Cambridge University Southern Africa Fund for Education

From StudentWiki

SAFE was established by students at Cambridge University to provide financial support to NGOs (non-governmental organisations) and charities working in Southern Africa to promote education.

The strength of the scheme lies in its sustainability - in some Cambridge colleges students automatically contribute via the college bill system. It is also a valuable chance for students to get involved in development work as they administer college SAFE funds to NGOs.

Why southern Africa?

These are some of the reasons why we focus on education, and in specific in SubSaharan Africa.

EXCLUSION FROM SCHOOL: SubSaharan Africa is the only region in the world in which education enrolment rates are falling, despite widespread recognition of the value of education. There are currently 80 million children excluded from education in sub-Saharan Africa.
EDUCATION AND HIV/AIDS: Sub-Saharan Africa is disproportionately affected by the AIDS pandemic with 90% of new HIV infections in 1999 occurring in the region. Half of all people with HIV become infected before the age of 25, which is why the education of young people is so important.
INFRASTUCTURE: The demands placed on governments in sub-Saharan Africa to repay foreign debts affect the quality of education. In Zambia, for example, the government spends as little as 1 US$ per year for every child in school.

Exclusion from school

As governments are increasingly unable to subsidise education, school-going costs are transferable to the parents. In addition to school fees, parents must provide money for school equipment and examinations. These costs are beyond the means of families surviving on subsistence farming.

Girls are particularly affected as parents are forced to choose which children to send to school and often opt for their sons as they are more likely to gain formal employment. The result is the exclusion of millions of girls from school - ironically in the areas that can least afford to lose the potential of their young women.

Tragically, the short-term measures that families take to survive serve to perpetuate their poverty. In particular, the spread of HIV in the region is closely linked to poverty, and prevalence rates in sub-Saharan Africa reach 20% of the population in some areas.

Education and HIV/AIDS

Girls are particularly at risk from the advances of older men, offering cash for school fees in return for sexual favours. Secondary school education offers vital protection to young people, safeguarding the school environment and enabling then to access information about AIDS prevention. Moreover, they can develop confidence to resist unwelcome advances, and especially for girls, to make choices about when to have children and the sizes of their families.

Infrastructure

Despite government commitment to education, budgets are often small, barely sustaining the system as it is let alone allowing for expansion. Teachers are under-trained and often poorly paid and they have to work with very difficult working conditions. There is little extra cash available to maintain school buildings and it is not uncommon for students to be working without desks or chairs. Class sizes can reach 50 or 60 students with few textbooks to share around the class.

SAFE supports organisations working to build educational capacity. SAFE money is used to equip schools with teaching resources, providing teacher training, and financial building of classrooms and dormitories. Schools are also encouraged to undertake their own income-generated projects and are trained so that management of funds might be more sustainable.

Bookmark with: