Teachers, the most vital investment for Africa’s education system

The objective of Team Europe, of which Belgium is a part of, is to improve teacher training, whether it be initial or continuing education, by focusing on digital technologies, exchanges between colleagues and regional collaboration in Africa. This programme builds on the IFADEM programmes already implemented in Benin, Congo and Senegal, and aims to strengthen exchanges between countries to share experiences and good practices in the field of education.

Access to education in the southern countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, has made undeniable progress in recent years. However, while there has been a marked improvement in the quantity of basic education, little progress has been made in terms of quality. According to the Global Partnership for Education, the quality of education remains poor in many developing countries, with children only acquiring 20-25% of the knowledge acquired by those in developed countries. It will take 69 million teachers, including 15 million in sub-Saharan Africa, to achieve universal primary and secondary education by 2030.

A quality basic education for all, this was the ambition of the Heads of State and Government at the 11th Francophonie Summit in Bucharest in 2006. On this occasion, they asked the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) and the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF) to pool their resources to support national policies for the modernisation of education systems in member countries. This support was confirmed in 2008, at the Quebec City summit that launched the IFADEM initiative, the French-language initiative for distance teacher training.

The objectives? To support the states in the definition of continuing training strategies for primary school teachers in order to improve the skills of teachers in teaching French. This is achieved through the implementation of innovative practices and the use of new didactic tools, taking into account the administrative and academic contexts of each beneficiary country. Designed in each country by a local team, the schemes are based on educational advisers, inspection bodies, French teachers and teacher training schools to strengthen their capacity to modernize structures and encourage the professionalization of primary school teachers.

On the ground, IFADEM supports the states in their definition of a strategy for continuing teacher training by implementing, jointly with the ministry in charge of basic education, an operational training device partly at distance, adapted to the needs of the education systems and using information and communication technologies.

The countries involved in its implementation are Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Comoros, Ivory Coast, Haiti, Lebanon, Madagascar, Mali, Niger, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Senegal, Togo and Chad. The initiative benefits from permanent scientific support, by international experts who represent 8 countries gathered in a Group of Experts (GE).

Improving work practices

It is therefore in this critical context of the situation of teachers that APEFE wanted to collaborate with the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF), the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie AUF) and the Institut de la Francophonie pour l’éducation et la formation (IFEF - OIF) to the deployment of the IFADEM Initiative in Benin, Congo and Senegal through multi-annual programmes funded by the Belgian Directorate-General for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid, in support of national ministries responsible for education.

This support from APEFE often complements a pilot phase and starts a phase of geographical extension and consolidation, for an extended coverage that now reaches 10,500 teachers who have improved their professional practices.

"These conclusive results were a guarantee of the quality of support for the education system in general, and for continuing training systems for teachers in particular, and they guaranteed the continuation of the process during the five-year programme (2022-2026) financed by the DGD (Belgian Federal Cooperation), currently being implemented,” explains Sophie Pham-Holliday, Education Officer at APEFE.

Successful experimentation

The IFADEM initiative is today marked by successful experimentation and advancement through tests and evidence. It has proved to be the right place to contribute to the Global Gateway effort through the European Commission’s Regional Teachers' Initiative for Africa (RTIA). This involves the Regional Facility for Teachers in Africa (RFTA), implemented by Team Europe as part of the Global Gateway investment package, in partnership with the African Union Commission and UNESCO .

The action proposed by APEFE, in partnership with OIF, AUF and IFEF, called “Continuing Teacher Training Support Programme”, is an extension of the IFADEM programs already implemented in Benin, DRC and Senegal, and is extended by the development of regional and international exchanges, with a view to learning and capitalising between countries.

Digital education

The intervention is part of the EU RFTA (European Union Regional Facility for Teachers in Africa) implemented by three member states (Belgium, France and Finland) and aims to improve the quality, the relevance and the effectiveness of initial and continuing professional development for teachers through digital education, peer learning approaches and regional collaboration. The programme is part of component 2 of the Facilitaire which brings together 3 agencies from Team Belgium (ENABEL as lead, VVOB and APEFE) and focuses on scaling up teacher training and professional development programmes in the thematic areas of digital skills, gender, green skills and pedagogical skills.

If the Facilitaire is in the wake of the flagship actions implemented by Team Europe, its unusual dimension lies in its desire to consolidate a collaborative and learning community double, between the member states, but also between the 3 Belgian agencies.

The impact will be further enhanced to address shortages and take action to retain and attract new teachers.

Article written by Laurence Briquet for W+B Magazine n°166.

Cover Image: © APEFE