Pamoja Sierra Leone
Pamoja Sierra Leone came into being in 2009 initiated by Reflect practitioners working for national NGOs after they attended a number of Pamoja West Africa events. It is a legally constitued organisation with a governing body and an interim secretariat. 280 Reflect circles with 7 189 participants (3 286 men and 3 903 women) and 306 facilitators (266 men and 40 women) were active in 2010.
In 2010 Pamoja Sierra Leone facilitated a national literacy policy analysis, download the report here. Results were shared at the sub regional level at the meeting in Accra organised by Pamoja West Africa in October 2010.
In 2011 Pamoja Sierra Leone concentrated on strengthening the coalition by developing partnerships,including hosting the Pamoja West Africa Best Practices workshop in September. Pamoja Sierra Leone is a key partner in the Finnish Refugee Council's sustainability strategy as they change their role and begin to withdraw from community level intervention (see below).
In 2012 Pamoja West Africa and Pamoja Sierra Leone coordinated a participatory evaluation of the Reflect work supported by the Finnish Refugee Council since 2004. The report can be downloaded opposite.
Pamoja Sierra Leone can be contacted through Sagestine Gandi
Email:sagestine@hotmail.com
Reflect in Sierra Leone
Reflect was introduced by Action Aid but in recent years the Finnish Refugee Council (FRC) is the principal organisation supporting the approach. FRC is a rights based organisation using Reflect as a tool to promote participation and empowerment. It works through 8 national NGOs, 2 radio stations and 6 Technical/Vocational training institutions to promote Functional Adult Literacy and Community Development and, through a second programme, Employment, Promotion and Training for Young People. In 2010 FRC reported- Having supported 350 Literacy circles in 250 communities
- Over 5000 community literacy participants (70% female) actively participating in literacy courses in 2010
- 21 advanced literacy groups piloting group businesses
- 707 young adults (60% female) trained in various vocational skills (2007-2010)
- 82 graduated youth groups supported with start-up kits (2008-2010)
- 100 new youth intakes enrolled at institutes
- Inadequate government funding for adult literacy and youth development
- Overwhelming demand for literacy support
- Limited employment options for youths and lack of or ill defined post training activities for youths
- Limited experience with and inadequacy of Learner Generated Materials (LGMs) created space for over reliance on primers
- Community radio is a useful tool in adult literacy delivery and youth empowerment
- Learner Generted Materials (LGMs) promote interest and ownership among literacy participants and facilitators
- Training for facilitators / tutors / activists / entrepreneurs improves the quality of results
- Sustainability requires strategic planning!
