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Working with the Daaras

Methodology    •  Background  research  on  legal  and  policy  

framework  •  Stakeholder  interviews  

•  Government  representa;ves  at  local  and  na;onal  level  

•  Donor  partners  and  civil  society  •  Focus  groups,  interviews  at  community  level  

Key  Findings    •  Daaras  are  a  crucial  part  of  the  community  fabric,  

inculca;ng  religious  values  and  providing  poten;al  networks  for  future  employment  

 •  High  demand  for  daaras  reflects  the  weakness  of  

the  public  educa;on  system    •  Parents  are  suppor;ve  of  the  public  educa;on  

system  and  would  like  a  bridge  between  religious  and  secular  system  

 •  Donors  are  increasingly  focused  on  providing  this  

bridge,  but  boDlenecks  exist  at  the  na;onal  level  

An  Historic  Perspec;ve  •  Government  insistence  on  French  as  the  official  

language  of  instruc;on  represents  a  long  history  of  colonial  rule.    

•  Before  independence,  French  colonial  authori;es  suppressed  religious  educators,  and  then,  when  they  became  centers  of  imperial  resistance,  tried  to  coax  them  into  the  administra;on.  

 •  The  post-­‐colonial  government  of  Senegal,  founded  on  

secular  principles,  has  remained  resistant  to  fully  accept  the  daaras.  Yet  a  gradual  process  of  decentraliza;on,  par;ally  due  to  lack  of  state  resources,  gave  religious  leaders  increased  leverage  

While  there  are  54  public  primary  schools  in  the  Potou  village  cluster,  there  are  also  around  60  private  Koranic  schools,  or  daaras.    

•  The  popularity  of  the  daaras  poses  significant  difficul;es  for  aDaining  universal  basic  educa;on  (MDG2):  daaras  do  not  teach  French,  the  official  language  of  Senegal  or  use  the  recognized  government  curricula.  

 •   As  such,  students  in  these  schools  are  

not  counted  in  official  enrollment  sta;s;cs.  

 •   In  Potou,  a  Y5  survey  shows  a  primary  

level  net  a8endance  ra:o  of  54%,  and  a  more  recent  survey  shows  liDle  progress.  

Policy Progress and Field Research Koranic Education in Potou, Senegal

List  of  sub-­‐villages  in  MV1  with  net  a6endance  ra:o.  Sites  in  yellow  were  selected  for  focus  groups  

An  abri  provisoire,  or  temporary  shelter  used  as  a  daara.  The  marabout,  or  religious  teacher,  is  pictured  to  the  right.