Supporting Education in Helmand Province
Dasht-e-Bolan School, May 2011
Support to the education sector in Helmand Province began in 2008. All Danish supported activities in Helmand are in accordance with the education plans of the Ministry of Education of Afghanistan and the Helmand Provincial Education Department. The activities also seek to capitalise on the synergy of effort in relation to the implementation of the international Helmand plan.
Denmark provides technical advice to the education authorities in the province to strengthen the provincial capacity to provide good education opportunities to as many children in Helmand Province as possible. Consequently, Denmark funds the work of currently two international education advisors to the Provincial Education Department in Helmand.
Activities
Since the beginning of 2008 improving access to education has been the main priority in Helmand. In line with the national education plan activities targeting education access have primarily focused on improving educational learning space through:
· the construction and refurbishment of education buildings
· facilitating teacher recruitment and training
· improving student school access through stipends.
Focus is now increasingly moving towards on assisting the Provincial Education Department in their growing administrative responsibilities which is the result of increasing de-centralization, as well as supporting initiatives orientated at improving the quality of education. A number of completed and existing multi-donor projects funded through core-budget support to the Ministry of Education have been identified, developed and are already managed by the Provincial Education Department. Such projects and ongoing activities have increased the capacity of the Helmand Provincial Education Department in a number of areas, such as:
· monitoring & evaluation systems
· provincial/district planning and project approval processes
· early maintenance planning
· teacher training
· ensuring coordination with the Ministry of Education.
Looking ahead, the Denmark will through its financial support to the Ministry of Education in Afghanistan focus on improving girls’ education and so-called social mobilization initiatives. Due to the challenging environment, particularly in terms of equal access opportunities to children in Helmand and security concerns, Helmand Province will be among the provinces targeted by the Global Partnership for Education initiative. To complement these efforts, Denmark has also initiated discussions with the International Rescue Committee to support community based education activities in Helmand.
Results
Education in Helmand Province has improved significantly over the past 4 years with 145 schools open in March 2012 whereas only 47 schools were open in 2007. Denmark has provided financial support to the Ministry of Education for the construction of 20 educational buildings, including four dormitories, some of which are under construction. By the end of March 2012, a total of 119,103 students were reported by the authorities in Helmand as being enrolled in primary and secondary school. This represents a 131% increase in student enrolment from the lows of 2007. Improvements in girls’ enrolment have been even more remarkable. Since 2005 girls’ enrolment has increased from 5,279 to 28,942 by March 2012; an impressive 448% increase. During the first half of the last school year (from June 2011 to November 2011), girls enrolment increased by a further 35%.