Ei-iE

Outcomes

2.685 children (1.357 boys, 1.328 girls) were withdrawn from child labour or prevented from dropping out during the project period :

• 1.971 children (1022 boys, 949 girls) were removed from work and brought back to formal schooling 
• 714 children (335 boys, 379 girls) identified as at risk of dropping out have also been prevented from dropping out during the project period thanks to counseling services facilitated by trained teachers in the schools, provision of afternoon remedial classes and project’s direct education support (provision of scholastic materials e.g. exercise books, pens/pencils, school bags, school uniforms etc.)

The enrolment in the 15 schools included in the new project area increased by 10.5% between September 2021 and July 2023 (7.3% for the boys, 13.4% for the girls).

On a total of 390 school communities in the zone covered by the project, 59 may be declared “Child Labour Free Zones/villages” since 100% of children (6-18yrs) living in these villages are enrolled in school. 92 other school communities may also be considered as almost Child Labour Free Villages as they only registered non-school attendees of 1, 5 and 10 children respectively.

Support of the authorities – improved social dialogue, leading to improved school environment:

• The capacity building training provided by the unions has empowered school governing structures and local members of the unions to hold education authorities/duty bearers accountable (primary education advisor, district education managers, head teachers) accountable and demand for education justice.
• It has successfully influenced the district Education office to deploy 53 new teachers to Chigudu zone to address the problem of teacher shortage in the zone.
• It has played a crucial role to fund the school development projects, such as the construction of 6 toilets in 2 schools, the renovation of 4 classrooms, the development of 2 school feeding programs, the drilling of a borehole near Matanda Primary school to ease water problems (before the project, teachers appointed to that school were not staying because they had to drink unhealthy water and were falling sick).
• At least 31 bylaws have been adopted in Chigudu villages in favour of children’s education.
• Parents, community leaders, teachers, and learners now collaborate together in child labour awareness and in the fight against child labour. They have a common deep understanding of the difference between child labour and child work. This awareness has resulted in reduced child labour cases in the project areas, as most parents prefer working themselves in tobacco farms than involving their children during school hours.

The project has also  boosted the membership of TUM in Dowa district in general, and Chigudu zone specifically.