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No books here, only practical!
Hanna DEKERK | 23/09/2018
Atugonza Shadrack opened his welding workshop in Masindi two years ago. Today he trains two apprentices in there, while catering to his clients. “At Shadrack Metal Works the students first observe the work but then they do it themselves. There are no books here, only practical! “ As an experienced artisan, Atugoza has much practical knowledge to pass on to his apprentices. The challenge is that he doesn’t really know how. That is why the Support to Skilling Uganda (SSU) project organizes pedagogical trainings for mastercraft persons like him. Topics range from coaching techniques, to activity planning and financial management. Mastercraft persons are taught to use Skills Development Plans to develop a curriculum for practical training. This is to avoid that the apprentices keep repeating the same tasks or do tasks that are irrelevant for their education. The curriculums are based on the Assessment Training Package of the Ugandan Ministry of Education.Atugonza also found it useful to participate in SSU-organized trainings on Customer Service and Safety Provisions. “Now I know how to deliver quality work, while keeping safe working conditions in my shop. It makes me embrace higher standards.” At the workshop Atugonza teaches the apprentices to cut metal and weld items such as windows and doors. He encourages them to take classes at technical institutes in the region, as this will broaden their knowledge and allows them to get certified. By upgrading the pedagogical skills of these artisans, the SSU project aims to improve the quality of practical training in the Albertine-Rwenzori region.
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Uganda launches new Education Response Plan for Africa’s biggest refugee crisis
Sylvia NABANOBA | 21/09/2018
The Government of Uganda, Partners in Development, UN agencies and NGOs have launched a new Plan that if funded will provide quality education for hundreds of thousands of refugee and host community children in Uganda. The Education Response Plan (ERP) is the first of its kind worldwide and represents a huge policy step forward for refugee education globally. It sets out exactly how to address a crisis where more than half a million children are out of school. 57% of refugee children in Uganda (at least 353,000) and 34% of local children in refugee-hosting districts (around 171,000) do not have access to education[i]. Uganda hosts the largest number of refugees in Africa, and is one of the top refugee-hosting countries worldwide. The Plan, which was developed within the framework of the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) recently adopted by all nation states, confirms Uganda’s leading global role. At country level, the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) and the Ministry of Local Government, with UNHCR playing a catalytic role, coordinates implementation of the Framework[ii]. More refugees continue to arrive daily, with most fleeing from extreme violence in South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and other conflict-affected countries. More than 130,000 have arrived this year alone, and at least 61% are children under the age of 18. The influx is putting a severe strain on already limited school resources in local communities. Many classrooms have no walls or electricity and lacking latrines and basic sanitation facilities that are needed to accommodate so many children safely and with dignity. There is also a drastic shortage of teachers and basic materials such as books and desks. The Hon. Janet K. Museveni, the First Lady of Uganda and Minister of Education and Sports, said: “This is a children’s crisis. None of these children chose to become a refugee, but they have had their lives ripped apart. Now we must give them the chance of a future. “Education is hope. It brings a sense of normalcy to their lives ravaged by war and suffering. It protects them and helps them cope with their difficult situation, and builds a foundation from which they can reach their potential. Education is vital if we are to break the vulnerability created by conflict and displacement. “We are committed to helping these children, but now Uganda needs support to make this Plan a reality. Together we can and must ensure that all children get the opportunity to access inclusive, quality education at all levels.” The ERP has been developed by the Ministry of Education and Sports, with support from international donors, UN agencies and development organisations in Uganda. “Enabel welcomes the Education Response Plan, and has worked together with the Ministry of Education and other partners in its development, as member of the steering committee. The ERP will give an opportunity to refugee children to attain education and skills development, which will empower them and help shape their future and that of their nations of origin,” said Niels De Block, International Skills Development Expert at Enabel. Enabel is already contributing to the provision of education for refugees and host communities in Uganda through the Support Programme for Refugee Settlements in Uganda (SPRS-NU). Funded by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund, through SPRS-NU Enabel runs programmes that equip youth, women and girls with employable skills that can enable them get employment or create their own jobs. This year alone, 1,480 youth are benefiting from the programme. The Government of Uganda has been serving as a model example in the international community by granting refugees asylum and access to the same rights as its citizens. However, more support is urgently needed from the international community to ensure the Plan can be implemented. The Plan has been developed to align closely with Uganda’s Education Sector Strategic Plan (ESSP) for 2017-2020. It aims to improve access to and quality of learning across all forms of education in Uganda’s 12 refugee-hosting districts, through activities including: - Constructing new classrooms and repair existing ones in order to make schools safer and more accessible – for example - so that children with disabilities can attend; - Providing essential materials such as textbooks, desks and stationery; - Addressing teacher gaps and capacity to deliver quality education to refugees and host community learners; - Strengthening the national and district level education system for effective and sustainable service delivery; - Getting older youth who had dropped out of school back into education, through Accelerated Education Programmes and vocational training; and - Piloting innovations in education. [i] Figures for refugees are available for 8 of the 12 refugee hosting districts. [ii]The Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) was adopted by all 193 Member States of the United Nations in September 2016 as part of the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants.
