capacity of implementing partners, education officers and teachers to deliver relevant programming

Improved planning, implementation monitoring and reporting through enhanced coordination.

Through the inter-agency Education Working Group, great strides have been made towards achieving these objectives in Dadaab. The overall enrolment across all education levels now stand at 86,510 (40% female) with 1353 teachers. Between November 2011 and

February 2013 the Gross Enrolment Rates (GER) at the Primary level has risen from 34% to 45.2% while that at the ECDE level has risen from 20% to 49.5%. However, the secondary school GER has stagnated at 8% which can be attributed to the slow pace of expanding secondary schools in the camps due to financial constraints.

With UNICEF’s support a teacher development and management strategy has just been finalized and this will be instrumental in addressing the issues of teacher training, recruitment and retention in Dadaab. A Communication for Development (C4D) strategy has also been formulated to support the information dissemination of the joint Dadaab Education strategy. This special edition of the Newsletter is one of the products of this C4D strategy.

Some challenges still abound in Dadaab such as the high number of children out of school currently estimated to be 130,000 (with the majority being girls). The education sector is significantly stretched and has been unable to meet the needs resulting from the rapid increase in the number of children and lack of space to build additional schools which have caused congestion in classrooms; lack of qualified teachers; high teacher attrition;

lack of tertiary education opportunities and general apathy toward education by some parents. The current pupil teacher ratio at the primary school is 1:56 and 1:143 at ECDE level and 1:20 at secondary schools. These high pupil teacher ratios affect teacher effectiveness as one teacher has to handle so many children leaving little time for individualized attention thus comprising the quality of education. In the 2012 KCPE examination, the mean score was 163 out of 500 marks which is quite low as the pass mark is 250 marks. UNICEF, UNHCR and their partners need to now focus more on improving the learning outcomes in Dadaab refugee camps and the host community.

By having the community, teachers, NGOs, UN agencies and the learners all working as a team, we can effectively have a coordinated approach that is strength to actualize the Education Strategy in Dadaab refugee camps and host community response.

Message from UNICEF

The Editor

SPECIAL APPRECIATION TO:Mohamed Bashi (GARADE)Mohamed Bashir (AFRICA)

like Everlyne (CARE), enrolled him into an adult education program. Hassan was enrolled in the Adult Learning Center in Hagadera where he started of in standard 5 as he was literate.

The first days were tough for him as he was ridiculed by other students and also could not get teacher who could teach people like him. ‘I was so eager to learn, I felt bad when the other students were learning and I wasn’t. This almost made me give up’ said Hassan.

There are many education supporting NGOs operationg in Dadaab refugee camps among them, the Refugee Education Trust. RET, for example, is to run a programme called the accelerated

Hassan Mohamud Ali, is a refugee living in Dadaab refugee camps. His, is a

story of shattered dreams and restored hopes. He was training as a mechanic in Somali when the war broke out in the early 90’s. This forced him and thousands more and to flee from their own country to Dadaab refugee camps. For him life could not get any worse as he witnessed his once promising future crumble down before him.

He vividly remembers the fateful day when he lost his sight. On that day, he bordered a minibus home from work when an explosion occurred. The explosion shattered pieces of the vehicles glasses sending them into his eyes and body causing damage to his eyes and leaving with permanent blindness.

For him, all hope was lost and life became unbearable. It is during his long stay in the camps that he met Aden Agey, a teacher in the camps, who offered to help him. Aden saw his willingness to learn and with the help of other NGO staff

No easy walk to a brighter futurelearning program where youth out of school get a chance to continue with their education to secondary level in the shortest time possible. For many refugees like Hassan, this is a second chance to life and a brighter future. His main motivation was to inspire his own children and others like him to get good education for a better future.

The integrated, holistic life skills courses that NGOs are providing in Dadaab camps encourages the students to become self-reliant, gain an understanding of their personal responsibilities, interact and communicate with each other, and learn to live together in harmony.

Today Hassan is a happy man. He is happy that he can now read and write for himself on the brail. He can read stories for his children like other literate parents. Hassan is hopeful that with his education he will secure himself a job and be able to provide for his family.

I was so eager to learn, I felt bad when the other students were learning and I was not. This almost made me give up

While most people would think education is not for them, some like Hassan, blind, are determined to make a difference by being educated.

