UNICEF – Schools for Africa – Child-Friendly School in Eastern South Africa

Children's right to education and the importance of education to unleashing individual potential and contributing to national development have gained growing global recognition, as reflected in the Millennium Development Goals, which call for achieving full primary education and gender equality in education by 2015.

Why children don't attend school or drop out of school

UNICEF promotes the broad concept of "Child-Friendly Schools" in an effort to address some of the main obstacles - such as:

Lack of a safe and secure school environment, both within schools and for children who must walk long distances to reach facilities.
Insufficient numbers of trained teachers and textbooks.
Lack of clean water and sanitation (e.g. separate toilets for girls and boys and hand-washing facilities).
Beliefs and practices that discourage girls' enrolment.
Discrimination against orphans and girls within the education system and in classrooms.
Poor health and nutritional status.

These shortcomings have a negative impact on the QUALITY of education, and thus on the children’s learning outcomes.

Children from Namurumo Primary School in the village of Muediua, Maganja da Costa District, central province of Zambezia, have access to safe water to drink and wash their hands since a new Afridev pump was installed in their school. © Giacomo Pirozzi

Child-friendly schools

A Child-Friendly School (CFS) recognises that children have rights and works to fulfill them. This holistic approach, which is detailed below, addresses the challenges of educational access, quality and management through advocacy, capacity development, service delivery and partnerships.

Rights Based School: CFS proactively seeks out-of-school children and encourages them to enrol, irrespective of gender, race, ability, social status, etc.
Gender Sensitive School: CFS promotes equality and equity in enrolment and achievement among girls and boys.
Safe and Protective School: CFS ensures that all children can learn in a safe and inclusive environment.
Community Engaged School: CFS encourages partnership among schools, communities, parents and children in all aspects of the education process.
Academically Effective School : CFS provides children with relevant knowledge and skills for surviving and thriving in life.
Health Promoting School: CFS promotes the physical and emotional health of children by meeting key nutritional and health care needs within schools.

There is no "one-way" to make a school child-friendly. The approach may differ from country to country. UNICEF's aim is to work closely with governments, teachers, communities and other partners to create conditions that will attract children to school, keep them there, and ensure that what they learn will serve them well during their passage to adulthood.

Read Schools for Africa's goals to understand how UNICEF are putting this approach into practice.

Children playing in new school playgrounds, Rwanda. © Giacomo Pirozzi

Doctor giving children shots at school, Mozambique. © UNICEF

Hygiene demonstration at school, Mozambique. © UNICEF