The Girls’ Education South Sudan (GESS) initiative is a six year programme starting in 2013 that aims to transform the life chances of a generation of children in South Sudan, especially girls, through education. GESS is... [ view full abstract ]
The Girls’ Education South Sudan (GESS) initiative is a six year programme starting in 2013 that aims to transform the life chances of a generation of children in South Sudan, especially girls, through education.
GESS is an initiative of the Ministry of General Education and Instruction of South Sudan, and is funded by DFID. BBC Media Action works in consortium with Mott MacDonald, Charlie Goldsmith Associates and Winrock International to implement GESS.
BBC Media Action’s role is to create an enabling social-cultural environment to support girls’ education for social and behaviour change through communication via the radio programme “Our School”, broadcast in nine different languages across South Sudan. Community mobilization activities across the country include listening clubs using solar-powered radios and community dialogues targeting locations where enrolment, attendance and retention of girls are challenging and communities are “media dark”.
In 2016, BBC Media Action conducted a midline evaluation involving a nationally representative household survey of 3,169 respondents aged 15+ to understand the extent to which regular audiences of “Our School” showed improved attitudes and practices towards girls’ education. This evaluation also draws from a baseline survey conducted at the start of the project, and other qualitative data gathered throughout the project.
The findings show that, even after controlling for a number of factors that could influence outcomes, such as education, income or age, listening to “Our School” is significantly correlated with (a) having a daughter in school, (b) high level of parental involvement in schooling (through for example attending school meetings), (c) more frequently discussing education with daughters/girls, and (d) saving money to help pay for uniforms or books. Qualitative research further supports the role the programme has played in encouraging more inclusive education practices in South Sudan.