Education-Special Edition

BY ABDIKARIM HASSAN OSMAN

PHOTO:Hassan spends time reading with his children

PHOTO:(Above)Hassan showing how to read brail

From one secondary school in each camp with only one class to 6 secondary schools

across the five camps with all four streams able to consume a large number of the ever growing youth population. This has been seen by the refugee population as one of the most significant achievement in Dadaab refugee camps. Since their establishment, the schools have contributed immensely to the

high level of O-level graduates, who are now supporting the community through their involvement in community based development that is supported by the large number of international and local humanitarian organizations that have been working in the camps for the last 22 years. From 2001 to date, these schools have experienced various levels of development in terms of the

quality of education hinged on the curriculum used in schools under the Ministry of education in Kenya. Tracing back to the early days in the camp, there was not much to write home about as the system was struggling with issues like enrolment and a lack of proper community structures to support sustainability of the students already in schools. The inclusion of more humanitarian organizations in the education sector and the presence of the local education arm of the Government of Kenya introduced a raft of changes in the schools such as; introduction of department based performance structures, school based administration of mid-term and continuous assessment tests, mid-term holidays, inter-camp school co-curricular activities, provision of school report forms to students and other essential activities. This paradigm shift in the management of education brought with it a great change in the academic performance of the students and this can be mirrored

in the recent performance in Kenya certificate of Secondary education where in 2012, three students managed to score a mean grade of A- contrary to the previous years when it was a pipe dream.. From the time secondary schools were established in Dadaab refugees, 9 KCSE examinations have been administered allowing thousands of refugee youth to attain the coveted O-level graduate status. Another notable development in secondary schools supporting refugee education is the increase in the numbers of female students enrolling for classes. Girl-child education education has been heavily disadvantaged by an allegiance to deep seated cultural dispensations as epitomized by the Somali community and other African communities present in Dadaab. At the onset of secondary schooling in Dadaab refugee camps, there were very few enrollment of girls in schools as many fell out of the way at grade

Dadaab Refugee, A Blessing in Disguise

CONTINUES ON PAGE 6

PHOTO: Dagahaley secondary students in a computer class

The Refugee NewsletterIssue no. 9

Some cultural practices, are depriving girls of education in the Dadaab refugee complex.

Out of Dadaab’s estimated population of close to 450,000 mainly Somali refugees, more than half are children under 18 years. Of these only about 38 percent attend school. According to the UN Refugee Agency, the proportion of girls in the camps’ primary and secondary schools is 38 and 27 percent, respectively. A third of girls aged between 5 and 13 in Dabaab go to school; for those aged 14 to 17,

CULTURE... FOR... OR AGAINST EDUCATION?

I am very disappointed. My life is almost destroyed. I can no longer go back to school because I have to take care of my child; I have lost my pride

only one in 20 are enrolled.Hawa Ahmed (not real name), arrived in

Dadaab in October 2011 with her six children, said that only her sons attend school.

Her two daughters stay at home cooking, washing utensils and fetching water. “These are already enough lessons to learn how to keep a family,” said Hawa as she plaited her daughter’s hair.

While boys are generally encouraged to attend school, barriers to girls’ education remain.

Halima, 19, was married off to an older man in 2011 forcing her to drop out of high school. The now divorced single mother of one, said, “I

BY: MOULID IFTIN HUJALE-DADAABam very disappointed. My life is almost destroyed. I can no longer go back to school because I have to take care of my child; I have lost my pride.”

Meanwhile, aid agencies are coming up with incentive projects to help encourage girls to enroll and stay in school.

The UN World Food Programme, for example, is providing tokens for half a kilogram of sugar to girls who attend 80 percent of classes every month. CARE is also supplying adolescent girls with sanitary pads to minimize drop-outs.

Windle Trust Kenya is providing remedial and extra classes to girls in their final primary school year while the African Development and Emergency Organization (ADEO) provides them with solar lamps.

Those who make it to school in Ifo-2 and Kambioos camps face congested classrooms with limited facilities. Some are forced to sit on the ground due to lack of desks.

Aid agencies such as CARE and Save the Children have also started an Accelerated Learning Programme to train the refugees in basic numeracy and literacy in Ifo 2 camp.

The refugee youth umbrella organization is also helping to provide stationery. “We have distributed over 2,500 exercise books to children in Kambioos; we are also planning to do the same in Ifo-2,” Aden Tarah, a member of the youth committee said.

PHOTO: Students in a formal classroom during the school holidays

was instituted. The ceremony was colourful and the turn up of the invited guest was high. The school’s choir presented poems, songs, and drama related to the importance of education for girls followed by a speech by the guests and the school administrators. Every speaker emphasised the importance of an all inclusive education system that was accessible to all including girls and the disabled.

Guests from CARE-Kenya mentioned that the community in Dadaab had not been taking their girls to school but after the education sector started motivating and creating awareness in the blocks, a rise in the enrolment

of girls was reported. The guest also acknowledged private schools like Sunshine Academy that gave a boost and a helping hand to organizations by creating awareness.