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IT application in education management - Binh Thuan province
Huong TRANTHANH | 19/09/2018
Binh Thuan is one of the coastal province of Vietnam with more than 90% of the landscape covered by mountains, island and resident by ethnic minorities. In the school year 2015-2016, Binh Thuan Education and Training Department (Binh Thuan DOET) started to apply VnEdu – a software developed by VNPT at all primary, lower secondary and upper secondary schools in the province. The software was considered an effective tool that can help schools to better manage its education activities. Provincial education managers also need a comprehensive and unified data base for better planning and managing education developments in the province. However, many school staffs in remote area were lack of basic IT skills, nor understand the tool’s features and could not use the software effectively. Binh thuan DOET joined the call for proposals launched in June 2016 by FCB project for capacity development. After several evaluation rounds and negotiations, the province got a Grant of nearly 85,000 Euros for training and coaching for 370 education managers from 185 schools (over 436 schools in the province). The beneficiaries include 350 principals and vice-principals of schools in difficult, remote and island areas and 20 education administrators in DOET. The training guided the trainees on how to use management features of the software for planning and reporting, use of e-books, messages, school website, management of official documents, statistical reports ... These education managers are now using full features of VnEdu to manage the school’s operations. The software helps to connect teachers and school managers with parents effectively to follow up and support their children’s study. Thanks to the software, the school now have unified database that save them a lot of time in compiling reports, managing school staffs and making educational plans. E-books feature helps the school managers to manage activities in different school sites more easily. Below are some testimonies of the beneficiaries on their school’s websites: "The functions and utilities of the VnEdu Software really help the school and teachers manage their staff, students, academic records, as well as school finance and properties. It also creates a website for posting, writing article captures the best moments of teachers and students in all the school's teaching and learning activities. Thanks to the training provided by FCB project, I am now very confident in using Microsoft softwares to design my lesson. I also help other teachers to create more lively and attractive lectures”. - Nguyen Ngoc Trang, Principal-Hoa Thang Elementary School "Right after the training, I trained other teachers in my school and instructed them to apply some utilities of the software in the process of teaching and managing students. I also posted some news and photos about the school's activities on my school’s website. At present, the school has been exploiting quite a lot of utilities of Vnedu. In the coming time, we will continue to learn to exploit more facilities to help management, teaching and learning of the school faster, more convenient, more scientific”. - Ha Thi Thuy – Hoa Thuan Primary school, Bac Binh, Binh Thuan "The application of VnEdu software has helped create interactive social networks, connecting school members. It also create a connection between the family and the school, as a reliable online data warehouse. Information that the school sends to parents is fast, timely through the most popular means such as mobile phones, the Internet or MyTV television ... VnEdu e-mail solution helps the management of schools, teachers are convenient, and helps parents to capture the results of learning and training of their children in the fastest way " Tran Thi Thuy Vy-http://thpt.buithixuan.binhthuan.vnedu.vn/
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Fostering decentralization of public financial management: e-SISTAFE workshop for accountants in the rural districts of Tete
Anke VANDEVELDE | 18/09/2018
Fostering decentralization of public financial management through capital and skills investment:e-SISTAFE workshop for accountants in the rural districts of Tete In the last week of August 20 participants responsible for accountancy in the health sector in rural districts of Tete Province were brought together in the provincial capital Tete for a training financed by Enabel’s GTAF II project. The aim of the training was to provide the participants with a clear theoretical and practical knowledge on the Integrated Financial Management Information System, locally known as e-SISTAFE, the electronic system used for managing the expenditure of public sector administration. Enabel Mozambique and PFMSince 2013, Enabel together with the Government of Flanders has been implementing this project with the aim to improve the Public Financial Management (PFM) in the Mozambican Ministry of Health with the engagement of a technical assistant to GTAF, the working group on audit and finances. This year the project has initiated its third phase and will focus mainly on promoting comprehensive dialogues in the health sector, supporting a sound financial management system in actual and future reforms and further strengthening PFM aspects with a main focus on linking financial input with service delivery, a link that is not clearly identifiable yet. Ancient PFM regulationsThe management of public finances in Mozambique was until 2002 regulated by ancient regulations dating back to the end of the 19th century (the “1881 Regulation on Public Accountancy”, as well as the “1901 Regulation on Treasury”). In the late 90’s it became clear that a reform and modernization of the financial administration was indispensable and therefore imminent. In 2002, a new “System of Financial Administration of the State” (SISTAFE) finally saw daylight through the Law of 9/2002 and the Decree of 23/2004, including a digital platform “e-SISTAFE”. This system aims to bring more transparency in the accountancy processes, to harmonize the rules and procedures, to bring together reliable information, to implement a sound internal control and audit system and to allow an efficient, adequate and correct financial-economic conduct of activities. The roll-out of e-SISTAFE is currently still ongoing and is supported by Enabel’s project. Decentralization of PFM: from UGB to UGESince 2002, SISTAFE governs the way public institutions have to manage the expenditure and the roll out of e-SISTAFE is taking place in several waves: it started with institutions at central level and is expanding to all budget units. Budget units are “UGB” (Unidade Gestora Beneficiária). Yet if a UGB is also a “UGE” (Unidade Gestora Executória) it can execute its share of the budget independently. Otherwise, the UGB depends to its hierarchical UGE to execute its payments. Thus, the visibility in the budget, as well as procedures and categories of payments, differ according to whether the institution is an executive or a beneficiary public institution. The latter’s budget and expenditures depend on and is clustered with the UGE. If the District Services of the Health Sector (SDSMAS) is a UGB, it will have to rely on the District Secretariat (which is the UGE) for its payments. Yet, the District Secretariat is also in charge of other public services for that district (such as Service for Education – SDEJT – and for Public Infrastructure – SDPI). The government of Mozambique has undertaken several waves of decentralisation by creating the conditions for entrusting the financial management to the institutions responsible for one specific kind of service to be delivered. The Ministry of Health – with modest Enabel support – targeted few UGB that are or will soon be converted into UGE. From now on, they have to manage their own expenditure and execute payments themselves.Practical exampleParticipants to the course were very positive about the decentralization process of PFM as it would make the payment process easier. They reported that currently, many of the payment orders were held pending by the UGE and therefore the Health UGB suffered delays in payments. Indeed, the release of funds to a UGE is linked to the expenditure performance: this implies that if one of the services is underperforming all the other services will take the burden. For the sake of clarity, let us suppose that in the month of March in Pandza District[1] there are two payments to be done, one for the Pandza Rural Hospital and one for the Pandza Primary School. Let us suppose that a supplier to the Pandza Primary School is not issuing the invoice for final liquidation of expenditure. The District Administration, that is the UGE, can neither execute that expenditure nor apply for new liquidity for the month of April, practically blocking all the payments of the entire UGE due in April and thus also the payments for the UGB Pandza Rural Hospital. As targeted institutions will soon become UGE, they will be shielded from problems with other UGBs. In addition, they will receive more responsibilities and more autonomy in relation to expenditures and budgeting. Course contentIn a first stage, the course provided the participants with a clear theoretical background of SISTAFE about its history, objectives, structure, financial regimes, budget planning, execution procedures, ethical questions (such as pre-payments), etc. In light of the decentralization process of PFM, the practical exercises were especially of importance to the participants. Although most of them indicated to have worked with the informatics platform e-SISTAFE in their daily work, the transformation from UGB to UGE has brought many more new proceedings to be executed by these financial accountants. The instructors showed them the different procedures they will be responsible for from now on and which steps they have to take for each one of them, as well as briefed them on the classifying codes and how to consult the different reports in e-SISTAFE. The participants were very optimistic and stated that the course successfully tackled the gaps they were confronted with after the decentralization of PFM. They were confident that they now have sufficient knowledge to successfully process all payments, from beginning to end, through e-SISTAFE.Skills and capital investmentThe fostering of the decentralization process of public financial management by Enabel’s GTAF phase III project does not only consist of a skills development part through this e-SISTAFE course. It also includes a part linked to capital investment, through the installation of equipment in the targeted institutions. The equipment consists of 3 working stations (required for the segregation of the functions for authorising a payment) and a networking system so that the operator will work in real-time in the e-SISTAFE which in turn is linked to the Single Treasury Account. PFM... For service deliveryThe full scope of Public Finance Management, however, is often forgotten. A sound PFM system ultimately aims at providing an instrument to better organise and manage the service delivery functions. Making the link between the former and the latter is a step too often neglected, limiting the PFM scope is to merely transparency and accounting. Nevertheless, a meticulously filled out expense table where all expenditures are linked to functional and programmatic classifying codes will provide a wealth of information: (a) on how budget allocation are financing services and (b) on how to orient budget cuts (or budget scale up), which implies reducing the level of services (or increasing them), if the situation requires it. It would provide information to the management on what the consequences on other services would be and how budget policy decisions influence the delivery of public services, and vice versa how changes in public service delivery can be traced back to budget modifications. All this information will allow for a more informed decision on budget planning and execution. Hence, the accounting system e-SISTAFE, has the potential to become a management tool, but for now it seems that there is either no demand or interest or awareness with managers and policymakers. An important role is assigned to the technical assistant of Enabel’s GTAF III project in raising awareness to correctly use e-SISTAFE not only as an accountancy tool, but also and foremost as a management tool for service delivery*. - Article written by Damiano Stella and Anke Van de Velde * For more technical information on PFM for service delivery, we would like to announce that a technical analytical paper is currently being written by the project, in order to better understand and deal with the link between PFM and service delivery. [1] Pandza is a youth slang used to refer to Mozambique in general and originates in a popular song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIw1xDorB_w.
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Mungula Health Center IV sets up a Blood Transfusion Centre
Rachael AYEBALE | 18/09/2018
Following a training in a blood transfusion course, Mungula Health Centre IV has moved strides in putting into action the skills and knowledge they acquired from the training.Before the training, a needs assessment for the facility was done and the facility identified transfusion services as their greatest need. A trainer was thus identified to deliver a training in the area and the knowledge and skills gap was thus closed. The training was attended by 15 facility staff and as is expected after every Support to the Development of Human Resources training, action points are set with clear performance indicators and timelines of implementation.In the action plans set by Mungula after this training, they planned on designing and producing standard operating procedures for the health facility blood transfusion practices, form a health center transfusion committee to oversee internal supervision and to carry out continuous medical education for staff members on topics related to blood transfusion medicine.Emmanuel Aniape, the hospital in-charge, states that the training was fruitful and the results on the ground are visible and he further states, “we now have a blood transfusion unit that even supplies to the main hospital.”As a standard operating procedure, blood grouping and cross matching is done to confirm that the blood to be transfused is a pure match even when the blood arrives already marked and grouped. This ensures the patient is a confirmed match for the blood.Their laboratory is well equipped to handle the blood groupings and cross match with staff that attended the training.On a few occasions, this knowledge and action I place has helped them save lives of patients in dire need. As he narrates, “There is a mother we gave back life. It took 3 units of blood and an able team to transfuse the blood. If we hadn’t gotten the training, she would be no more. For that and many others, we are grateful.”One of their greatest challenges however is electricity. They run the blood store on solar power that may not be sufficient. This thus forces them to only stock a few pints that can fit in their small refrigerator. Also, the blood bank that supplies the blood to them sometimes takes a longer time to supply them blood and in cases of emergency, they have no blood in their store.All in all, the facility is grateful for the training that they are using to save lives that would have been lost otherwise.
