Adult Literacy Classes for Women

With assistance from the British Embassy in Khartoum we hold basic literacy classes for women who can’t read or write.

one of our supported adult literacy teachers  with her class.

Over 600 women attend these classes in 20 locations around Khartoum. On our visit we saw women teachers helping women to read. “ Thank you”, said one woman ,” Now I can read signs and I can write my name”.

Learn more about our Women's Literacy project here

Women attending a Women's Education Partnership basic literacy class

one of our teachers in in the centre – to the right is Neimat , our in country coordinator

Learn more about our Women's Literacy project here

A Warm Welcome

Penny and I send greetings from Sudan to Women's Education Partnership supporters in England  and beyond.

It's a hot day here and the traffic is busy.

This is day one of our visit to our staff and our students here.

There are also plans to visits many of our projects - including adult literacy, HIV/Aids outreaches for women and eye care clinics.

George at The Acropole Hotel, one of our strong local supporters,  has made us very welcome from the moment we arrived at the airport from Nairobi.

We were with Neimat in the Acropole hotel on the first day of our visit. She welcomed us very warmly, so warmly that I practised my new video skills on her. I intend on this visit to record short movies of what we see and who we visit so you can see what we see a  bit clearer. I hope you appreciate our efforts.  Thank you Neimat.

A New Year Update

We are very concerned about the reports of continued fighting in South Sudan. There are positive signs emerging about peace negotiations and a possible truce; however there have clearly been outbreaks of violence and unrest in certain  areas.

We hope that rapid progress is made towards securing peace as a matter of urgency and we support the efforts of all peace makers.

We learn from Juba that Kimu health clinic is working as normally as possible under the circumstances. The team there has remained together and our friends are safe. We also learn that the our HIV/Aids outreach programme for 2014 is ready to commence when the time is right and we have news that our staff and volunteers are safe.

We await news about the university and our students  as term is due to begin. We also await news about the adult literacy classes for women which were established in Terekeka.

In the meantime, we thank all our supporters who have sent messages of encouragement over Christmas. As WEP acts through personal contacts, we have been able to pass these on directly to friends in South Sudan.

We will continue to prepare for further projects in 2014 so that when peace returns, WEP will be ready to respond.

A recent Email from a friend leading a project supported by WEP in a troubled part of South Sudan ended with these words.

As we are entering 2014 tomorrow we pray that peace prevails in all corners of the World and wish you prosperous New Year. It is also our hope and wish that WEP's work expands in this New Year 2014.

It is a privilege to share with all supporters of WEP this optimistic message for the future emerging from a place where there is conflict and uncertainty.  Even in difficult times we learn of courage, hope and generosity of spirit.

Peter

Director

An Update on Our Current Situation

South Sudan 

We are very disturbed by reports emerging from South Sudan that there is fighting in certain places, possible military action and more people displaced.

We do not believe that violence will solve the problems which the people of South Sudan face as they seek to establish a new, prosperous and peaceful country,

We pray for an immediate end to bloodshed. This plea is especially poignant at Christmas when we join with people across the world, praying for peace and justice.


We learn that some of our projects continue to function despite the difficulties. 

• The University in Juba has continued working for the students as best it could up to Christmas.

• Our AIDS/HIV outreaches for 2013 were completed safely and planning is taking place for further outreaches to resume in 2014 as conditions allow.

• Kimu Clinic is functioning and the staff are safe.

• We have no word about the adult literacy work in Terekeka but we will continue to pray that staff and the adults in those remote schools remain safe.


We are in contact with our friends in South Sudan and we have, on your behalf, wished them a peaceful Christmas. We are committed to standing beside them and supporting them.

The situation in Sudan is changing rapidly and we will update you with further news of our projects as soon as we can.

Sudan

Our work in Sudan continues and we have regular positive reports from the office in Khartoum about our students at Ahfad. We have recently recruited two further students who will be our St Martin’s scholars in Khartoum

The adult literacy classes for women, work with orphan children and eye care outreaches continue

Recently we have had discussions about extending the involvement of our students into helping with Breast Care awareness alongside our HIV/Aids outreaches. In these outreaches we work to educate some of the most disadvantaged women who are most affected by poverty and lack of opportunity for education.



Thank You

Many of our loyal supporters have responded very generously to our Christmas appeal. Thank you and we look forward to receiving more completed gift aid forms and donations. We will only use funds for projects where we know that the projects can be safely and quickly delivered for the benefit of women.

We pray that 2014 will be peaceful, especially in South Sudan.

We are committed to working with all peacemakers and we know first hand the power of education to promote peace and justice, especially among women.  

We wish you and your families a very Happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year holiday. Thank you again for your support

Peter Hullah

24th December 2013

Two New Scholars

We have just had good news from Khartoum about two recently selected additional university scholars who are being supported by St Martin in the Fields.

This is really excellent news that we are very pleased about. The new scholars are called Samra and Maab.