Mohamed Sheik (Jubba) talked more about the school’s background and how the school is prepared to help bring up educated children. He also mentioned that Sunshine will stand strongly to uphold the rights of children in Dadaab and especially the girl child since they are the most vulnerable in the community.

In his speech, the headmaster appreciated UNHCR-community service and CARE-Kenya Education

sector for supporting the private school’s Dugsis and Madarasas with desks. “Our students were sitting on the ground in the first days of establishment, but with the help and support of the organisations we now have enough desks,” said Mohamed Jubba.

“The School has 545 students. Out of these 45 are adult business women and men. There are five congested classes and you may see some students sitting outside or piping through the window. However, the school is in great need of a functional latrine. “We still need support from the community and organisations to get enough classrooms and latrines for the sustainability of

the school,” continued Jubba.

What came out from the event was the importance of the community and the stakeholders in sustaining the schools. The schools should be owned by every member of the community and everyone should come out strongly and support the schools for a better future.

The graduating students

were awarded certificates while the best students received different gifts and prizes from the teachers and guests. Education is power and everyone should have access regardless of their physical ability, race, gender, or religion.

Knowledge is power CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

‘Our students were sitting on

the ground in the first days of establishment,

but with the help and support of

the organisations we now have

enough desks

PHOTO: Mohamed

I believe that life is what you make it. The decisions I am making today are going to determine

whether in the years to come am going to be a grumpy old woman or a very important member in the community.My name is Fatuma Omar Ismail, in the year 2007 while I was in class seven in Upendo Primary School, I made a decision to lead a successful life in the future which will be different.

Many girls drop out of school; are married off and become housewives.Where there is a will there is a way. I set my own goals and started working hard in my studies. I knew if I wanted to go to a secondary school I had to work extra hard and maybe make it to the university. Though it was challenging considering the fact that I had to do house chores like any other child my age and lack of facilities like electricity, I passed my KCPE exams and scored 364 marks out of the possible 500. I became the first refugee girl to join a national secondary school after getting an admission letter to the Kenya Girls High School.

Being a refugee, I was not able to pay for my own fees.

Thankfully, the Kenya Education Foundation volunteered to pay for my education. My high school education was not

that easy. I remember having to wear a scarf which I was not used to. At times I felt like giving up but my desire to achieve my dreams and ambitions in life kept me going. The other challenges were; Swahili language, worrying about my family back in the camps and the new environment that I was not used to.

Nevertheless, besides the academic lessons, I learnt a lot of things. I discovered my strengths and weaknesses and from that I became confident in myself. I enjoyed sports and got to interact with a lot of people with different beliefs and backgrounds, races and religion. I acquired leadership skills and became the chairlady of Muslims, and also joined a lot of school clubs.

I attained a mean grade A- (minus) in the KCSE examinations. My dream is to be a chemical engineer. I currently teach tuition at Waberi High School and give free math and science lessons to students who want to make it academically. I believe I have an opportunity to change my community.

My advice to my fellow girls is do not give up. Stand up for your

dreams and work hard for the development of the community.

For the youth out there who think as refugees we cannot make a difference, my message to you is... we can make it and even transform

Somalia, do your best to

DO NOT BLEND IN, STAND OUT

My message to you is we can make it and even transform Somalia and should therefore do our best to shape our destiny

BY FATUMA OMAR

LEFT: Fatuma Omar in her tuition class at Waberi High School-DadaabRIGHT: Fatuma preparing for her next class

PHOTO BY MOHAMED BASHI

A REFUGEE GIRL WHO HAS GONE AGAINST ALL ODDS TO BECOME THE BEST. THE REFUGEE TEAM VISITED WABERI HIGH SCHOOL TO BRING YOU THIS INSPIRATIONAL STORY

Education-Special Edition

The Refugee NewsletterIssue no. 9

is a basic human right. When that right is granted growth and development, the society as a whole is more likely to improve in areas such as health, nutrition, general income and living standards and population fertility rates.

In 1990 UNESCO launched EFA, the movement to provide quality education for all children, youth, and adults by the year 2015. Seventeen years later much progress still needs to be made if we

are to achieve the goal for 2015. The unfortunate reality is that for many countries, larger issues precede improving the quality of education. How can we achieve the goals of EFA when numerous countries around the world are faced with challenges that seem far too impossible to overcome?

The answer lies in attempting to bridge some of the gaps that prevent developing nations to compete with developed nations. One example is that of providing greater access to technology and narrowing the ever widening digital divide. In many ways the most basic access to technology can serve as a valuable educational tool. Individuals who are not afforded this access are at a disadvantage when trying to grasp opportunities to make life better for themselves, their families, and their community.

Another issue that poses a barrier to widespread development is that of literacy. There still remains a rather larger percentage of illiterate youth and adults in many nations around the world. Economic difficulty and lack of education get in the way of decreasing illiteracy rates. As you will learn in the following sections, literacy is no longer simply limited to reading and writing.

There are many different capacities in which an individual living in the twenty-first century can be literate. Helping to strengthen skills in other areas, can still help to make progress on sustaining the development of a nation, as well as achieve gender equality. The gender gap in education points to the fact that females are still not afforded the same opportunities as males. In many parts of the world cultures see no value in educating females. Two of the eight Millennium Development Goals, achieving

universal primary education and promoting gender equality, seek to close the gaps that exist in the education around the world. If we can make some advancement on achieving these goals, we can further the progress on the remaining six. Education is the foundation for the success of any given society. Numerous studies have shown the correlation between education and lower birth rates, lower infant mortality rates and fewer maternal deaths. Furthermore, a more educated population will also result in higher personal incomes as we all expand access to financial opportunities.

In summary therefore, education does not only encourage personal development, it also offers the general growth of an entire community providing a place for people to interact, socialize, and unify their societies.

Find out the benefits of having a good educationCONTINUING FROM PAGE 1

eight opting for early marriage to support their family with the wealth from the would be husbands. This practice has since reduced drastically with emphasis laid on family empowerment more so with the women targeted by concerned agencies through trainings, community mobilization and thorough various awareness campaigns on the importance of girl-child education, there has been great positive change.Today the number of female students in secondary schools is quite amazing and the once ideological thought of girl-child education seems to be assuming an important phase in the community. It is also quite astounding that girls today compete with boys in an equal footing in academics. Contributing to these gains are programs such as the Girl Child Education (GCE) programs in the camps in which

girls in primary schools are offered extra tuitions to supplement their normal classwork. This increases their chances of passing the national primary school exams and getting admission to secondary schools. Another important factor that has provided impetus to the improved presence of the girl child in secondary school is the involvement of girls in co-curriculum activity in schools such as presentation of drama, poems, songs and dances. These co-curricular activities allow students to interact and learn more through creativity and nurturing of talent. In addition to these, regional inter-schools competitions, students get a chance to present their talents at national platforms.

Dadaab refugee camps are also enjoying the presence of tertiary institutions where there are several chances of scholarships both

inside and outside the country depending on one’s academic performance. Some among of the most popular scholarship are the DAFI and world university service of Canada (WUSC) scholarships. The WUSC scholarship is given to those students who perform well; B (Plain) for boys and C+ for girls. These students are given a chance to join universities in Canada to pursue their dream courses. This WUSC program has been in the camps since the year 2007 in Dadaab refugee camps. At least 10 students are said to benefit from the WUSC scholarship every year in the region. This low numbers are attributed to low performances in KCSE exams largely influenced by environmental circumstance and social factors.

The other important scholarship to the youth in the camps is the DAFI (Albert Einstein German Academic Refugee Initiative) which was

launched in 1992 but it’s effect has been felt in the latter years. The DAFI scholarship allows students who have C+ and above among the boys and C- and above among the girls. The scholarship grantees tend to pursue degree and diploma courses in local universities in Kenya. Though the chances of these scholarships are limited, it has lifted the spirits and dreams of the youth in the camp.

Despite the refugee status and other difficulties, Dadaab youth have benefited from the free education from early child hood education to primary, secondary and tertiary education. Today most of the youth in Dadaab can boast of a decent education having either completed secondary education or still continuing.

Dadaab a blessing in disguise CONTINUES FROM PAGE 3

Dadaab refugees are predominantly of Somali origin. Initially, youth

were subjected to the old cultural norms. As people of one nation, one language, and one religion, exposure to the outside world has proved many things. The community and religious leaders in the camps agree that education of youth has brought some good changes to the society. Certain things which used to be abhorred have turned out to be normal. The youth education impact has dynamically transformed the cultural norms. Quite a lot of the things which were seen as normal are ceasing to exist.However, with the knowledge, skills, security and protection in the refugee camps, many people have successfully broken away from some cumbersome norms. A sociologist once said ”the morality of today is the crime of yesterday.”

One religious leader said,

“Education is the light that everyone needs even though secular. Educated youth have access to employment opportunities that are available in the refugee camps.” This has been one of the reasons why parents are sending their children to schools. All job vacancy advertisement requires some sort of formal education background. When the camp was new, employment opportunities were by chance rather than merit. By then some employers would not advertise their vacancies but would look for whom they thought was competent.