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Enabel équipe les formations sanitaires des départements du Mono, Couffo et de la Donga pour la prise en charge des Maladies Non Transmissibles (MNT)
Reece-hermine ADANWENON | 17/09/2018
Après leur renforcement de capacité pour la prise en charge efficace des Maladies Non Transmissibles, les agents de santé des formations sanitaires des départements du Mono, du Couffo et de la Donga reçoivent du matériel médical. Enabel à travers son Programme d’Appui au Système de Santé a gracieusement mis à la disposition du Ministère de la Santé, un important lots de matériels. La remise officielle des équipements acquis par le Pass-Sourou au Ministère de la Santé a été faite respectivement le Mardi 11 septembre 29018 dans le département du Mono et le Lundi 17 Septembre 2018 dans le département de la Donga. C’était en présence du Secrétaire Général Adjoint du Ministère de la Santé, des préfets et directeurs départements de la santé et des responsables des centres de santé bénéficiaires. La prise en charge des Maladies Non transmissibles reste une priorité pour l'Agence belge de développement. Au Bénin, Enabel à travers le Programme d'Appui au Système de Santé (PASS SOUROU) a mis à la disposition du Ministère de la Santé un important lot de matériels. D'une valeur de plus de quarante et un (41) millions de Fcfa soit 62.588,45 Euros, ce kit est composé de lecteurs de glycémie capillaire (Glucomètre) fournis de bandelettes et de lancettes, de pèse-personne, de débitmètres de pointe, de chambres d'inhalation et de Mono-filament. Pour les 05 hôpitaux de zone et les 02 CHD des départements couverts par les interventions de Enabel les équipements sont aussi constitués d'appareils analyseurs d'hémoglobine glyquée avec un kit de consommables et réactifs pour l'équivalent d'au moins 200 tests et d'ophtalmoscopes. Benoit LOOP, Coordonnateur par Intérim du Pass-Sourou dans son allocution a renouvelé l'engagement de Enabel à accompagner le Bénin dans la lutte contre les Maladies Non Transmissible. «C'est pour renforcer la qualité de l'offre de soins au niveau périphérique de la pyramide sanitaire qu'Enabel a pris l'option de fournir un kit d'équipements essentiels aux 134 centres de Santé publics et privés», a déclaré a-t’il déclaré. Saisissant l’occasion, le Coordonnateur par Intérim du PASS a remémoré les actions entreprises par le Programme pour accompagner le gouvernement du Bénin dans cette lutte. Il s’agit de l’appui du PASS pour la réalisation en 2015 de l'enquête sur les facteurs de risques des maladies non transmissibles suivant l'approche "STEPS WISE" de l'Organisation Mondiale de la Santé (OMS). De même, le programme a soutenu l'élaboration par le Ministère de la Sante en Juillet 2017, d'un plan de réponse globale, intégrée, préventive et promotionnelle qui prévoit une forte décentralisation de la prise en charge des MNT avec le renforcement des capacités de 460 prestataires de soins provenant de 134 centres de Santé du #Bénin pour la prise en charge de l'Hypertension artérielle, du diabète, de l'asthme et de l'épilepsie suivant l'approche WHOPEN de l'OMS. Les Directeurs Départementaux de la Sante des départements du Mono, Couffo et de la Donga ont reçu leurs lots d'équipements en promettant qu’un bon usage sera fait de ces matériaux. Ils ont remercié le partenaire « Enabel » pour avoir pensé à la formation des techniciens dans le but d’assurer une bonne maintenance de ces équipements. Par ailleurs, ils ont tenu à témoigner toutes leurs reconnaissances à l'endroit de l’Agence belge de développement qui appuie leurs départements et zones sanitaires depuis une vingtaine d'année. Mr Richard GANDAHO, Secrétaire Général Adjoint du Ministère de la Sante représentant le Ministre empêché a pour sa part transmis les remerciements du gouvernement à l’Agence belge de développement pour son appui constant dans le domaine de la santé.
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NTBIC pilot component Overview of results
Krista VERSTRAELEN | 17/09/2018
The Nacentech Technology and Business Incubator Center in Hanoi signed a Grant agreement with the BIPP-project in September 2016.The concluding workshop of this pilot component was held in Hanoi on 15 September 2018.The video reflects the activities and the results of this successful project.
