Over 36,000 Learners Gain Literacy Skills Through The Accelerated Learning Programme by Safaricom Foundation and the Regional Education Learning Initiative (RELI)

8 September 2022

Over 36,000 learners gain literacy skills through The Accelerated Learning Programme by Safaricom Foundation and the Regional Education Learning Initiative (RELI)

Nairobi, 8^th Sept 2022… Over 36,000 learners have gained literacy and numeracy skills through an Accelerated Learning Programme by Safaricom Foundation Zizi Afrique Foundation and members of the Regional Education Learning Initiative.

The programme which was launched in 2018 targeted learners from over 150 schools in Bungoma, Tana River and Turkana counties. The programme also inducted 182 head teachers and reskilled 265 teachers to impart literacy and numeracy skills among learners in the three counties.

These findings were revealed during a literacy and numeracy policy forum held at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development as part of 2022 International Literacy Day celebrations.

 “The focus of the programme is to hasten the acquisition of foundational literacy and numeracy skills for learners in grades 3-5, by engaging them in fun-play-based and engaging activities. As part of the programme, we have distributed over 100,000 reading materials and constructed 15 classrooms and five libraries”, said Joe Ogutu, Chairman, Safaricom Foundation.

The Accelerated Learning programme focuses on advancing foundational literacy and numeracy outcomes by supporting learners lagging behind.

 “Using this method, we can accelerate the learning of all children left behind in Kenya. Using a simple tool, you assess children and group them according to their level. Attending a session for one hour per day for only 30 days, more than 80 percent of the children can move at least one level on their journey to reading”, says John Mugo, Executive Director of Zizi Afrique Foundation. He thanks Safaricom for their support in implementing this programme and making it a success.

The Accelerated Learning Programme has been replicated in eight other counties through the Jifunze subgroup of the Regional Education Learning Initiative (RELI).

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About Safaricom Foundation

Building Communities, Transforming Lives.

Safaricom Foundation partners with Kenyan communities, organizations, and institutions to improve and transform lives.

With a footprint in all of Kenya’s 47 counties and a strong history of partnerships dating back to our inception in 2003, the Safaricom Foundation has worked with Speed, Simplicity, and Trust to implement over 1,000 community projects, impacting over 3 million people, through our thematic areas of Health, Education, Environmental Conservation, Economic Empowerment, Water, Disaster Relief, and Arts & Culture.

Our current strategy builds on our strong history of results and partnerships and will contribute toward 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals.  We will leverage the power of innovation and technology to drive our projects forward; and will also offer a blend of grants, equity, and ultra-low-cost loans to our partners. 

The participation of Safaricom staff in our projects will extend our personalized approach toward partnerships; and our project monitoring and our dissemination forms will provide platforms for technical assistance, learning, and capacity building.

 About Regional Education Learning Initiative (RELI)

The Regional Education Learning Initiative (RELI) is a peer learning initiative and policy influencing network comprising 70 organisations in East Africa with a vision of ‘An East Africa where ALL children receive a quality education’. The network aims at realizing equitable, quality education for all East African children by leveraging local knowledge and expertise to influence education policy and practice. RELI’s work is guided by three pillars; transforming organizations, Knowledge hub that creates evidence of what is working and engaging in policy influencing.

 About Zizi Afrique Foundation

Zizi Afrique Foundation envisions an Africa in which each child has an equal opportunity to grow, learn, think and thrive. Our mission is to ensure a strong foundation for each child through reading and learning to solve problems, think creatively, and innovate. The Foundation’s programs are evidence based with an interest on skills for learning, skills for living and skills for Working.