This practice has completely changed. Very many school leavers are looking for jobs in the camps. For every vacancy that is advertised, applicants are shortlisted and then interviewed by human resource departments with only the best selected. Apart from working for the organizations operating in the refugee camps, many school leavers have opened their own business. Even though Somalis are generally known for being business minded, the types

of business run by these youth ranges from the traditional to specialized. They would not have done these without going to school and having basic education. Many bookshops have surfaced, a sign that the community has a quest for knowledge. This is related to the emergence of many private schools giving an opportunity not only to school going children but also youth out of school a chance for literacy. The private schools range from primary to secondary resulting to an enormous improvement in refugee academic performance at the national and international level. In North Eastern County (Kenya), private schools in Dadaab are among the best academically. This applies to both primary and secondary schools.

In order to match with the global development and technology, quite a lot of computer centers have been put up. They are owned by youth who managed to go for certificates and diploma courses in computer studies. In every camp there is at least an internet cyber café. The refugees can get access to the world wide web and get connected to the outside world. There are some youth owned physiotherapy businesses where they message people and treat fractures and dislocations using modern methods. These kinds of businesses wouldn’t have existed without education or training.

The refugee youth are dressing in much more modern clothing. There are cinema and video halls including TV rooms where youth recreate.

Not surprisingly, t-shirts displaying different clubs are available in the markets, many football clubs have been formed in the camps and this has brought unity among the youth in the camps. They periodically schedule competitions and it is not surprising to see female fans, an unbelievable thing some years ago. There is also general insecurity in the camps, the type one may find in urban areas, sometimes; robbery, assult, occurs.

This has changed the lives of the refugee community.

IMPACT OF YOUTH EDUCATION IN DADAAB REFUGEE CAMPS

Education is the light that everyone needs

Educated youth have access to employment opportunities that are available in the refugee camps

ABDI ABULLAHI ADEN

PHOTO A somali lady in her business in one of the markets in Dadaab refugee camps

Quo

tes

POW

ER

We welcome [FilmAid’s] contribution to education and psychological assistance

for refugee children… Films help foster one of childhood’s most precious assets- imagination.

Carol Bellamy, Former Executive Director, UNICEF

With FilmAid, even mothers can go to the evening shows. They give encouragement to girls to study. Parents are

happy about FilmAid. FilmAid programs suit all different ethnic and religious groups in the camp. It suits their imagination and thinking. BecauMichael Ayuen Agok, Sudanese Refugee & Community Health Worker

Education-Special Edition

CONTINUES FROM PAGE 3

The Refugee NewsletterIssue no. 8

December, 2012

Whenever education is mentioned within the confines of Ifo

refugee camp, names like Abas and Abdirisaack will always be mentioned. These two posted phenomenal results that have never been experienced in the history of Ifo. If I am on the right side of history, their names will forever be etched in the hearts of many people in the camp. If we had our own ‘Guinness Book of Ifo Records,’ the guys’ names would be top on the list.

These two guys are former students of Ifo Secondary School. A convoy of agency vehicles tailed one another, raising clouds of dust into the burning hot climate, heading to Abas’ home, to have an eye witness account of who this man was. They saw a

man; so composed, speaking with measured hesitations and pauses, simply nodding his head affirmatively and shaking it negatively depending on the question asked. He had the personality of a genius; academically gifted indeed.

Thoughts and remembrance of such guys, is what sweeps our way towards our struggle to become academic giants and revolutionize Ifo Secondary School(ISS) to become a hub of knowledge; a center for academic excellence. Students for a long period of time, have been reminded of reclaiming their rightful position on the map in Dadaab. Hagadera Secondary School has been a consistent pugilist ever targeting the to be on top and earn the highest marks. We appreciate every effort they have put to remain at the top. However, we wish to make it clear that we have retraced our steps; found the spot at which the rain started beating us; refused to remain down and decided to stand

up. We believe that a failure is the one who falls and remains there but not the one who slips and retains their posture. We have clearly outlined what we want; planned how to get it; we are walking on that path and the pot holes and hillocks cannot prevent us from reaching there.

The just released 2012 KCSE exam results speak volumes. Though in 2011 we burnt the midnight oil to emerge the best, we found ourselves trailing behind Hagadera and Daghaley. This year, we have spoken reverberatingly that indeed we are heading to the top. Having come second, of course behind Hagadera, we still remain optimistic of bringing the mantle of our forefathers’ home who are asking, ”my sons, where is the stool of rule that we bequeathed you?” This year we are answering them,”father, forgive us for having taken long, but we are on our way to pick it from our adversary. Next year, father,

the stool of rule will be home.”The boys and girls are

prepared; perfectly chiseled, sandpapered, polished and just waiting for the final layer. They believe in cooperative competition; the main ingredient of teamwork. This year will see Hagadera taking about 13 students to Canada and Ifo taking 3. This is inarguably a demoralizing range but we have tied the rope around our stomachs to hold our intestines as we jaunt ahead(sic).

