Security crisis in Burkina Faso: What impact on girls, gender and education?

A study conducted by teams from the Appui aux Réformes Institutionnelles et Techniques pour l'équité en Éducation (PARITÉ) project was published a few months ago to highlight the impact of the security crisis Burkina Faso has been facing since 2015 on girls, gender and education. 
 

The study reports that the crisis is indeed causing disruption to Burkina Faso's education system, especially for girls and women. Consequences such as the burning down of school infrastructures, the closure of pre-school, primary, post-primary and secondary schools, the murder of teachers and pupils leading to the closure of pre-school, primary, post-primary and secondary schools, and the forced displacement of people with their children have all been observed. Despite the efforts made by the government and its technical and financial partners to improve the education system, the situation is worsening and seriously hampering the educational plans and programs that have been developed.
 

A number of problems have been highlighted: 

• Difficult study conditions
• Increased financial vulnerability
• threatened teaching staff
• A resurgence of social phenomena
• Increased drudgery for girls

In the face of these challenges, solutions are being devised by the government and its technical and financial partners, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and associations, with a view to providing appropriate responses, particularly in the fields of education, girls' protection and gender. In particular, the PARITÉ project supports and participates in several of these measures. 

However, there are limits to the measures taken in view of the scale of the needs combined with a progressive increase in the challenges to be met. What's more, the interventions are carried out from an emergency perspective, and do not provide a long-term response to the real needs of the populations affected. The results presented in this research are intended to help guide future interventions.

To read the report and the summary of this study (in french)

Read the full study (in french)

Find out more about the project   

The Projet d'Appui aux Réformes Institutionnelles et Techniques pour l'équité en Éducation (PARITÉ) is funded by the Government of Canada and implemented by Alinéa International and CECI.