ADS 2024, Sub-theme 3 – Documentary Videos | Office of the Special Adviser on Africa

In Focus

In case you missed it

Relive the High-level Policy Dialogue, featuring the participation of the heads of the UN and the AU as well as the President of Senegal
Watch the recording of the International Webinars that took place on 8 May, 15 May and 22 May respectively.
Watch the recording of the Youth Stages that took place on 9 May, 16 May and 23 May (English | French) respectively.
Read our new policy briefs titled STEM Education for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) in Africa with a Focus on Generating Decent Jobs for Africa's Youth, Transforming Education in Africa by Leveraging Innovative Finance and the Digital Revolution and Education and Learning in Crisis-affected Areas.

Week 3 | Day One — 20 May

This week, the Africa Dialogue Series 2024 focuses on sub-theme "Education and learning in crisis-affected areas." Several anchoring materials underpin the week's activities, including video documentaries below. The African Union Commission (), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees () and the United Nations Children's Fund () collaborates to bring the activities and knowledge products to drive the exchanges.

UNHCR Presents

UN High Commissioner visits school in refugee camp in South Sudan

In Makpandu, a camp hosting more than 5,000 refugees, mostly from the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic, Makpandu Secondary School is one of the best-performing schools in South Sudan and the top performer in Western Equatoria state. It was established by UNHCR and partner World Vision South Sudan in 2013, in collaboration with South Sudan's Ministry of Education, for refugees and host community children. After 6 months of school closures due to COVID-19, schools reopened to allow students in their final year of primary and secondary school to return. Atovura Chantal, a Congolese refugee, and Hellen City Justine, a student from the local South Sudanese community, learn side by side, and both have ambitions to study medicine. The girls are confident that they will do well on their final secondary school exams but are concerned about what will come next as opportunities for higher education are limited in South Sudan. For refugees, it is even harder to pursue higher education. The girls delivered a message to UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, asking for more to be done for refugees and host communities to further their studies. Visiting the country to observe the opportunities and challenges of a fragile peace process, Grandi met with government officials, refugees, internally displaced people, host communities and returnees.

Togolese female refugee youth advocate and DAFI scholar in Ghana

Growing up in a remote refugee camp in western Ghana, Louange Okosi Koffi, a Togolese refugee, vividly recalls how people in her community struggled to access basic health services. The nearest health facility in the camp was nearly an hour's walk from where Louange lived. It was this encounter that motivated her to work hard in school so she could pursue a career in medicine and help other refugees. It meant walking for two hours every day to reach the only high school in the camp. Her dedication to learning and resolve to succeed paid off, and she passed her high school examination with flying colours. Her parents had no money to help her continue her education, but in 2016, she won a full scholarship to study nursing through DAFI, a UNHCR program that offers refugees the chance to attend university. Louange has been using her nursing skills to volunteer with local organizations in the capital while she waits to be deployed to work full-time in one of the city's public hospitals. She also leads various youth activities, including working with a group of DAFI scholars who carry out mobile clinics in the capital to provide health services to refugees and the urban poor, particularly women and girls.

Somali Refugee Teacher in Ethiopia

Clashes in Somalia's Doolo Zone have pushed over 100,000 people into Ethiopia's Somali region, with more people arriving in the country every day. Lack of funds is seriously hindering the response on the ground. With limited resources, gaps are already visible, and UNHCR fears that without urgent support, consequences for refugees and their hosts will be catastrophic.

Education coverage is limited for children due to limited capacity in classrooms where teachers are already overstretched. Isihaak Abdullahi, an Islamic school teacher fled with his students to find safety in Ethiopia when clashes broke out in Laascaanood, Somalia. He later set up a temporary school so students could continue learning, he teaches students the Quran and speaks about the importance of education. Teachers like Isihaak help fill education gaps when local schools are unable to enroll refugee students.

Vodafone Foundation Instant Network Schools in DRC

Internet connectivity is limited in remote regions of northern DRC, which is why the Instant Network Schools (INS) programme is transforming classrooms into digital learning hubs for refugees and host community students, fostering peaceful coexistence and opportunities for all. It helps students to acquire knowledge and critical thinking. Vodafone Foundation and UNHCR launched INS in DRC in 2016, the first digital education programme of its kind in the country. Today, there are 25 INS classrooms across DRC, connecting communities in remote areas to quality learning and the wider world.

Sudan conflict disrupts learning for children and youth sheltering in South Sudan

Conflict in Sudan threatens the future of children and youth as learning institutions remain shut and families seeking safety remain displaced in the country and across borders. Millions of children and youth are out of school. Across the border in South Sudan, over 260,000 people escaping fighting have fled to the country, among them university students who arrived via Joda/Renk. They hope to access higher education institutes to enable them to continue learning as they shelter in the country. The ongoing clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that started on 15 April 2023 have displaced more than five million people.

UNICEF Presents

Mozambique’s climate-resilient classrooms supporting children to learn

Mozambique is frequently hit by violent cyclones and the number of events is increasing and intensifying year after year. Children are bearing the brunt of climate change. Margarida, a 15-year-old student from Mozambique, describes her experience during and after Cyclone Idai hit in 2019. She tells of how homes and schools were destroyed, and that she and her friends had to study in tents. She describes how UNICEF supported the construction of over 1,000 climate-resilient classrooms that can withstand natural disasters, ensuring that she and other young Mozambicans can learn while feeling safe. The new climate-resilient classrooms are so secure that they have not been damaged in subsequent cyclones and have even been used as emergency shelters for communities.

A learning crisis that is affecting millions of children across Africa

UNICEF’s Regional Ambassador for Eastern and Southern Africa, Tendai Mtawarira, presents from Kasupe school in Chipata, Zambia. He is there to find out more about the learning crisis that is affecting millions of children across the region. Millions of children are not developing the literacy and numeracy skills that they need. In Zambia for example, only about 4 per cent of learners in Grade 2 can read with comprehension. He describes UNICEF’s catch-up programme that is supporting children to recover lost learning. Tendai calls for more countries to sign up to the commitment of to action on foundational learning, to ensure that the next generation of Africans reach their fullest potential.

UNICEF’s support for inclusive education for children in Sudan

The war in Sudan has taken a heavy toll on children. Children with disabilities like Alsmany are often the most vulnerable. Alsmany and his family live in a displacement camp after fleeing fighting in Khartoum. Every day, Alsmany is excited to go to the safe learning space established by UNICEF, for children whose education was disrupted by the conflict and continues to be impacted by ongoing school closures. At the safe learning space, children do not only learn but they receive mental health and psychosocial support. E-learning provided at the space also ensures that all children can learn at their own pace and heal.

UNICEF’s safe learning spaces in Sudan supporting children to learn and heal

Mehad, a 13-year-old girl speaks from Sudan. Sudan is now the world’s largest child displacement crisis and more than 90 per cent of the country’s 19 million school-aged children have no access to formal education. Mehad speaks of how she fled conflict in Khartoum to another state in Sudan. In response, UNICEF set up safe learning spaces for children across the country, to ensure that children could continue to learn and heal. Children in Sudan need peace to learn and enjoy their childhood.

UNICEF’s support to return children back to school in Burkina Faso

Juliette, a 14-year-old girl who was displaced within Burkina Faso tells her story. In Burkina Faso, nearly 1 million children are out of school due to ongoing violence. Because of the armed conflict, Juliette and her mother had to flee. On the way they were hungry and thirsty and had to sleep in the bush. UNICEF and partners are supporting children to go back-to-school by distributing essential learning supplies. Juliette says that she was happy to receive her school kit because she almost had to start working to pay for her school materials.

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