We are delighted to have this information from Neimat, our coordinator in Khartoum, both women are presently studying at Ahfad University. Peter our Director very much hopes to meet Samra and Maab when he travels to Khartoum next year.

More news on these scholars and all our other scholars will follow. 

HIV/AIDS Outreach in Juba Sponsored by the Women's Education Partnership

Sarah from NWERO Speaks

Sarah from NWERO ( national women empowerment and rehabilitation organisation) talking to over 70 students at an outreach on the Juba University campus. This one of a series of 12 outreaches we are promoting in the town and out in the country. 

In the feedback many students said that his kind of information giving open forum was much appreciated.

HIV/AIDS facilitators

Sarah with the trained NWERO team selected today to deliver this important outreach.  A university   lecturer who attended said how valuable this outreach was for students who are the future of South Sudan. 

Sarah answering questions towards the end of the session about relationships

Adult Literacy with NRC in Terekeka

The partnership is launched with the Norwegian Refugee Council and WEP to deliver and monitor 2 adult literacy classes for women in Terekeka. 

The journey was tough on very poor roads to a neglected part of South Sudan. I am celebrating in Terekeka with Ayoume Elly, the NRC local coordinator who with his team has set up our joint project. Ayoume Elly used to be head of a girls school in Yei and understands our aims well. 

Peter our director with Ayoume Elly

To visit the adult literacy project - women teaching women basic skills in speaking and writing. The rural two-class project is organised and monitored by the Norwegian Refugee Council and sponsored this year by a generous WEP donor. We were amazed at what we saw after travelling for 4 hours to a place where locals have had a troubled past. Terekeka is a forgotten area with many education and social problems especially for women. The literacy project, taught by two women teachers from the community who are being trained locally, serves 99 adults, 68 women and 31 men. 

A forgotten area

Women led the question and answer session

It was a large class taught by Veronica. The curriculum will include literacy and numeracy together with life skills ( teaching among other things, peace education, gender issues and trauma counselling ) and if the project runs for two years , those attending will make the equivalent of 4 years progress at primary school. We have funding for the first year at present.

Learning is serious business

Adult literacy is important to the life of the community

The class thanked us for not neglecting them - they said they really wanted to learn, to speak English and to be able to read and write.

Eager to Learn

Women are very keen to learn

The questions were about how to balance time between child care, cooking and coming to class. Also in a hot place they asked for water to be made available more easily as the classes run from 2 to 5 in the afternoon. 

Attendance is very important 

Babies slept at the back in goat skins

A woman combines childcare and learning effectively   

The women of the upper class greeted us with a song

 

Basic Adult Literacy in Lojora Terekeka

Penny congratulating Abalo Vicky, the teacher of the class for first level speaking. The men and women have difficult writing and English is very much a foreign language

Penny congratulates Abalo Vicky

Rosa and Martina at Juba University

Rosa and Martina are willing to work hard to succeed

Rosa ( left ) came south from Khartoum in the middle of her science studies. She wants to be a microbiologist but the course is hard as there are hardly any facilities  for practical work at the university. However, now in her fourth year, she is a strong person and on her own found  work experience in the laboratory of the  South Sudan Beverage Company at the brewery. Her advice to her sister WEP scholars " Be serious about your studies and don't  give up."

Majdolin at Juba University Celebrating being a Women's Education Partnership Scholar

Majdolin celebrates with a smile

Majdolin is in her 4th year at the university studying medicine. She started in Khartoum on a Together for Sudan scholarship then moved South after the independence of South Sudan. She had no chance of going to university without the scholarship. "There are problems to overcome - sometimes we have no books but since being a teenager I wanted to be a doctor and I am continuing. " Her Women's Education Partnership scholarship ( WEP is our new name ) friends elected her as their representative when we met them and Majdolin plans to make sure our group of girls stay in touch with each other and support each other as they study. 

Women's Education Partnership Students in Juba

Women's Education Partnership University Students in Juba

Seven of our scholarship undergraduates come together at the university. I addition, on the left, Donna is a scholarship graduate who after studying law, is now working in the judiciary. She has aspirations to become a judge and her advice to her friends was "Be serious about your studies and finish your education - never give up despite the problems. Thank you for the help. I would never have made it without my scholarship ".

Meeting a Remarkable Pioneer for Women's Education in South Sudan

Peter the Women's Education Partnership Director and Joy Kwaje South Sudanese MP

For Joy as she pioneers women's education through her role as an MP in parliament in South Sudan, Lillian is her role model for passion and for volunteering. 

Joy confirmed that our agenda to help women was very much her agenda as she develops the new country of South Sudan.

"Women's Education Partnership, beginning to work on small scale education projects to support disadvantaged and refugee women, could not have come at a better time for us ".

She looks forward to staying close to all we do and she is very much a friend of WEP.

A talking point :- in South Sudan, out of 332 members of Parliament, 94 are women .....

