EducAid Sierra Leone

Our mission is to promote and provide high-quality, holistic education to the underprivileged young people of Sierra Leone. We believe that the education of young women and men is essential to: unlock human potential, overcome poverty, improve wellbeing, build democracy, and that it is the cornerstone of stable development. For the last 25 years EducAid has been working to restore and strengthen education during and in the aftermath of Sierra Leone's civil war (1991-2002). During the conflict, education was an early casualty with many teachers fleeing the country and thousands of children being denied access to education. The country is still struggling to rebuild schools, train teacher... read more Our mission is to promote and provide high-quality, holistic education to the underprivileged young people of Sierra Leone. We believe that the education of young women and men is essential to: unlock human potential, overcome poverty, improve wellbeing, build democracy, and that it is the cornerstone of stable development. For the last 25 years EducAid has been working to restore and strengthen education during and in the aftermath of Sierra Leone's civil war (1991-2002). During the conflict, education was an early casualty with many teachers fleeing the country and thousands of children being denied access to education. The country is still struggling to rebuild schools, train teachers and reach vulnerable girls and boys who are yet to see the inside of a classroom. We believe in the power of education to eliminate poverty and the challenges standing in the way of a democratic, dignified and globally-engaged Sierra Leone. EducAid provides free, high quality education to some of the most vulnerable and underprivileged children in Sierra Leone. EducAid operates 7 free schools, serving 1,200 children (1 Primary, 4 Junior Secondary and 2 Senior Secondary). The effectiveness of EducAid's innovative, student-centred approach to education is demonstrated by the fact that, despite many of our students coming from turbulent backgrounds, they regularly achieve 85% pass rates in all national exams. EducAid also trains teachers at over 100 partner schools as part of our Quality Enhancement Programme (QEP) working closely with communities and local education officials to raise the standard of education for children across the Port Loko district and beyond. Furthermore, EducAid run a tertiary-level degree course with the University of Makeni. EducAid's success stems from its grassroots and Sierra Leonean-driven approach. Of our 120 staff, only 3 are UK based with only 3 expats in Sierra Leone. Most EducAid staff are former students, knowing first hand the vulnerability faced by children in Sierra Leone and the power of education to change this, they inform our work each day. EducAid has spent decades developing relationships and earning the trust of communities by working alongside them. This is evidenced by communities giving EducAid land for schools, attending school meetings, community elders working with EducAid to keep girls in school, and EducAid's work as a trusted, stable presence during Ebola. EducAid was one of the few organisations that stayed on the ground, converting schools to care centres and delivering remote learning via radio broadcasts and moped-delivered USB sticks. EducAid also opened doors to children, many of whom are girls, who had lost their families to Ebola, and more recently to the devastating mudslides. EducAid's programs and innovations work because they come from the staff, students and communities they serve.