EDUCATION MUST FOCUS ON MARGINALISED COMMUNITIES

FOR MARGINALISED children around the world, access to quality education is the difference between a lifetime of exclusion or being an active member of society. Quality education opens up access to jobs and living wages and ensures sustainable livelihoods.

Around the world, we see the marginalisation of children based on gender, ethnicity, disability, location, or lack of parental care. Children from the poorest countries are three times more likely to be out of school, and girls most particularly.

Most countries include strategies in their education planning for marginalised groups, but there is far less attention paid to achieving targets and objectives. Education strategies to combat marginalisation often tend to focus on girls, special needs, those living in rural areas, and the poor.

Children who are raised by their families are 40 times more likely to access higher education than if they grow up in alternative care, which often means they end up trapped in a cycle of poverty.

Young people consistently identify continued education as one of their main difficulties.

India and Nepal have focused on improving education and reversing the marginalisation of children from specific castes. South Africa, Mozambique, Ethiopia and Gambia have developed strategies to improve education for children living with HIV/AIDS.

Kenya and Tajikistan have focused on education for orphans, and Kenya and Uganda have also targeted those living in urban areas for special assistance.

Nigeria has strategies in place to assist marginalised children from religious groups, and Georgia and India have targeted those belonging to certain ethnic groups.

In Ecuador, the government has developed strategies to assist children in speaking specific languages. Cambodia has focused on children out of school and those living in rural areas.

“Access to financing remains a pressing issue

Rwanda has specifically targeted girls in terms of education, and Mauritius has focused on children with special needs.

A number of governments have had great success partnering with the SOS Children’s Villages, which are committed to an equitable education that targets vulnerable and marginalised children. One particularly successful initiative has been the SOS Children’s Village Vocational Training Centre in Lusaka, Zambia, which has focused on working with marginalised young people – teaching them skills that prepare them for the job market.

In South Africa, we have done well in ensuring that our children have access to education, but we struggle to keep children in school, particularly at the secondary level.

This is a challenge elsewhere in our region, where in countries like Swaziland, many children drop out of high school, particularly girls, who have to stay home and take care of their sick relatives. The government needs to develop strategies that focus on pupil retention, especially for girls.

In South Africa, access to financing to continue education also remains a pressing issue that prevents many from continuing with tertiary education.