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NRM LED TRAINS PARAPROFESSIONALS TO CURB SHORTAGE OF FIELD STAFF
Felix KAIZA | 13/09/2018
In October 2017, more than 300 Para-professionals were identified in six landscapes in Kigoma region. The need to carter for the shortage of professional field staff to sustain natural resources management for local economic development activities led to the addition of facilitators from the villages. The Paraprofessionals will participate fully to empower their fellow villagers during the project implementation even after the project phase out. The paraprofessionals have so far received training in business plan formation, bee keeping as a business and record keeping which will assist them in training the people in their localities. The team got exchange visits within the project area to learn on NRM for LED best practices. The other group to train the BMU team, were trained on handling, processing, packaging and marketing of fish products. Various natural resources users, transformers, traders and corporate private sectors have been identified to work closely with the paraprofessionals. Training on bee keeping and honey products will be done with the assistance from Tabora Bee keeping collage from Tabora. They will train the paraprofessionals on bee keeping as a business, the different uses of honey and its by-products and packing and handling of honey products. Tanzania forestry services agency and Vocational education training authority will be assisting the paraprofessionals in the tree selection training, carpentry and sustainable forests management. This will help the facilitators to pass the knowledge to the grass root level so as to reduce unnecessary damage of natural resources. This group will also be trained in sustainable charcoal kilns to reduce the destruction of forests for charcoal making. Construction of fish smoking kilns has simplified practical learning for the Beach management units and fishermen along Lake Tanganyika. Training on handling, processing, packaging and marketing of fish products has been put into consideration to boost fish product sales. Natural resources along Lake Tanganyika will be sustained through training of the paraprofessionals especially members of the beach management units.
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COPI creates innovative non-formal learning tools for the younger generation
Laura SCHILLEMANS | 10/09/2018
Amal Aljojo, an English graduate from Gaza, made it her mission to invest in the younger generation. With her company COPI, a start-up producing creative and non-formal learning tools and games, she wants to create a better future through education. Amal graduated from the Faculty of Education at the Al Quds Open University in 2011 and she’s always been passionate about exploring new and innovative teaching methods. When the now 29-year-old mother started teaching English for students aged 6 and up, she noticed her students had a lot of trouble learning the language because they didn’t like to study and wanted to play more instead. This is how Amal came up with the idea to create the COPI game. She worked hard to create an appealing learning environment for children by integrating games and entertainment in the learning process. The first method she used was a set of interactive cards with English letters to teach the alphabet, spelling, and vocabulary in a competitive manner. The results were great and it motivated her to develop her ideas further and create a start-up to reach as many students as possible. The biggest challenge was producing the game. It was important to create a high-quality product, using the materials available in Gaza, at an affordable price. Another challenge was marketing and promoting the product in the local community, in an affordable way. But with the help of consulting specialists in the education field, Amal was able to produce the first version of her COPI box after a year. The prototype turned out to be very successful. In 2016, the Business Women Forum (BWF) in Palestine launched the “I’m a pioneer 2016” award, funded by the Bank of Palestine. Amal was one of the three entrepreneurs to win a $2.500 award, out of 1200 contestants. COPI is now incubated within IGU’s Business and Technology Incubator (BTI) under the BSIS 2 project, which is funded by the European Union and implemented by Enabel. BSIS offers Amal counseling, mentorship, and assistance in business development, marketing, and start-up registration. This enabled her to develop her business even further and to promote and sell her product in 8 locations in Gaza and the West Bank. With the money she received from the BWF competition, in addition to her own funding, she was able to fully launch her start-up and produce 10.000 versions of the COPI game. COPI also won the Ministry of Women's Affairs' "She Can" project, funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation. COPI project was selected as one of the top 10 applicants and was awarded $700.
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Farmer group irrigates community to life
Sylvia NABANOBA | 06/09/2018
Walking through the Rhino Camp refugee settlement in Arua district, one encounters gardens with withered crops, bent against the scorching heat of the midday sun. The rains have taken long to come, and farmers have borne the brunt. However, in the midst of this lies a patch of land that looks out of this withered world. Vegetables of different shades of green sprout from the dark rich soil, whose softness and moistness make them seem misplaced in their surroundings. Looking at it, the term ‘oasis’ springs to mind. Thirty-nine year-old Charles Alindu is busy watering the vegetables. “The weather patterns have become very unpredictable these days. July to August used to be the rainy season, but not anymore. We planted our crops in July, expecting rain but it rained only thrice the whole month,” he explains. Alindu is the chairperson of Nyazu Farmers’ Group. Formed in January 2018 by the organization Community Empowerment for Rural Development (CEFORD), the