On December 05, 2024, a debriefing meeting was held in Ouagadougou with project stakeholders. ” Promotion de l’accès des filles et des femmes à un système éducatif et de formation professionnelle de qualité (PROMESSE-FP) at national level. Previously held in the Eastern, Central-Northern and Northern regions, this meeting, intended as a framework for accountability, presented the main results and lessons learned over the project’s 04 years of implementation.
Saydou Mahamady SAVADOGO, PROMESSE-FP Project Manager, presented the results and lessons learned during the project’s 04 years of implementation.
On the balance sheet presented, we note a physical execution rate of 97% and a budget execution rate of 92% as of September 30, 2024. The meeting was attended by Consortium members (Solidar Suisse, Educo and Aflatoun Internationl) and implementing partners (Educo, CCEB, OCADES KAYA and APIJCN from the Centre Nord region, OCADES OUAHIGOUYA and TABITAL LOBAL from the Nord region, UFC DORI and CRUS from the Sahel region, ARFA and TIN-TUA from the Eastern region), the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Burkina Faso, the administrative authorities of the Ministry of Youth and Employment, representatives of projects in the same field of intervention, trainers, beneficiaries and their parents or spouses.
Screening of capitalization film and testimonials from beneficiaries on the positive effects of the project
“Improving access for girls and women in the intervention regions to a quality education and vocational training system and to decent incomes” was the objective of the PROMESSE-FP project implemented in the Sahel, North, East and North Central regions of Burkina Faso during the 2021-2024 period. The project’s actions focused on three (03) components, namely:
- access to vocational training, employment and economic empowerment for girls;
- promoting social and financial education (SFE) and integrating it into education and vocational training curricula;
- promotion of sexual and reproductive health, including gender-based violence, early marriage, etc., as part of girls’ education.
Discussions with stakeholders have produced satisfactory results. Specifically, these include
Access to vocational training, employment and economic empowerment for girls: 19,364 including 6,464 internally displaced persons (34.41%), including :
- 10 Vocational Education and Training Centers (CEFP) set up by the project, including 05 fully built and equipped;
- 4310 girls and women, including 1264 displaced persons, had access to vocational training and capacity building;
- 15,054 girls and women, including 5,400 internally displaced persons, have benefited from the endogenous savings mobilization approach (VSLA+) through the creation of 558 groups;
- 2,336,785,710 F CFA F CFA of savings mobilized by these VSLA groups, of which 1,284,218,700 FCFA (52.72%) redistributed in terms of loans for the development of members’ IGAs.
On the promotion of Social and Financial Education (SFE):
- Two (02) manuals and their user guides on social and financial education (ESF) have been produced with the involvement of players from the Education (MENAPLN) and Youth and Vocational Training (MSJE) sectors;
- 687 actors (211 women) in education and vocational training (teachers, trainers, designers and facilitators) have been trained in the Aflatoun approach to social education;
- 131 Aflatoun clubs set up (87.33%) and supported in 38 post-primary and secondary schools and the project’s 09 training centers to implement the approach in the field for the benefit of 6,315 young people, including 5,195 girls and 1,120 boys;
- Integration of ESF into teaching and training curricula. As a result of this process, Social Education is now included in the Civic Education Discipline of post-primary and secondary school curricula.
On the promotion of sexual rights and reproductive health (DSSR) :
- 200 establishments equipped with DSSR communication media (image box and awareness-raising videos such as “Dire non franchement”, “Poko, l’espoir d’une famille”, “Les premières menstrues de Maria”, “Les Aventures de Yasmine”, etc.);
- 200 sensitive gender clubs set up in 200 post-primary and secondary schools and 09 in the 09 Vocational Education and Training Centers (CEFP);
- 5,000 menstrual hygiene management kits distributed to project beneficiaries and 1,108 CEFP project beneficiaries trained to make reusable sanitary towels by hand (92.33%);
- 318 health workers (youth focal points) from 160 CSPS in 08 health districts trained in the management of ASRH and the gender transformative approach, (99.37%);
- 90,201 adolescents and young people, including 54,965 boys and 35,236 girls, reached by SRH and NET awareness campaigns in secondary schools (100%);
- 46,783 people, including 27,000 women and 19,783 men, sensitized in host communities to sexual and reproductive health issues for young people.
