Monrovia – As the government of Liberia gears up to reopen schools across the country following months of COVID-19 disruption, the Girls for Change Organization (GFC) has launched a campaign to up the ante for a safer and healthier school environment especially for children and those scheduled to sit the West Africa Senior High School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
The Executive Director, Ora Barclay Keller said. ‘’The campaign dubbed as ‘Safer Schools’ will engage government, school administrators and partners in the educational sector to ensure schools across the country are in straight adherence to the National Health Protocols and mostly especially internationally accepted health and safety standards and practices’’.
Madam Barclay Keller further revealed that the project, which is sponsored by OXFAM, will last for two months, and is expected to raise the needed awareness by engaging government and school administrators specifically in Margibi and Montserrado Counties.
The awareness will focus on promoting safe school environments, she said.
“We call on the relevant agencies and Government Ministries to provide strong supervision to various school campuses to ensure health protocols are observed. And both the government and school administrators have the responsibility to make sure schools reopen and safe for all kids.”
The project will leverage the use of various media platforms including social media, zoom, and radio talk shows to raise the awareness, GFC Executive Director said.
The project will be implemented through the Organization’s Gender Justice Clubs already established in those counties and will similarly engage communities for their support.
According to the UNESCO, the global COVID-19 pandemic has led to unprecedented levels of disruption to education, impacting over 90%of the world’s student population: 1.54 billion children, including 743 million girls.
And to reverse this, Girls for Change is urging government, education stakeholders, parents, students and the entire country to work together for the return of all kids to school and a special emphasis must be placed on girls children too.