Adolescent and Adult Learning and Training Programme (AALTP)
Status: On-going
Start Date: Apr 2017
End Date: Apr 2020
Geographic Coverage: 3 Districts in Sindh
Focus Area: Education
SDG Goal: 4 To ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
Implementing Partner: Strengthening Participatory Organization (SPO)
Funding Partner: Sindh Education Foundation
SPO partnered with Sindh Education Foundation (SEF) for the implementation of formal and non-formal education intervention in Northern Sindh that includes districts Sukkur, Shikarpur and Jacobabad. This intervention is based on the Public Private Partnership (PPP) framework. The programme ensured to implement SDG Goal 4 which calls for inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
Adolescent and Adult Learning and Training Programme (AALTP) is for adolescents and adults who have missed an opportunity to avail education. AALTP aims to provide accelerated formal primary education for vulnerable adolescents and basic functional literacy for adults together with a certified Skill Development/Vocational Training course for each learner to enable them to secure opportunities for human capital development and socio-economic growth.
The project was implemented in districts Sukkur and Jacobabad. Under AALTP, SPO worked in the following seven centers:
1. Tagiyal Nariwal, Rohri, Sukkur
2. Haji Khan Chachar, Panu Aqil, Sukkur
3. Bhitai Town, Jacobabad City
4. Rahimabad Main Center, Thul, Jacobabad
5. Rahimabad Sub Center, Thul, Jacobabad
6. Mosa Wah, Thul, Jacobabad
The Objectives of the AALTP Programme are:
• To provide accelerated formal primary education and basic functional literacy for adults.
• To provide certified technical and vocational trainings so they can earn a livelihood and become financially independent.
SPO ensures to attain these objectives with excellent and vigilant service delivery in targeted communities. Under this program, SPO distributed free textbooks and additional learning material for beefing up street children’s writing and learning skills. In order to provide a safe and clean learning infrastructure, SPO ensured the provision of basic facilities such as safe drinking water, clean and hygienic learning environment, and well-maintained toilets and an easy access to well-equipped Audio/Visual Room for learning.
SPO is successfully achieving Programme targets and aiming to change lives of adolescents living in the low income communities of rural Sindh. Till date, more than 450 adolescents have been enrolled in Adolescent and Adult’s Learning and Training Programme, including girls and boys. So far SPO has successfully enrolled 82 adults in its Skill Development Programme where they completed their courses on industrial tailoring, embroidery and mobile repairing. The learners of the programme were awarded stipends of PKR 10,000 by SEF. Moreover, the alumni of Skill Development Programme have already established their own small enterprises in their respective towns. SPO team is striving to expand this programme so a majority can benefit out of it.
A New Beginning for the woman – Case Study
Khalida Gul is a young energetic woman who lives in a small village of Rahimabad, district Jacobabad, Sindh. She does not come from a privileged background, her father is a poor man working as a livestock extension worker and her mother runs a tuck shop in the village. The income of the family was not sufficient to make ends meet. She was not able to attend school at an early age but always wanted to go to school and also contribute financially to the family.
She was identified by the SPO community mobilization team for ‘Adolescent and Adult Learning and Training Programme (AALTP)’, aiming to provide accelerated formal Primary education with a certified Skill Development / Vocational Training course for enabling learners to secure opportunities for socio-economic growth.
Khalida enrolled for the fast-track learning programme and studied English, Maths and Sindhi. She took keen interest in enhancing her basic literacy and was eager to progress towards the skill development programme. She completed her fast-track learning programme with flying colours.
The sense of achievement at the completion of fast-track learning was fulsome. She wanted to progress further and with the support of the SPO team, Khalida signed up for an industrial training course. Khalida quickly adapted to the training course and successfully completed her course in four months. At the completion of the course, Sindh Education Foundation (SEF) gave her a stipend of PKR 10,000 aiming to propel learners and their small business ventures forward. Khalida bought a sewing machine which enabled her to start a small business.
It was a new beginning for Khalida Gul. She started taking orders for stitching dresses in her village and began to earn. This financial achievement gave her a new perspective and now she is working to establish market linkages to expand her work. She says that someday soon she would like to own a boutique and provide training opportunities to other girls to learn and to grow as entrepreneurs.
In Khalida’s words, “the training course gave me confidence, as I always had talent but no confidence. Initially I was nervous, wondering if I will be able to put my knowledge into practice. I improved with the passage of time and people in the local community started trusting me with my tailoring skills, which really boosted my confidence.”