Education is central to development and to the improvement of the lives of young people globally and has been identified as a priority area in internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the World Programme of Action for Youth. Education is important in eradicating poverty and hunger and in promoting sustained, inclusive, and equitable economic growth and sustainable development. Increased efforts towards education accessibility, quality and affordability are central to global development efforts.
The universal declaration on human rights in 1948 by the United Nations Organization embraces education as a basic human right. Kenya subscribes and is a signatory to this declaration as well as to the international protocol that established Education for All (EFA) agenda in Jomtien, Thailand, 1990 and the World Education Forum (WEF) in Dakar, Senegal, 2000. Accordingly, Kenya’s Educational Sector Strategic Plan and Implementation Matrices: 2003-2007, shows her commitment to: a) Eliminate poverty as a hindrance to educational development; b) Promote human rights through provision of education; c) Attain sustainable development by the provision of quality basic education for all. Thus, like other developing nations in the world to-day, Kenya is making efforts to achieve education access for all. Kenya realizes that to cope with the wave of transformation and development that is sweeping across the nations; she must sacrifice and invest more in the educational development of her people. For this matter, the National Conference on Education (NCE) held in November 2003, brought together educational stakeholders to chat way forward for better developments in this sector. This came as a realization that over the years, the country had made tremendous strides in the development of this sector and the need for review.
It is against this background that the HOPE worldwide Kenya (HWWK) with the leadership of CARE Kenya implemented a two (2) and a half year project termed The Elimu ya Vijana Tuendeleze project. This project aimed to ensure adolescents in Nairobi’s informal settlements and Kajiado Central sub-County reach their full potential by limiting the number of adolescents, particularly girls, at risk of dropping out of school, and supporting those who are out-of-school to re-enrol. The project will increase access to education and improve acceptance of parents and community members on adolescent education, with a target of 31,000 adolescents in Nairobi’s informal settlements and Kajiado County (peri-urban and rural areas).
The purpose of Elimu ya Vijana Tuendeleze project is to ensure Adolescent girls and boys reach their full potential in Kajiado and Nairobi Counties by 2023. The project’s key objective is to limit the number of adolescents, particularly girls, at risk of dropping out of school. The desired outcomes wereincreased access to education for adolescent girls and boys and improved acceptance of parents and community members on adolescents’ education.
The study objectives are as follows:
- Assess perceptions, attitudes and practices among individual adolescents regarding GBV, ASRH, and COVID.
- Provide analysis on levels of anxiety and depression of adolescents in the study, and if other indicators or demographics influence these levels.
- Track the savings rates amongst adolescents in the target population.
- Understand the level of engagement target adolescents have in decision making, as well as the ways in which they demonstrate leadership competencies.