The Kuyenda project is working to improve rural youth’ right to education in Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. In these four countries, rural youth are disproportionately disadvantaged in realising their right to education. This is due to poor information management systems, which leads to inadequate resource allocation and management of education services that eventually impacts learning outcomes negatively.

A mapping of the learning crises across the four countries shows that there are common needs across all four countries, mainly the lack of infrastructure and resources, distance to schools, complex curricula, and lack of digital access. Except for Zimbabwe, the Rural Youth Collectives only have moderate engagement with education system actors, and all have highlighted the desire for a solution to engage more with these actors.

The Kuyenda Collective is working in the four countries towards improving the Rural Youth Councils’ ability to participate effectively in transnational spaces to positively influence access, quality, and relevance of education systems for enhanced learning outcomes, particularly for marginalised groups.

This project is building on the efforts made in the previous phase of the project implemented between November 2021 – April 2024. This phase of the project supports the Rural Youth Councils to implement greater transnational advocacy based on data on social accountability monitoring, gathered and shared across the countries.

The Kuyenda Collective will support the councils to coordinate a common transnational advocacy agenda, based on their findings. It will be amplified through public information and engagement activities, including storytelling on the Kuyenda Knowledge Hub, participation of the Rural Youth Councils in transnational spaces, committees, and platforms such as National Education Coalitions (NECs) and Global Campaign for Education (GCE) Youth Constituency Membership and International Education Commemorations.

By the end of this project phase, the project will have contributed to the Rural Youth Councils being active in education system processes and creating a positive impact on their learning outcomes and education service delivery. Furthermore, the Rural youth Councils will have created meaningful and relevant access to transnational spaces through their targeted information sharing activities and influenced education policy formulation and implementation with more diverse voices in the long-term.

During the project phase, elections will take place in Zimbabwe (2023), Mozambique (2024) and Malawi and Tanzania (2025). Times of elections can be turbulent but can also present opportunities to influence power relations and the direction of education policy. Shifts in political and administrative leadership is a possibility, which can impact education services - both positively and negatively. Therefore, the Kuyenda Collective will work closely with the Rural Youth Councils and education stakeholders during electoral periods to support democracy and affect education outcomes.

A previous phase of the project was implemented between November 2021 – April 2024. The current project is part of the EOL extension phase of 2024-2026. Read more about the first phase of the project here.