Alternative Basic Education for Karamoja (ABEK)
- P Project/Program
I Inactive
Key Information
ABEK, the Alternative Basic Education for Karamoja programme, was launched in 1998 to hold classes where children graze their family’s livestock and perform other tasks such as cooking and tending to younger siblings. In 2015 a new initiative was implemented in which girls received goats as an incentive to attend school. Goats are considered a form of wealth in the Karamoja region. The Alternative Basic Education for Karamoja (ABEK) programme seeks to address the primary educational needs of the children from the Karimojong communities. It is a non-formal learning programme implemented by the district local government of Kotido and Moroto. The programme seeks to close the gap between the formal system and the semi-nomadic lifestyle where households’ economies rely substantially on the contribution by children. The program reported to have given out 2,000 goats to girls. More recently, renewed violence in Karamoja region has left children out of school. The program has also been revised to address anti-Karimojong bias entrenched in the formal education system and integrate new understanding on drylands pastoralism in the face of climate change.
Lead Implementing Government(s)
Location(s)
Sub-Saharan Africa
Uganda
Activity URL
Government Affiliation
Government-affiliated programYears
1998 - 2019
Ministry Affiliation
Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES)Funder(s)
COVID-19 Response
Not changedGeographic Scope
Sub-nationalMeets gender-transformative education criteria from the TES
UnknownAreas of Work Back to Top
Education areas
Attainment
- Primary completion
- Secondary completion
Other
- Remote Learning
Quality
- School facilities
Skills
- Literacy
- Numeracy
Cross-cutting areas
- Climate change
- Gender equality
- Other cultural practices
- Social and gender norms and beliefs
Program participants
Other populations reached
- Community leaders
- Fathers
- Mothers
- Other caregivers
- Other community members - female
- Other community members - male
- Other family members
Participants include
- Indigenous
Program Approaches Back to Top
Access to school
- Alternative learning centers/mobile schools/home schools
Curriculum/learning
- Increased availability of learning materials
Facilities construction/improvement
- Construction/improvement of classrooms
Food/nutrition
- Community food production
- Other nutritional supplementation
- School feeding
Tutoring/strengthening academic skills
- Literacy - outside the classroom
- Numeracy - outside the classroom
Program Goals Back to Top
Education goals
- Improved academic skills (literacy and numeracy)
- Increased literacy
- Increased numeracy
- Increased re-enrolment in school among out-of-school children
- Increased school completion (general)
- Increased years of schooling
Cross-cutting goals
- Changed social norms
- Improved health - other