140,000 users and a growing need

Education Access Africa runs seven resource centres in northern Uganda. In 2005 they had a total of 140.000 users. The numbers clearly speak of a need. However, the hard thing is to point out the concrete long term impact on the users and the communities. Development worker Pernille Bærendtsen shares her experiences.

The youth in northern Uganda are consciously aware that education is the key to a brighter future. However, the educational options in northern Uganda are limited. Schools don’t offer the books and materials required of the curriculum, few pupils can afford buying their own books, teachers are few, the class rooms are crowded, and often girls will not be sent to school in favour of work or marriage.

The measurable impact

MS’ partner Education Access Africa has established seven resource centres and since 2001 they have registered the number of users. Particular within the last few years the centres have picked up. Since 2003 the user numbers have doubled from 70,000 to 140,000. No doubt that the resource centres are a great success and that there is growing need for them. The statistics also include a record on gender. But these figures are less optimistic. Boys make up the majority of the users with about 80 percent, and no evident change is to be seen towards more female users.

And the ‘less easily measurable’ impact

It does not take a broad analysis to conclude that the educational system in Northern Uganda is inadequate. And with the high number of users it is obvious that the resource centres serves as gap fillers for the formal education system. What is difficult is to link the numbers with a description of the long-term impact - the change inside people’s minds, and to what extent the centres maybe also have an impact on the local communities.

When asking the users at the resource centres what they think of their resource centre, their expressions partly sustain the background facts and the statistics, but they also add valuable information that the support to buildings, staff, books etc. has meant a concrete change in their lives

Gavril Fansul, 18 years, Sudanese.

- 'The biggest problem is that there are too few books and too many users. Without the resource centre I would be dependent on others to borrow books. It would be a struggle for me to get access to books and knowledge.

Harriet Atai, 18 years, Congolese.

- 'I come here every day. I have problems paying my school fees but in stead of staying home, I come here to read my curriculum so that I can take up school again, when I have money.’

Margret Tutua, 17 years, Ugandan

- ’I visit the resource centre twice a week when I am off school. I am at boarding school where it is hard to find peace to read among all the other students. At school they also don’t have enough books for all of us. At the resource centre the selection is wide and the environment for studying is good.

The challenges

When you study the numbers, listen to the students and link it to the background information of northern Uganda, you do not doubt that the work of Education Access Africa and the support from MS Uganda makes an impact. However, one thing is counting the numbers of users; the other challenge is to find a way of measuring the impact.

Pernille Bærendtsen is information worker and capacity building facilitator at Education Access Africa (EAA). Email: pernille@fastmail.fm