CONCEPT NOTE FOR SAHI SOMALIA

Name of Organization: Semi-arid Health Initiative ( SAHI) SOMALIA PROGRAM

Contact Information Ahmed Dahir
and Address:

Submitted 25th March 2017

Background and Rationale
Somalia is in the process of emerging from a prolonged period of state collapse that
followed the civil war of 1988-91. Since 2012, the post-transitional Federal
Government of Somalia (FGS) has been internationally recognized, but its capacity
as a governing body and the area it controls remains limited. The election of a new
president for Somalia in February 2017 has been received positively not just in
Somalia but in the region as well as internationally.

Kismayo town which is the capital of Jubbaland state, in South Central Somalia, is
one of the recently liberated towns struggling to attain modest levels of governing
capacity. Kismayo is a port city in the southern Lower Juba Province of Somalia. It is
the commercial capital of Jubaland State and is situated 528 Km South-West of
Mogadishu, near the mouth of river Jubba that drains into the Indian Ocean. It
covers an area of 42 square Kilometres and as of 2014, the local population was
estimated at about 211,387 inhabitants (According to UNFPA demographic
Statistics report, 2014). The largest towns close to Kismayo include Jamaame
(52km), Jilib (97km) and Merca (337km). In September 2012, the Somali National
Army and AMISOM troops re-captured the city from the Al Shabab insurgents. The
Jubaland Interim Administration was subsequently established and recognized in
2013. The relative security and the availability of basic services like health, water,
food and education has attracted many IDP’s from the rural areas. According to
UNHCR voluntary repatriation report March 2017, majority of returnees from Dadaab
are coming to Kismayu. The prevailing droughts experienced in the Jubaland has
also led to migration of people to Kismayu.

The regional state of Jubaland has a functioning Ministry of Education and the
capacity of the ministry of education officials is very much improving and the ministry
is doing its best to rebuild education sector in Jubbaland. However, the ministry does
not have adequate funds to run education on its own. As a result, humanitarian
agencies including SAHI partner with MOE to promote access to education for
children from the Returnee, IDP community, and poor host community households.

Specifically, schools are over-crowded and lack essential facilities like desks,
teaching and learning materials and sanitation facilities including latrines.
Additionally, it is worth noting that there are no well-established special need
education units as well as early childhood development education facilities in
Kismayu.
Information on provision of SNE services is quite scanty with a mention of the
special needs learners being integrated in the mainstream classes with little or no
support that targets their disability

In order to progress in the provision of SNE services, Somalia needs to be signatory

to a number of world declarations, and put in place policies that aim to provide equal
educational opportunities to all learners. Such commitments include the pledge to the
Salamanca Statement (1994) which advocates for inclusion of learners with
disabilities in the mainstream education. Based on the current status of SNE in
Kismayo, few teachers (returnees from Dadaab) are trained to provide additional
support to learners with SEN. As such, most learners with disabilities find themselves
in the mainstream classrooms where they are and expected to excel without any
additional educational support. This form of integration does not reflect the sort of
inclusive education addressed in the Salamanca Statement. The concept of inclusive
education is inseparable with quality education. Quality education can only be
achieved if the needs of all learners are addressed so that each and every learner is
allowed an opportunity to succeed (Pinnock H. &LewisI., 2008). When learners with
SEN are provided with appropriate support in an inclusive setting, they are able to
develop a more positive self-concept (SchmidtM. &Cagran B. 2008). Inclusive
education practices accept learners with all levels of SEN. The educational
opportunities of learners with SEN are maximized when these learners receive
classroom support, their teachers have the relevant skills, and funding is sufficient in
order to provide appropriate teaching and learning resources (Farrell P. Et.al. 2007).

According to a needs assessment conducted by SAHI on special needs education in

Kismayo in between May 2017 and June 2017 and on Oct 2019, the assessment
revealed a number of challenges that teachers, learners with and without disabilities
are facing in schools. These challenges include:
• Lack of knowledge and additional skills in teaching learners with disabilities
• Inadequate teaching and learning resources
• Inadequate communication skills by teachers and learners in schools
• Frequent absenteeism from school by learners some because of disability.
• Lack of available mechanisms to raise awareness on disability mainstreaming,
proper identification of disability and early interventions
• Negative attitudes by the teachers and the community towards learners with
disabilities
• Lack of interest and commitment towards education by learners
• Inaccessible school infrastructure
• Inconsistent data for people living with disability
• Poor attitude towards PWDs
• Lack of assistive devices
The assessment further proposed a number of interventions that would that would
ensure children with disabilities access inclusive and quality education;
• Need for Sensitization of parents, teachers, learners and school management
committees on disability issues.
• Need to provide mobility to and from school will definitely trigger higher
enrolment in school for the special needs children
• Conduct a baseline survey to map and determine the numbers of PWDs for
proper interventions that target known populations.
• Train local and school administrator special needs education.
• Early interventions to minimize the effect of impairment on education will be
key and therefore the expertise needed for early screening and identification
of children with disabilities will be important by establishing an equivalent of an
educational assessment and resource center(EARC).
• Development of a clear policy on inclusive education together with adequate
financial provision, curriculum, buildings, school organization, pedagogy,
assessment, staffing, and school ethos and extra- curricular activities.
• Provide in-service training to all mainstream teachers and/or Special needs
teaches
• Construct/Rehabilitate and adapt the existing school classrooms, sanitary and
recreation facilities for accessibility.
• Provide different types of assistive devices to assist learners with mobility,
hearing, and communication, sight, writing and sitting problems.
• Provide young people with special educational needs with an effective
transition from school to adult working life by providing them with the skills
needed in everyday life.