group has 25 men and women interested in carrying out agriculture. Together, they have invested effort and time into growing vegetables that include cowpeas, eggplant, amaranthus, okra and jute mallow. These are not only highly nutritious, enabling them to change their families’ diets, but also on demand in the community, something that enables the group earn an income. And it is through working together as a group that they are able to do better than many other farmers in the area. Funded through the European Union Trust Fund for Africa’s Support Programme for Refugee Settlements in Northern Uganda, CEFORD has formed 55 groups that it is working with in a bid to enable them achieve home-based food security and income. CEFORD trains the group members on modern and better agricultural methods as well as business development and enterprise selection. It is through training that the group was introduced to irrigation. “This river, River Enyau, has always been here, but we had never used its water in our gardens on a large scale. We tried watering with jerrycans and watering cans but it is quite tasking since they can only hold small volumes of water,” says Alindu. “Instead, during the dry season we would go and plant our vegetables along the river bank, but they were congested and did not grow well.” Indeed, Godwin Amege, Project Officer with CEFORD, says the river bank was always crowded with patches of vegetables, which congestion affected their growth as the river is frequented by many people from the community who take water for home use. After training, Nyazu Farmers’ Group presented a business plan to CEFORD, which bought them a sprinkler irrigation system and taught them how to use it. “This is precisely why I joined this group,” says Alindu, “to gain new knowledge and skills that would enable me change from a farmer who only produces food for eating at home to one who produces to also earn an income.” The group is gradually becoming self-reliant, being able to run the irrigation pump themselves three months after receiving it from CEFORD. Using the UGX552,000 they earned from the sale of their first harvest, they buy the petrol that powers the pump instead of depending on CEFORD. The challenge, however, comes when the pump breaks down as none of the members has the technical skill needed to fix it. CEFORD hopes to solve this through training. From their first harvest proceeds, the group has also cleared four acres of land where they will grow cassava. And in this they have applied knowledge from the trainings they received, first carrying out a cost-benefit analysis, studying the cost of production first before committing to production. The next plan is for the group to start a village savings and loans association, where each member will be able to save some money for a given number of months before being able to take a loan at a low interest rate. The cassava project will expose them to an even newer innovation, channel irrigation. “Because of the size of the land, the cassava garden cannot be watered with a sprinkler. Instead, we will use channel irrigation,” says Amege. With channel irrigation, the river is blocked for a while, allowing it to take a predetermined route and therefore flow into the channels that have been dug, finding its way to the crops. Twenty-eight-year old Monica Draleru, a mother of four, is sure she did not make a mistake joining the group. “It has improved my life,” she says. “Money that I would have used for buying food now goes to meet other needs, such as school fees.” The group is helping not only her community but also the South Sudanese refugees living within. Because they do not have money to buy food, refugees use barter trade to get vegetables from Nyazu Farmers’ Group in exchange for some of the food ration they get from the World Food Programme. This way they, too, are able to change their diets. Just like the programme’s objective, the group’s activities are increasing the long-term availability of food for their families and community (food security), filling stomachs, wallets and lives.
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Brick by brick girls embrace construction trades
Hanna DEKERK | 05/09/2018
19-Year old Charity Kengozi is a trainee of Interlocking Soil Stabilizing Brickmaking (ISSB) at Kyema Technical College in Masindi. For 5 days, students are taught to produce building blocks with a pressing machine. This contrasts with the traditional method of baking bricks in a firewood oven. As the ISSB blocks don’t require firewood they pose an eco-friendly production alternative, hereby contributing to a greener economy. “I am taking this training to prepare myself for an engineering education and to widen my thinking. Before I never knew that you can make a brick simply from sand and soil.” says Charity. After the training she wants to make such blocks for her family, to construct a commercial space. Charity would even like to build her future house with ISSB bricks because, thanks to its shape, only one fifth of the usual amount of cement is needed. This makes it a cheap alternative.Nowadays Charity’s family is proud of her for attempting a carrier in engineering and construction. But that was not always the case. “My parents did not approve of me doing this training because not many girls do it. My uncle helped to convince them by giving examples of girls who make good money from engineering.” Instead, Charity’s parents wanted her to become a nurse and pressured her into taking entry exams. But after Charity got accepted into the nursing training she refused to start. Only then her parents agreed to let her pursue her engineering passion. The ISSB blocks produced by the trainees are used to build boarding facilities and lavatories for girls at Kyema Technical college. After the training the pressing machine will be given to the college to continue the initiative. This investment should encourage more girls for careers in construction, as nowadays out of the 22 ISSB trainees only 7 are girls. These instant trainings are organized by Enabel’s Support to Skilling Uganda (SSU) project, as part of the Skills Development Fund. The aim is to provide relevant, practical and qualitative instant-trainings of 10 to maximum 100 hours.