As a reminder, the PROMESSE-FP project was financed by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and implemented by the Solidar Suisse-Educo- Aflatoun International Consortium for the period May 01, 2021 to December 31, 2024. The total cost of the project is 5,851,707,778.547 F CFA.
- A few testimonials
Mrs TANKOANO, PDI beneficiary from the East region “For reasons of insecurity, I left my home town without taking anything with me. But today, thanks to the PROMESSE-FP project, I’ve been able to get out of my vulnerable situation. I joined a VSLA group, which enabled me to start weaving with an initial loan of 50,000 francs. Today, I have a center with 08 weaving machines and 04 seamstresses. The profits from this activity enable me to support my husband with family expenses, I pay my children’s school fees and give gifts to my husband.”
Ms Philomènea beneficiary of the cut and sew training program, is proud to wear an outfit she designed herself. She thanks all those involved in the PROMESSE-FP project, and looks forward to further initiatives to promote vocational training for young girls and women still in need.
According to Mr. Dieudonnée R. ZAONGO, Country Representative of Solidar Suisse in Burkina Faso and Consortium Leader, “The positive results achieved are due, on the one hand, to the combined efforts of the consortium members, local partners and local authorities, who facilitated the implementation of the various approaches developed. On the other hand, the flexibility of our financial partner, the Netherlands Embassy in Burkina Faso, facilitated the implementation of activities despite the difficult security constraints in the project areas. We would like to thank all those involved for their contributions. We hope that the positive results achieved will motivate further initiatives to consolidate gains and meet persistent challenges.”
According to Mr. Maarten Van den Bosch, Head of Cooperation of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Burkina Faso, “The objective of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, through the financing of the PROMESSE-FP project, is to contribute to the stabilization of the country by improving the socio-economic prospects of vulnerable people. We are delighted to see the positive results achieved at the end of the project’s 04 years of implementation, and we hope that the State and the private sector will take over to ensure the sustainability of this project’s achievements”.
Mr. Koudpiga YERBANGA, Director General of Vocational Training, “As a representative of the Ministry in charge of youth and vocational training, we are very satisfied with what has been achieved under the PROMESSE-FP project. We appreciate the various approaches developed to strengthen the professional skills of young girls and women, as well as the technical and material support provided to facilitate their socio-professional integration (through training in various trades, social and financial education, entrepreneurship, the use of ICT to promote products and services, etc.). We congratulate all those who contributed to the positive results presented.
Mr. Ollo Oscar PALE, Country Director of Educo in Burkina Faso “The synergy between the members of the Consortium and local and state partners has enabled the effective implementation of activities through a well-detailed roadmap. I would like to congratulate Solidar Suisse for having been able to design this synergy approach with all the players involved, which has led to positive results today. I would also like to thank the donor, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Burkina Faso, which has developed a multi-year program that incorporates the issue of youth empowerment as an important pillar.”
Mr Assane Dramane SANKARA, Executive Secretary of the Cadre de Concertation des ONG, associations actives en éducation de base au Burkina Faso (CCEB), Representative of Aflatoun International for French-speaking Africa.“As part of the PROMESSE-FP project, CCEB, which represents Aflatoun International in Burkina Faso, has been involved in implementing the project’s social and financial education component. Since 2021, we have organized awareness-raising, orientation and integration workshops with players from the Ministry of National Education, the Prime Ministry, journalists and other stakeholders to present the merits of the SFE approach and advocate for its integration into teaching curricula. To do this, we set up a follow-up committee to coordinate the various activities and draw up a strategic document. This led to the integration of ESF into the civic and moral education module (currently taught with assessments), as part of the revision of the curriculum orientation framework. Another positive result of our intervention is the creation of social and financial enterprises by members of Aflatoun clubs from several establishments (to organize themselves into cooperatives and carry out income-generating activities for their benefit). In view of the positive results achieved on the various intervention axes of the PROMESSE-FP project, I invite the Consortium members to develop a concept note on the effects to be used to mobilize other resources to consolidate the project’s achievements.”
