THE Primary and Secondary Education ministry has commended the Supporting Adolescent Girls Education (SAGE) project for its work in supporting girls and young women.“I would, therefore, like to congratulate the SAGE programme for a sterling job in surpassing its target on supporting out-of-school adolescent girls and young women to be able to demonstrate learning and to transition into education, training and meaningful economic engagement,” Primary and Secondary Education ministry secretary Thumisang Thabela said at the SAGE project endline evaluation findings dissemination event in conjunction with Plan International.
“I must say, these findings have come at a very opportune time when the ministry is looking at reviewing our competence-based curriculum.” SAGE targets marginalised, out-of-school adolescent girls in 11 districts across the country to assist them with transition to formal education, training or employment.The project focuses on providing high-quality, accelerated, non-formal education from 88 accessible and girl-friendly community-based learning hubs.
The programme is implemented under the oversight of the Education ministry and seeks to operationalise their non-formal education policy which promotes alternative pathways to increasing access to quality education for marginalised learners.
“The programme has seen more than 75% of learners having improved literacy and numeracy scores against a target of 65%. It has also met its target of supporting the transition of 60% girls into well-defined transition pathways,” Thabela said.
“As government is pursuing the National Development Strategy 1, with the vision to make Zimbabwe an upper middle-income country by 2030, human capital development undoubtedly becomes one of the key pillars of the strategy. It therefore, places my ministry at a very unique position, as it is the one that lays the foundations for human capital development.”