With able staff under the supreme and committed leadership of ‘Sir.’ Frankline Kirima, and our team of determined candidates; Abdifatah, Noor, Mohamed, Sadia and Fatuma, to name a few, we are optimistic to undoubted levels that this year will be a paradigmatic shift. A year of reclaiming our rightful position and revolutionizing Ifo Secondary School to be a center of academic excellence as it is meant to be.

IFO SECONDARY: A CENTER FOR ACADEMIC REVOLUTIONOPONDO NANGIRA BENJAMIN

PHOTO: Main entrance at ifo secondary school

‘my sons, where is the stool of rule that we bequeathed you.’

Lets revise science then we’ll go playajua

You can use my pen for today

‘Lets learn to live together as one’

PHOTO BY OBANG

Toon

Spe

ak

Ifo secondary on a race to reclaim their academic title

FACT BOX

“Whatever we possess becomes of double value when we have the opportunity of sharing it with others.”

Jean-Nicolas Bouilly

TEA

BREAKuote

221,000

57,000

Are school going age children living in Dadaab refugee camps

The number of enrolled students in the camps

DISCRIMINATION, CULTURE, MARRIAGE AND THE GIRL CHILD IN DADAAB

OPONDO NANGIRA BENJAMIN

There can be infinite uses of the computer in the new age of

technology, but if the teachers themselves are not able to bring it into the classroom and make it work then it fails - Nancy Kassabaum,U.S. Senetor.

Sometime last year, I was privileged to attend a three-day workshop on e-learning and integration of ICT in education for Science teachers in Dadaab refugee camps. The workshop was organized by Windle Trust Kenya, a nongovernmental organization implementing Secondary Education in Dadaab refugee camps, in collaboration with The Kenya E-learning Sector of the Kenya Institute of Education. Science

teachers were provided with basic knowledge on e-content as well as how to harness and use simple ICT tools to stimulate learning. It was a success; we went back to our classrooms.

It is worth mentioning that, even before this workshop, I had a good grasp of ICT tools (computer and common modern technologies) but seldom did I use them in the delivery of lessons. This is the reason; I thought or tended to imagine that integrating ICT in my lessons was complex work- a mind boggling activity that shouldn’t bother me at any cost. In any case, I have chalk, the blackboard, the content and the experience! I can illustrate abstract concepts on the chalkboard and use my able voice to explain them. It is this fear; a fear reffered to in the proverbial saying; better the

devil you know than the angel you don’t. Needless to say, if our curriculum has to meet the needs of the 21st century, then our mode of content delivery must change! I have no doubt in my mind, that integrating ICT in education is one among those many ways that would enhance the learners’ creativity and their sense of ‘third-eye reasoning;’ observing what the five senses cannot observe. Integrating ICT in refugee education is not an option; it is the only way. In fact, in my opinion, it’s an idea behind schedule. I think it should have commenced in the last decade. Nevertheless , it is never too late.

I am adequately convinced that learners in Dadaab refugee camps have a good understanding of ICT tools .Teachers as well,

I believe, are the custodians of ICT knowledge. They have to take the leading role. It’s an open secret that integrating ICT in refugee education and developing simple and appropriate e-content will go a long way in minimizing if not alleviating curriculum implementation challenges that are alive in a complex and unpredictable environment such as Dadaab.

With all said and done, we are still on the runway. Our plane is yet to take off .All education stakeholders in Dadaab refugee camps, must come together. Proper infrastructural development and capacity building must be put in place. This is an investment and like any other investment, to have proper yields, enough capital has to be put in place!

Olwande is a Physics Teacher in Dadaab Refugee Camp.

ICT INTEGRATION IN EDUCATION, THE ONLY WAY OUT FOR TEACHERS IN DAADAB REFUGEE CAMP

I am ad equately convinced that learners in Dadaab Refugee Camps have a good understanding of ICT tools

Most parents living in the camps and the com-munity at large still fail

to understand the importance of formal education for their girls as more importance is still being given to the boy child. The com-munity largely take their children

for other informal classes and not for formal education.

It is also important to acknowl-edge that quite a number of par-ents are slowly realizing the impor-tance of girl child education as is evident in the increasing number of enrolments in schools. The girl

child has also not disappointed as most of them end up per-forming better than their male counterparts. Fatuma is one of the girls in the community who have made it academically. She attained mean grade of A- (minus) in her K.C.S.E. exami-

nations last year and is thinking of studying chemical engineering in one of the local universities. She is currently volunteering as a tutor in one of the secondary schools in Dadaab. She recognizes the importance of education as well as the challenges that girls face in the camps most of which lead to drop-outs in school.