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Inauguration officielle de l'implantation commerciale de la COLUCAAB avec l'appui d'Enabel au Burundi
Aimé GIRUKWIGOMBA | 04/09/2018
L’Agence Belge de Développement (Enabel) en partenariat avec le Ministère de l’Education, de la Formation Technique et Professionnelle et la Chambre Sectorielle de l’Art et des Artisans (CHASAA) vient d’inaugurer la Coopérative Lumières des Centres de formation, Artisans et Artistes du Burundi (COLUCAAB). Une bonne initiative en vue de l’adéquation formation-emploi qui pourrait inspirer d’autres secteurs de l’économie Burundaise. Enabel met en œuvre le projet « Appui Complémentaire à la Formation Professionnelle et Technique » (ACFPT) sur financement du Royaume de Belgique. Dans le cadre de ce projet, le secteur de la formation professionnelle bénéficie depuis 2009 d’un appui technique et financier de la CTB devenue Enabel en 2018. En partenariat avec le Ministère de l’Education, de la Formation Technique et Professionnelle et les contributions techniques de la Direction Générale de l’Enseignement des Métiers, de la Formation Professionnelle et de l’Alphabétisation, Enabel contribue à l’autonomisation des centres de formation et à l’insertion socio-professionnelle des lauréats grâce à l’implication des entrepreneurs locaux et principalement les artisans membres de la CHASAA. Un des objectifs majeurs de cette collaboration est la mutualisation des actions des centres de formation, des artisans, et des entrepreneurs locaux dans la gestion du secteur de l’EFTP en tant qu’acteurs économiques organisés, contribuant au développement inclusif et durable. La stratégie de Partenariat Public-Privé (PPP) s’est concrétisée et matérialisée par la signature d'un contrat de concession d’un immeuble à usage commercial dont la gestion a été confiée à COLUCAAB. Avec l’appui du projet ACFPT, l’immeuble a été totalement réhabilité « en chantier-formation par les lauréats des Centres de formation de Bujumbura ». Il a été aussi équipé et organisé en coopérative dans le but d’assurer la promotion et la commercialisation des produits provenant des Centres de formation et des Artistes/Artisans membres de la CHASAA. Le lancement des activités de la COLUCAAB par le billet du projet ACFPT prend tout son sens avec la nouvelle devise de l’Agence Belge de Développement qui se résume en ces trois vocables: permettre, faciliter, autonomiser. Pour accompagner l’inauguration de la COLUCAAB, une foire-exposition des produits des artisans et artistes du Burundi a été programmée du 27 août au 1er septembre 2018. Adalbert Hakizimana est le Directeur Exécutif de la CHASAA. Cette dernière est une des 13 chambres qui composent le Chambre Fédérale de Commerce et d’Industrie du Burundi (CFCIB). Parmi les missions de la CHASAA, il y a la commercialisation des produits de ses membres. La commercialisation des produits des artisans et des artistes du Burundi ainsi que ceux des centres de formation a longtemps posé problème. Les lauréats de ces centres ne trouvaient pas un moyen d’exploiter commercialement les produits qu’ils fabriquaient après la formation. Il arrivait aussi qu’ils vendent les kits qui leur étaient distribués après la formation parce qu’ils ne parvenaient pas à vivre des connaissances acquises. Pour aider les lauréats et les artisans à tirer profit des produits de leur labeur, Enabel a accepter de financer ce projet de coopérative et le Ministère a mis à disposition un hangar qui était presque à l’abandon. On l’a compartimenté pour pouvoir créer des espaces de commerce. Cela a été rendu possible grâce au PPP. La CHASAA en tant qu’ASBL ne pouvait pas procéder directement à la vente des produits des artisans et des artistes car la loi burundaise l’interdit. Les artisans et les artistes, avec l’appui du projet ACFPT se sont mis d’accord pour créer la COLUCAAB qui est destinée à les aider dans la promotion et la commercialisation de leurs produits et services. Cela a pris du temps mais comme on dit « vaut mieux tard que jamais », a indiqué M. Hakizimana. Ancille Barutwanayo est une artisane membre de la CHASAA. Elle représente aussi l’Organisation de la Femme Active pour le Développement (OFAD). Selon elle, cette coopérative est une opportunité pour les artistes et les artisans. C’est une vitrine qui met en valeur leurs produits. Les artisans avaient du mal à trouver un endroit où les conserver. La coopérative leur sera d’une grande utilité, renchérit Mme Barutwanayo. C’est un bon début pour la commercialisation de nos produits, ajoute-t-elle. La Belgique aide le Burundi depuis plusieurs années. De 2009 à aujourd'hui, un accent particulier a été mis sur la formation technique et professionnelle à travers plusieurs projets successifs pour un total de 25 millions d’Euros, a indiqué M. Carlos Lietar, Chef de Mission Adjoint à l’Ambassade de Belgique au Burundi. Actuellement, treize (13) centres répartis dans huit provinces sont ciblés par le projet ACFPT. Ces centres reçoivent un appui sur quatre axes, à savoir : le pilotage et la gouvernance du centre, la qualité de la formation, l’insertion et le PPP et les infrastructures/équipements. Ces axes s’inscrivent dans une approche intégrée d’adéquation formation-emploi, a souligné M. Lietar. L’appui technique et financier apporté pour cette structure inaugurée est un signe des relations fructueuses entre la Belgique et le Burundi. Dans son ultime objectif, le secteur de la formation technique et professionnelle renforce les compétences des apprenants pour une meilleure insertion professionnelle soit via l’entrepreneuriat ou bien l’emploi salarié formel et informel. Cela permet aux bénéficiaires jeunes et adultes, hommes et femmes, de contribuer au développement économique et social du pays par l’amélioration de la productivité, de la qualité, du travail et des revenues, a rappelé Dr Janvière Ndirahisha, Ministre de l’Education, de la Formation Technique et Professionnelle.
