Activities in Guinea
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The five clusters of activities of the SAGE program in Guinea resulted from a series of working meetings and focus groups that included representatives from the Ministry of Education, leaders of the different religious groups, parents, teachers, journalists, business leaders, NGOs, CBOs, and donors.  The conceptual framework for SAGE's activities in Guinea is based on three critical principles:

1. The mobilization and engagement of the traditional and nontraditional actors takes place simultaneously at the National level and at the Community level.
2. Constraints and solutions to girls' schooling is locally assessed and derived.
3. Sustainability is the result of an in-depth sense of ownership and a committed engagement of both public and private sectors in the solution of girls' education.

• establish a National Alliance that groups representatives from the public sector (several ministries), the business sector, the religious sector, and the media
• establish a National Media Task Force
• mobilize key religious leaders in support of girls’ education
• hold Girls’ Education Day (June 21)

Action:  Barry & Frères, a local food distributor, includes messages in support of girls’ education in their national advertising campaign.

• establish Local Alliances in six sub-prefectures of Guinea
• develop Action Plans for Local Alliances
• develop Action Plans for Local Radios and produce strategy
• develop common agenda for action with NGOs and CBOs

Action:  The Lelouma Local Alliance raised resources, both in-kind and financial, to construct three classrooms, latrines for boys and girls and housing for two teachers in the village of Dialakadie.

• hold National Forum on Girls’ Education to produce National Strategy
• ensure wide participation of the nontraditional actors by involving leaders from the business, religious and media sectors
• ensure participation of local alliances
• work closely with each sector to implement the National Strategy

Action: A National Forum on Girls' Education, opened by the Prime Minister on September 22, 1999, brought together over 200 community and national-level stakeholders from both the public and private sectors to produce a National Strategy.

• mobilize communities and raise local funds and resources to implement locally set plans of actions in support of girls' education
• mobilize business organizations and entrepreneurs in support of girls' education, motivate them to set up a national fund
• write and disseminate real life stories about rural and urban successful girls and women as role models

Action: SAGE Guinea assisted in establishing a national fund for girls' education (Fonds National de Soutien à l’Education des Filles - FONSEF) and held the first annual meeting of FONSEF in December 2000. The equivalent of approximately $6,000 has been raised to date.

• set-up monitoring system
• evaluate and adjust implemented intervention programs
• disseminate findings and lessons learned

Action: In November 2000, SAGE Guinea conducted an annual survey to assess the 6 Local Alliances’ performance in girls’ education activities.
 
 




SAGE file photo
SAGE Guinea Staff, Dr. Aly Badara Doukouré (center)
and Aissatou Baldé (third from left), with participants at the Mamou Workshop.

To read more about USAID activities in Guinea click here: USAID-Guinea.