SIKAI organises national level learning sharing event in Kathmandu

KATHMANDU: SIKAI organised 'National Level Learning Sharing' event in Kathmandu today with the aim of strengthening inclusive education in Nepal.

The SIKAI project has been in progress in the Sarlahi district for the last four years, since May 2020. 

This project is funded by Australian Aid under the Australian NGO Cooperation Programme (ANCP) and is implemented by a consortium of World Vision International (WVI) Nepal, Handicap International (HI), and World Education (WE) in partnership with Rastriya Rojgar Prawardhan Kendra (RRPK) in Sarlahi. It has managed to reach 58 community schools and 23 Madrasas across four rural municipalities in the district.

During the welcome speech, Rosyln Gabriel, the Country Director at World Vision International, stated that the project aimed to improve access, participation, and engagement in education for excluded children both in and out of school. The focus was on caste, disability, ethnicity, and gender, reaching 66,325 beneficiaries in the Sarlahi district. Gabriel also stated that the project was successful in increasing the positive behaviour and attitude of teachers towards the inclusion of the most vulnerable children in education, from 12.5% in the baseline to 98.3% in the midline assessment, with improved attitudes retained through to the end of the project.

The project also succeeded in improving the attitude of parents towards the education of girls and children with disabilities, which increased from 17% in the baseline to 57.4% in the end-line. Similarly, the number of parents providing supportive equal learning opportunities to girls and boys at home significantly increased from 5% in the baseline to 91.4% in the end-line.

Overall, the project's focus was to convey the message that children with disabilities have the right to receive education on an equal footing with children without disabilities, using appropriate school environments, teaching-learning activities, and teaching materials.

The role of parents, teachers, and the school family is equally important for creating an inclusive learning environment and teaching.