Adolescent Girls' Education in Crisis Initiative (AGENCI)

The Adolescent Girls’ Education in Crisis Initiative (AGENCI) is a four-year (2019-2023), $17.1 million project to enhance the empowerment of adolescent girls and female youth pursuing educational pathways in crisis-affected areas of South Sudan, Syria, and Uganda. This is a joint initiative between AKFC and WUSC, and implemented in consortium (South Sudan by WUSC, Syria by AKFC, and Uganda jointly by WUSC and AKFC).

AGENCI is designed to address gender, social, cultural and economic barriers it’s targeted beneficiaries face in accessing education, and making life decisions. The project seeks to improve equitable learning outcomes for adolescent girls and female youth in formal and non-formal upper primary school, secondary school, and in skills training programs. AGENCI responds to specific barriers and educational needs identified by adolescent girls, female youth, community members, and education stakeholders through gender analyses conducted in the three countries. AGENCI addresses the root causes of inequality by challenging and helping to transform structural barriers and entrenched social norms, attitudes, and power relations that impact girls’ ability to access and benefit from education.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, AGENCI carried out Covid-19 activities in the selected secondary schools. This was done by installing hand-washing facilities and providing hand sanitizers for the staff and soap for students to wash their hands. Awareness on sanitation and importance of girls’ education was carried out through local FM radios and door to door outreach.