‘I am grateful that I got a chance to go to school, many of the girls living in the camps only dream about this and I am an example that given the oppor-tunity, girls can do better,’ said Fatuma.

Dadaab refugee camps has a popula-tion in the neighborhood of half a million people with only a handful of schools. These schools face a lot of challenges and apart from that, girls face extra problems that pose a challenge to their education. Most of these challenges come from the community. Some of the parents believe that young girls belong to the kitchen, they are not allowed to go to school, if they are taken to school “they will run out of hand and disobey their parents” instead of edu-cation, they submit their daughters to early or forceful marriage.

EARLY MARRIAGEEarly marriage was practiced in almost all African communities. Girls as young as

BY:OBANG CHAM

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PHOTO: FILMAID ARCHIVEPHOTO: A somali woman prepares a meal for her family

Education-Special Edition

BY J.O.OLWANDE

Refugee LeisureThe Refugee Newsletter

Issue no. 9

The number of educated girls in the camps is increasing after receiving great support from the community, family and

concerned agencies like Windle Trust Kenya.It is a pleasure to see our refugee girls getting an education and being able to speak in different languages, and interact with other communities.

ABDULLAHI ISSE ABDULLAHIFORM 2

When you educate a girl, you educate the community. I believe girls are supposed to be considered

for education like their male counterparts. There should be gender equality even in education. If you educate a girl, they will manage better the community’s resources and even help raise the living standards of their families.Given the opportunity, I think girls can also become better leaders like Fatou Bensouda.

MOHAMED ABDULLAHI HASSANFORM 2

The disabled must also have equal access to education. They may be physically disabled but they also have

a strong mind like ours and can contribute positively to the development of our communities since they too have brilliant ideas.All schools must also ensure that there is structural support for people with disabilities such as building ramps and latrines that are accessible to them. Fellow students should also encourage their disabled friends to join them to school.

MOHAMED ADEN ISSACKFORM 3

I feel girls are better than boys and should also be educated. Girls are more responsible and since education is key,

giving this key to the girl child will open new doors and opportunities to all in future.

FARHIO HASSAN IBRAHIMFORM 2

Girl child education is important as girls also help their parents and their children when they grow up.

Parents should ensure both genders get equal access to education and equal opportunities in life too.

SAHRO ABDIAZIZ IBRAHIM

Educate a girl... educate the world.THE REFUGEE TEAM SPENT SOME TIME WITH STUDENTS IN TAWAKAL SECONDARY SCHOOL AND THIS IS WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY ABOUT EDUCATION FOR ALL

REFUGEE

Photos

PHOTO BY HASSAN JIMALE (KILIMANJARO)

The girl child faces many challenges in life. We need education to help us overcome these challenges. It makes me happy to

see many of us being enrolled in school and becoming important people in the society. We can make it given the chance, we can be part of change in our community.

FILSAN ABDULLAHI HASSAN

MY COMMUNITY

Different families living together in a place forms a community. I love my community. It has different types of food for example fruits and vegetables. We eat food so that we get energy. In our community food is preserved in so many ways. For example meat is preserved

Lack of peace and education plays a key role as a trigger to poverty. With peace people

exist harmoniously. There is a correlation between peace and education. The interaction and peaceful co-existence of pupils from different backgrounds in Friends Primary School is a living example. Children from all communities wake up every morning and go to a common place with the aim of getting an education which they can only

achieve if they co-exist.This young generation separated

by war, famine or other disasters, find friendship and joy in schools and other learning institutions like Madrassa and Duksi. This social interaction helps them develop a common language that fosters understanding and unity among them. For the young kids, racism or ethnicity does not exist but it is brought about by the older gen-erations who are ether misinformed or lack understanding of the impor-

14 were married off to older men. Pregnancy and delivery at this age led to a lot of complications and sometimes death of young moth-ers. There have been various cam-paigns against these practices in order to allow more girls to finish their education and guarantee them, as well as the community a better future.

FORCED MARRIAGES Girls in schools should not be mar-ried against their will and their par-ents should not put their interest as first priority before the child’s well

being. Daughters are not a source of wealth to their families . When girls get married; the bridegroom’s family pays some pride price to the family. The bride price is in form of livestock and money. Therefore, the more daughters you have the more wealth you can get. This forc-es the parents to rationally force their daughters into marriage.

The purpose of marriage is, at a right legal age, established a per-manent relationship between hus-band and wife. For a marriage to be stable, it is important for a man and a woman to show commit-

ment in providing for their family in terms of leadership, shelter, food, clothing, health-care and security. Parents should be willing to show support for their daughters socially, spiritually, and professional devel-opment.

