Education in emergencies: capacity building for educational staff in Goma

Luc Gbaweza Kabango, Director of the North Kivu 1 Educational Province, closed the capacity-building workshop organized by the Education Cluster on education in emergency situations for various government and non-governmental stakeholders. These included deputy provincial directors of education, inspectors, educational advisors, educational NGOs, United Nations agencies, and civil society organizations. This event, held from Monday, July 15, to Wednesday, July 17, 2024, in the meeting room of the Ishango Hotel in Goma, is of paramount importance for the national education subsector. A total of 38 participants, including 5 women, took part in this intensive three-day training. They were trained on at least 17 modules addressing risk mitigation strategies during security crises. This workshop equipped participants with new skills to better respond to various emergency situations. In a context marked by recurring security crises, this workshop is part of a broader effort to strengthen the education system’s resilience in the face of emergencies. Such an initiative thus helps better protect children’s right to education, a crucial issue for the future of North Kivu province and the country. This event took place thanks in particular to the support of UNICEF, one of two coordinators of this structure led by the Ministry of National Education and New Citizenship. "UNICEF has been an indispensable partner in helping us successfully carry out this training," emphasized the Governor of North Kivu 1, Luc Gbaweza Kabango. The city of Goma, in eastern DRC, is experiencing significant population growth due to the influx of hundreds of thousands of internally displaced persons. More than a third of these displaced persons are children and adolescents fleeing the armed conflicts ravaging the region. This massive displacement poses an additional challenge for the Congolese government, which is committed to the urgent reintegration of these children into the school system. Célestin Zeula