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Breaking gender stereotypes through skills training
Sylvia NABANOBA | 04/09/2018
Perched on a makeshift scaffold, 22-year old Lucy Lenia fits mortar, a wet mixture of sand and cement, between two bricks at the top of a one-room house. The house, being built by trainees on the Bricklaying and Concrete Practice course, is almost ready for roofing, and this is the last line of bricks the group is setting. Working among a group of boys, all dressed in overalls and helmets, it is difficult to notice her. She does not stand out. But a closer look at the group and the soft, curved features of her face, the braids escaping through the sides of the helmet, draw attention to her. Lenia is an only child, and grew up with her peasant parents in a village in Arua district, Northern Uganda. When she completed primary education, her parents sent her to secondary school in the town, where she stayed with an aunt. However, because the family did not have enough money, during the school holidays Lenia would lay bricks and sell them to buy scholastic materials like pens and books. She, however, had to drop out of school after completing her lower secondary (O’ Level) examinations. “I wanted to continue with school, but I did not pass my O’ Level examinations,” she says. “I was ready to repeat the class for another attempt at getting a better grade, but my parents were no longer able to pay my school fees.” While at home pondering what to do with her life, Lenia got to hear of the skills training opportunity at Siripi early this year (2018) and enrolled. She explains that while most of the girls chose tailoring or catering, she went with Bricklaying and Concrete Practice, a decision made with the encouragement of the Principal of the skills training centre. “We encourage women to join male-dominated trades like carpentry, construction and welding,” Tito Geoffrey Droma, Principal of the youth skills training centre, explains. “There is nothing a man can do which a woman cannot.” Droma explains that previously, it was difficult to get any woman on either carpentry, bricklaying and concrete practice or welding, but on the current intake they have ladies in all three. And this is something that they have intentionally done. Droma thinks that having a woman like Lenia on a construction course sends a message to both women and men. “Women may think that they cannot do bricklaying and concrete practice but if they see a fellow woman doing it they will think again. Lenia is becoming a source of inspiration to other women,” he says. He also thinks that Lenia’s presence on the course will enable young men view women in a completely different light, since, as her course instructor attests, there is nothing she cannot do – she can mix mortar, push a wheelbarrow full of bricks, scale buildings and much more. Derrick, a refugee from South Sudan, says he was surprised to see Lenia on the course and did not think she would last a week. But she proved him wrong. And the environment at the skills training centre is facilitating. “We do not give anyone exceptional treatment or accept bullying. All the trainees are encouraged to live together as one, without drawing attention to differences in gender, nationality or even tribe,” Droma says. Indeed as a Ugandan living in Rhino Camp refugee settlement, Lenia is one of many Ugandans benefiting from the Support Programme for Refugee Settlements in Northern Uganda (SPRS-NU), funded by the European Union Trust Fund. The programme is designed to benefit 70% of the refugees and 30% nationals, adhering to the Refugee and Host Population Empowerment (ReHoPE) strategy. This, in essence, promotes peaceful co-existence between refugees and the Ugandans people hosting them while ensuring that the situation of Ugandans who may not have been accessing social services is also uplifted. Lenia’s training is almost coming to an end, after which she will go for internship to try out her skills in a practical environment. “I have learnt everything I need to build a house,” she says. “When I graduate, the first thing I am going to do is build a brick house for my parents.” The training will not only enable Lenia show gratitude to her parents but also set her on a course of self-reliance, for besides the bricklaying and construction skills, which will help her find or create her own employment, she has been equipped with entrepreneurship and life skills. She is a confident young lady who is able to set her goals, work towards them, and manage her money in an efficient and economical way. And this is one of the objectives of SPRS-NU: to sustainably improve people’s standard of living. About the programme Siripi Youth Skills Centre, run by Welthungerhilfe in Rhino Camp Refugee Settlement, received funding from Enabel through the European Union Trust Fund for Africa’s Support Programme for Refugee Settlements in Northern Uganda to equip 300 youth, including women and girls, with employable skills that would help improve their livelihoods. The centre is one of five that Enabel signed agreements with to train 1,480 refugee and Ugandan youth.
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Contract management course for the employees of the Ministry of Local Government
Laura SCHILLEMANS | 03/09/2018
Enabel completed a contract management training course for the employees of the MoLG (Ministry of Local Government). The course was led by Mr. George Awwad, a professional trainer in procurement procedures in Palestine, and targeted engineers from the project and urban planning departments. 30 engineers gained more knowledge, skills and tools to manage contracts from inception to closure. The training was divided into two phases:The first one targeted project department employees and focused on works and goods contract management procedures and procurement of works and goods.The second phase targeted urban planning employees and focused on services consultancy procedures and contract preparation, awarding of contracts, and contract administration (preparing and evaluating bids, planning of the contracting process and resolving contractual disputes).The trainees mentioned that this training was one the most important trainings they received through Enabel because they learned more about the following topics:The different types of activities in each contract management phase, during the life cycle of a contract Methodologies How to manage each one of their activities Best practices used in contract management The training played a big role in improving their work skills and will reflect positively on their work achievements. Ms. Ohood Enaya, the focal point from the urban planning department, thanked Enabel for all efforts they made in managing and organizing this training.
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Programme d’Appui au Développement de l’Élevage « KIYO ARZIKI »
Céline MEWISSEN | 03/09/2018
Le Programme d’Appui au Développement de l’Élevage « Kiyo Arziki » a pour objectif général de renforcer la sécurité alimentaire, la résilience et les revenus des populations liées à un élevage familial dans les régions de Tahoua et de Dosso et ce, en partenariat avec le Ministère de l’Agriculture et de l’Élevage (MAG/EL). Il développera les chaînes de valeur inclusives liées à l´élevage; sécurisera durablement l´accès aux ressources pastorales; améliorera les capacités institutionnelles pour renforcer la résilience des (agro-)éleveurs vulnérables face aux crises et au changement climatique; et enfin, renforcera la gouvernance du secteur. Le programme mettra en œuvre une approche fondée sur les droits notamment à travers l´amélioration de la gouvernance du secteur, en renforçant les capacités tant des porteurs de devoirs que celles des détenteurs de droits. Ensuite, les femmes seront autonomisées et incluses dans les processus de décision. Les jeunes et les femmes seront les bénéficiaires principaux des activités économiques promues par l´intervention. Enfin, le programme fera la promotion de l’intégration des technologies d´information et de communication pour améliorer l´accès à l'information, la collecte de données et les services pour les éleveurs et les entrepreneurs.
