Education for Crisis-Affected Girls in Eastern DRC

The project aims to support the reintegration of child survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) into a safer school system in the conflict-affected and marginalized communities of North and South Kivu in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The project works to improve girls’ access to education and strengthening education systems to be gender-responsive. The project also works to provide immediate psychosocial emotional and material support to reintegrate child survivors of SGBV into school. The project seeks to tackle harmful gender norms and gender inequality at the household school and community level by promoting positive gender norms. Project activities include: (1) providing social and emotional support as well as materials and financial support to 900 SGBV survivors and other vulnerable girls and boys to pursue formal and non-formal education; (2) providing training to 780 education leaders or members of school governance structures (school management committees parent and student associations) on positive gender norms and the provision of an inclusive safe gender-responsive school environment; (3) improving the capacity of 1 445 teachers (of which 466 are women) to deliver protective inclusive gender-responsive instructions to girls including survivors of SGBV. The project aims to target some 30 675 direct beneficiaries including 14 025 girls and 14 025 boys between the ages of 6 and 16 and 720 girls and 180 boys survivors of SGBV. The project also aims to reach approximately 87 600 indirect beneficiaries to receive key messages to raise awareness and strengthen attitudes towards girls’ education.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased equitable access for girls and adolescent girls including survivors of SGBV to safe quality and inclusive formal and non-formal learning opportunities; (2) improved quality safety and gender responsiveness of learning environments conducive to the protection and retention of girls and adolescent girls including survivors of SGBV; and (3) increased commitment of State and non-State actors to prioritize gender responsive and safe education for girls and reduce SGBV at district and national levels.