Target population-SNE learners

Target Returnees IDPs Locals Total
population (Host
community)
Females: 18+ 0 0 10 10
Males: 18+ 0 0 10 10
Females: 5-18 100 300 50 450
Males: 5 – 18 200 150 100 450
Females: < 5 0 0 0 0
Males: < 5 0 0 0 0
Total 300 450 170 920
Note:
• No prior data available regarding SNE education in Jubbaland.
• 20 SNE teachers included as target beneficiary (10M,10F) under the category
of Female/Male 18+yrs,
Project Goal and Envisaged Outcomes
Project goal: Paving The Way for Successful Inclusion in Kismayo.
Objective 1: Increased access to education and support services to learners
with special needs (boys and girls) in Kismayo.
Outcome 1: Inclusive education
promoted Output:
• # of Advocacy and Awareness campaigns conducted.
• # Baseline survey conducted.
• # of SNE teachers recruited.
• # of SNE appropriate classrooms rehabilitated/constructed
• # of resource centers constructed and equipped
• # of learners supported with uniform
• # of children provided with assistive devices
• # of students transported to and from school Activities:
• Conduct quarterly sensitization, advocacy and enrollment campaigns •
Conduct baseline survey on PWDs

• Recruit and support 20 SNE teacher

• Construction/rehabilitate SNE classrooms/school.
• Construct and equip one resource center
• Recruit SNE resource center staff
• Support 900 SNE learners with school uniform.
• Provide SNE 100 learners with assistive devices
• Offer transportation to special needs children to school for 9 months
Objective 1: Improved quality of education for children with disability.
Output:
• # of teacher trained in certificate in special needs education.
• # of schools/centers support with specialized SNE learning materials.
• # of MOEHL officer supported Activities:
• Train 20 SNE teachers
• Support 6 schools/center with specialized SNE teaching/learning materials
• Support one MOEHL official for 12 months

Methodology and approach

SAHI’s strategic approaches are Rights Based Empowerment, community
participation and integrated approaches. The Rights Based Approach forms the
foundation for our work and as such guides us towards working closely with both
the duty bearers (ministry of education) and rights holders (children, teacher,
parents and the community). SAHI will facilitate empowerment of the vulnerable
and the minorities in Kismayo through highly participatory planning, implementation,
monitoring and evaluation processes.
The purpose of this intervention is to help the vulnerable in the communities
especially IDPs, returnees and poor host community to appreciate and ensure that
all the children access ECD education.
• SAHI Somalia will work closely with the ministry of education and school
committees to ensure quality education is provided for all children in Kismayo.
• SAHI will establish a Complaints and Response Mechanism (CRM) to facilitate
feedback and information sharing between the community, IDPs and returnees.
• SAHI will empower the education committees to support the provision of quality
SNE education.
• All activities in Kismayo will be carried out jointly by SAHI, the ministry of
education, school committees, teachers and the pupils and parents.
• SAHI will avail the Project Work-plan, Budgets, reports and all other relevant
documents to assist in monitoring of the project.
• SAHI will continue participating in cluster coordination meetings and other
coordination meetings relevant to the project
• SAHI will upload high level of accountability to the persons of concern,
government and donors.

Technical capacity
SAHI is well positioned to implement the project based on experience working with
Somali refugees in Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya. SAHI has been the partner of
UNHCR implementing primary and ECD education in Hagadera and Kambioos
camps. SAHI has deployed competent project Coordinator with vast experience in
project management to take the lead role in establishing the operations in Somalia.
SAHI also has an education technical advisor based in Nairobi and who will be
consulted at every stage of the project. In Dadaab, there are SAHI’s experts in
inclusive early childhood and primary education and these will also be consulted.
SAHI has also employed local project staffs who are Somali nationals and they
understand well the cultural dynamics, knows the local language, has a good
understanding of project management cycle as well good understanding of the SAHI
systems and policies and therefore able to ensure that the highest standard of
accountability is observed at all times.
Budget

250,000 Euros- total budget