Other countries take note .........

Kimu Connection

The Government Polio vaccination team uses Kinu Clinic as a base to work from

At Kimu Clinic

Silas with the Kimu Clinic technicians

Silas, a long term friend of WEP is surrounds by his cheerful team of lab technicians at Kimu Health Centre, Juba. These  ladies know that their detective skills will make a difference to the way the community becomes healthy. 

Women come to Kimu Clinic with their children

 The Health Centre run by Silas Jojo and supported by the Women's Education Partnership is a lifeline for community health.
 

The Operating Theatre at Kimu Clinic

The equipment has arrived thanks to very generous donations from our supporters. It's almost ready to be used and Silas predicts that the first operation will take place here this weekend.


In response to donations of equipment, the community have gathered funds to buy an air conditioning unit. This is real Partnership working at Kimu.

Kimu Clinic Juba

Emanuelle and Mum Stella

At Kimu health centre brave four year old Emmanuelle, watched by her anxious mother Stella ,receives an injection via a cannula to treat pneumonia. Kimu is a local health clinic on the outskirts of Juba , supported by Women's Education Partnership. The clinic brings health to the women and children of a disadvantaged and poor community of refugees. 

All smiles now

All smiles after the injection is over. With the support Kimu receives from partners and friends, including WEP, the clinic is able to raise levels of health for the local community.

Landing in Juba

Just coming in to land at Juba, South Sudan

The President of Sudan was leaving after a peace making visit as we arrived in Juba. The airport was packed and the roads closed. In all the crowds we were welcomed and admitted to South Sudan. Then Penny and I walked the mile or so from the airport to the hotel past lines of waiting cars and security. 

Khartoum is hot and dusty: Juba  is hot and humid after brief torrential afternoon rains. 

This evening we had a good conversation with Maud Johansson of the Norwegian Relief Council.  Later this week we will travel for a couple of days outside Juba to visit adult education projects - women teaching women , with  WEP supporting NRC as a partner in development education for women who have materially very little indeed. This is an exciting  and a very real development for WEP and thank you to our donors. 

We can see the links building between our work in Sudan and South Sudan, helping women who are disadvantaged or displaced through education. The real joy is that In both countries we are listening to local women  who are equally passionate for this to happen. 

Ibrahim and Izdihar

Ibrahim and Izdihar are two of our four Women's Education Partnership staff in Sudan who coordinate and monitor our projects there.  

Ibrahim and Izdihar both Women's Education Partnership staff in Khartoum

Izdihar (right) has special responsibility for our 88 undergraduate students and she really knows them well and understands them. They rely on her to look after them as they learn in Khartoum, often far away from their home areas which are affected by troubles.
Ibrahim organises the classes for women we teach in adult literacy in the dusty poorer areas of Khartoum. He also helps us monitor the work we do to educate young children made orphans through HIV/Aids in 10 schools. 



We talked with them today in the office before we headed south to Juba.

Ida's Dream

Without Together for Sudan, I would have had no chance in life.

Ida, originally from the Nuba Mountains, graduated in October 2012 from Africa University in Khartoum. She was one of our scholars and through this support she has gained a very Good degree in health science at Africa University Khartoum. She is now working at a government hospital as a nurse caring for patients who are suffering from heart problems and diabetes.." Without Together for Sudan, I would have had no chance in life. This allowed me to follow my dream to study and to become a nurse."

Meeting with our Students

We spent today with many of our scholarship students at Ahfad University and at the hostel we support. We have 88 young women currently studying at universities in Khartoum. 

Our WEP sponsored students ( and us )

They tell of amazing stories of the power of education to change their lives. One girl from  the Nuba Mountains told us, "Without the support I have received, I would have been lost. Now I will graduate next year in Rural Extension, Education and Development and I will use my skills to help children back home understand the importance of education. 

Spot Peter and Penny! 


We are where we should because the day belonged to our students as they enjoyed being together.

Meeting With Dr Gassim

With Dr Gassim Badri ( chancellor of Ahfad University Khartoum)  and Neimat ( Women's Education Partnership/Together for Sudan coordinator in Sudan) and Izidhar ( who monitors closely for us the progress and well being of our scholars). 


Neimat and Izdihar (centre) with Dr Gassim Badri 

Dr Gassim said how vital it is that disadvantaged women have access to education. We must therefore continue to expand our scholarship scheme if we can. The fact that already 285 of our scholars have graduated is an amazing and unique achievement to support Women in Education in this part of the world. 



We talked of how we could encourage our students even more and we are exploring running some English conversation classes for them nearby using volunteers from among our local supporters. 

Dr Gassim leads a remarkable university for women and many of our students see him as a role model for level headed and calm leadership, especially in the recent disturbances. 
Dr Gassim is one of our patrons and we thanked him personally on behalf of all our supporters  for his personal generosity and his commitment to our scholars.