By Sharon Lukunka

Women and girls receive English lessons in the schoolroom in Abu Shouk camp, North Darfur. Photo by Albert González Farran.

Mariam Hussein Hassan, age 50, and Taja Yagoub Mohamed, 43, are among hundreds of women in Abu Shouk camp for internally displaced persons who have recently enrolled in an adult class, facilitated by UNAMID police officers, to learn English. Both women are from Tawilla in North Darfur and fled to the camp in 2004 where they have sought refuge and started a new life.

“I want to learn and this is my only chance,” says Mariam, a mother of four children. “Back in Tawilla I was enrolled in school, but after the conflict our lives were disrupted; we lost everything including money which would enable us pay for school. When we arrived in the camp, I was not able to continue with my schooling, instead I had to find means of supporting my family,” she explains. 

Violence in Darfur forced thousands of people, particularly women and children, to flee their homes and seek refuge in camps with few or no basic services such as a clean water supply, health care and education.

In addition, the Darfur crisis has presented few opportunities for girls’ education in rural villages because they are often responsible for domestic work, including farming, cooking, cleaning and caring for the family. This leaves little to no time for school, while others see no value for education for girls or women. Despite the dire living conditions, these displaced communities are now seeking ways in which to improve their educational status for women and girls.

As part of their confidence building responsibilities, UNAMID police advisers have been working with the local population to initiate programmes that will make an impact on their lives. Recently, the peacekeepers supported the local community to initiate English language classes for displaced women in West Darfur, Central Darfur and North Darfur.

"The idea to organize English classes arose as a result of the interaction with the women leaders in Abu Shouk camp; they requested for the classes as capacity building for women,” says Ms. Mwamimi Rwantale, a police officer from Tanzania who is the team leader for UNAMID community policing in North Darfur.

The community has been very supportive and has encouraged the women to attend the classes. “We would like to add to a continued learning atmosphere for all,” she adds.

Before the launch of the project, peacekeepers encountered challenges in funding for school materials, finding available space to be used as classrooms and identifying Arabic-speaking teachers.

It was decided to engage two local teachers within the camp to deliver the lessons on a voluntary basis and to use the classrooms of a basic school after the regular courses hours and the facilities of a women center. Under their initiative, the police advisers provided school materials including chalkboards, books and pencils.

Since the lessons began in December 2013, UNAMID police advisers visit the Omai School and the Darelrahman Women’s Centre where classes take place during their regular patrols in Abu Shouk camp. They monitor the ongoing progress of the lessons and provide moral support to the centres to ensure its continuity. Currently, English courses are being attended by more than 200 women three times a week.

“They are learning how to read and write and it has changed them,” says one of the voluntary teachers, Abass Abdallah Idris. “They will now be able to help their young children in their learning — they can be teachers for their own children.”

Abbas, who has 14 years of experience and currently works in Salaam Basic School for girls, says he chose to be a teacher because he believes in educating others, particularly those who haven’t been afforded many opportunities. “This is why I thought it was important to give the coming generation a chance to learn,” he adds.

Similarly to the initiative in Abu Shouk, UNAMID police advisers in El Geneina in West Darfur act as volunteer teachers in addition to their regular duties, earmarking their time and resources to teach English to residents of the Ardamata camp for internally displaced persons.

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