Inauguration of Supiri Training Centre, Juba; United Kingdom/Norway Funded and Norwegian Refugee Council Implemented Project
10:00-12:00 on 6th July 2012 at SupiriTrainingCollege behind UNICEF
The Supiri Training Centre is a government facility that houses teacher and youth training centres, as well as an Adult literacy centre. With funding from the UK and the Norwegian Foreign Ministry, NRC were able to renovate the teacher training centre and construct facilities for the ‘Youth Education Pack’ which provides numeracy, literacy, and vocational skills for youth. The Supiri Training Centre is a model for provision of educational opportunities and contributes to improved literacy, numeracy, vocational and language skills amongst adults, youth and teachers. The three modes of learning are: the Youth Education Programme (YEP); adult basic literacy education, and an Intensive English Course (IEC) for Arabic-speaking teachers. This enables Arabic speaking teachers to gain the skills needed to instruct in English.
Details about Supiri Training Centre
1. Youth Education Programme (YEP): Seventy (70) out-of-school children and youth have been enrolled for a nine month YEP programme. This covers literacy and numeracy as well as life skills. Learners are offered one trade area amongst carpentry, tailoring, masonry, minor mechanics, and minor electronics. In addition, agriculture is offered as a core trade skill because it is a main source of livelihoods. YEP addresses absenteeism amongst learners who are child bearing mothers by introducing nursery assistants to take care of the children who are less than 6 years of age. YEP learners are also provided with lunch each day.
2. Adult Literacy: 50 women and 23 men are enrolled. Adult Literacy lessons are conducted late in the afternoon when the YEP students have finished using the classrooms.
3. Intensive English Course: A total of 400 teachers are being trained in English language skills as well as learning the methodology. The teachers benefiting from the IEC are Arabic-speaking teachers who would otherwise find it a challenge to instruct in English.
The UK’s overall Education commitment
4. The UK is funding the construction of 33 primary schools and 4 secondary schools in 4 states of South Sudan.
5. The UK is also supporting the Ministry of General Education and Instruction to develop a national textbook policy for South Sudan and will print and distribute over 9 million textbooks for 2 million basic education children. We expect every child in South Sudan to have access to a learner centred textbook.
6. DFID is designing a programme to improve access to education for girls by addressing economic, social and cultural barriers that stop girls from getting an education. Given current circumstances we will put a particular focus on trying to make sure that even under harsh economic conditions; there are still incentives to put girls through school.
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For further info please contact:
1. Mr. Duku Francis Danson, Education Adviser- UKaid,
Cell No: 0912170322, E-mail: f-duku@dfid.gov.uk
2. Mr. Charles Luganya Ronyo, British Embassy Political/Press Officer
Cell No: 0912396374, E-mail: c-ronyo@dfid.gov.uk
British Embassy Juba, European Union Compound, Thom ping, Juba,
South Sudan
0912168301