CULTUREThe girl child should not be seen as an object but as a human being. Both genders have their place and role in the community. The girl child should not be neglected. Their tra-ditional roles were mainly based around the kitchen and goats. It is sad to think that in this century some people still hold on to that. For many, education is for boys as they believe that educating a girl will only make her disobedient and maybe run away.

Many teenage ladies drop out of school after completing their primary level of education due to lack of parental support, though they are qualified to further their education. This should be discour-aged as it puts the girls’ future in jeopardy. Many of the young girls end up becoming mothers at a tender age with no proper means of taking care of their children or themselves. Girls should be given equal chances to education. The

future of the community is secured through success in the young gen-eration.SEXUAL DISCRIMINATIONThis is a form of discrimination that is gender based. Girls have suf-fered unfairness and oppression for a long time leading to their mar-ginalization. The main justification has been socio-cultural, religious and traditional. Boys are tradition-ally socialized from infancy that, they are superior to girls. For exam-ple boys are socialized to take up leadership roles and to face life’s challenges while girls are taught to take up subordinate roles. As boys are prepared to be tough, girls are taught that emotions and being gentle are virtues for women.

In education girls are the most af-fected in terms of attaining formal education compared to boys. This is because when the parents have limited resources to provide educa-tion for their children, they prefer to take their sons’ to school than their daughters’.

This contributes further to the lowly status accorded to girls in Dadaab refugee camps. This has lead to a higher percentage of illiterate and semi-illiterate women and girls in the community.

tance of unity in development.I also feel that there is need to

introduce peace education in the current education systems. This will help in fostering harmony in future leadership and generations to come. However, this responsibility should not be left for the teachers and schools alone but it should be shared by each and every mem-ber of the community. Parents and guardians should find joy in watch-ing their children grow in unity with other children without stiring hatred

between them as this may be the only key to future peace. Let us all not repeat the mistakes our fore fa-thers made. Let us work together in unity for the betterment of all hu-man kind.

BY BONGO MENG’ESHAFOR A PEACEFUL GENERATION

by smoking. We have two types of food grown in our community. These includes food crop which is consumed by a family and cash crop which is sold so that we get income.

Education is the key of the life as we know. In our community we get education. Education has many benefits for example we get employment. People have different languages so they have to learn

the international languages like English and Kiswahili to be able to compete in the modern world. People in our community educates their children so that they could live a good life. In the olden days, my community did not educate their girls, but this has changed. More girls are getting educated as can be seen in schools.

In our community people dress in

many different types of clothes. The clothes we mostly wear are made from cotton. As we know in our community we have the men clothes like shirt and trouser. Dressing is a very important thing because we hide some of our body parts. Clothes are a type of human need. Our women and girls were the’ hijab’ to cover their bodies which is a good thing.

EssayClub

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PHOTO: A modern woman who through education is now working

Discrimination, culture, marriage and the girl child in dadaab

Education-Special Edition

BY SUHEUB MOHAMED ABDIWALICLASS 6

The Refugee Newsletter is Designed and Published by FilmAid International & supported by UNICEF & BPRM. It is written by the refugee community for the refugee community. For any suggestions, comments, or questions, please email therefugee.news@yahoo.com/ therefugee.news@gmail.com or visit any FilmAid Offices in Dadaab.

Refugee FUN & KIDSThe Refugee Newsletter

Issue no. 9April 2013

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Fun & Games

DID YOU KNOW?

A school is a building that has four walls with tomorrow inside. Lon Watters

Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom. George Washington Carver

“You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation.” Brigham Young

Help the girl find her way to school

MAZE SUDOKU

Once upon a time in a far village in the far east lived a young boy

called Banda. Banda was the second born in their family. He was crippled and could not walk. His mother kept him away from other children so that he could not see that the other children could walk and go to school while he could not. Every day when his parents and younger siblings left for school,

Banda would drag himself to the window and lift himself to a chair and stare at the children playing outside. He wished he could join them and play with them. He wanted to go to school and become a teacher and teach other children like him.Days went by and months passed. One day when he was at the window he saw a young man looking at the window

where he was. The young man smiled at him and he smiled back. Then the young man walked to him and asked him why he was not going to school like other kids of his age but Banda felt so bad and shed tears as he was telling him his story. The young man promised to help him as he walked away.The following morning before his parents and siblings could leave the house the young man returned with school uniforms and a wheelchair for Banda. His parents were overwhelmed with joy and were happy to see their son go to school.Banda’s first day in school was a good one. He made a lot of friends and was loved by the teachers. At break time Banda could not play with his friends. He worked hard in class and always scored the highest in his class. After school, Banda became a teacher and now runs his own school. He gives education to children who are like him and helps his community whenever he is

The Boy Who DreamtBy Mengesha Bong’o

A goat can live upto 18 years!