Local work

ActionAid has a huge range of experience in the field of education around the world - working from early childhood through to adult education. While we still meet immediate needs in education, much of our work has shifted to addressing people's rights.

Consider the state of education from the point of view of poor people:

education is expensive; it is very poor quality; often it is simply not available. For most children the completion of primary education is the most that can be hoped for - but the benefits from completion may well not justify the huge investment made. To get a child educated requires massive sacrifices and for a girl the chances of her family making such sacrifices are very slim indeed.

We work with people whose right to education has been denied, enabling them to assert their rights. We also help poor people to become active agents in negotiating for their rights, enabling them to define for themselves what "free quality basic education" means.

Our work at a local level is an integral part of a larger struggle for quality education at national and international levels. We believe that the State is responsible for providing quality education for all. We therefore work with governments to achieve local education reform where necessary, and support areas of basic education, such as early childhood education and adult literacy, that are not within the viable reach of government.

Our local education work encompasses a huge range of activities, from supporting formal and non-formal education, to strengthening the voices of poor people in education decision-making at all levels.

Our main concern is making education more accountable, and in doing so narrowing the large gap between governments and their citizens.

photo : ©Stuart Freedman/ Network/ ActionAid