To ensure the operation of these centres, the regulations relating to staff appointments and
assignments in this sector are taken each year by the Ministry. Re-schooling centres are based
in public primary schools using the same premises, except for ORA schools
In the area of qualifying education (functional literacy), 512 young school leavers have been
integrated in workshops for apprenticeship. This training provides targeted skills to the
beneficiary's needs of integration in the job market: Mechanical and driving, carpentry,
sawmill, agro-pastoral, sewing, catering, food, building, etc. From 2000 to 2009, one
thousand (1000) children were reintegrated into the formal system including 400 children
from ORA schools.
6.1.4Fight against inequality and discrimination in education
All laws and regulations-particularly the Constitution and the School Law enshrine equal
education for all. Inequalities in access to education are observed especially in the case of
indigenous children, the poor and girls.
Indigenous children
According to the 2007 census data, the net primary enrolment rate of indigenous children
aged from 6 to 11 years is 44%, which is twice as high as that of all children in this age
group. Moreover, less than 4% of indigenous students are in high school and there appeared
to be no indigenous students in higher education in 2007.
It should be noted the establishment, with the support of UNICEF, of a national network of
indigenous people of the Congo (RENAPAC), who drafted a national action plan covering
the period 2009-2013, aiming to improve the quality of life of indigenous people. Education
is the first priority area of this action plan with two objectives: i) By 2013, 50% of indigenous
school children receive a quality primary education and attend it up to completion; ii) By
2013, 50% of children and adolescents who are not in school or are school leavers benefit
from a functional literacy that is essential for their integration. Indigenous children are also
taken into account in the national goal of universal education by 2015.
A national strategy for education of indigenous people was developed in 2007. The
implementation of this strategy was based, among others, on the mobilisation of dynamic
partnerships. In this context, three nongovernmental organisations - the Association of
Spiritan Fathers of Congo (ASPC), the General Association of Retired facilitators (AGIR)
and the Association of Retired Educators without borders (GREF) - launched in the
departments of Sangha and Likouala preparatory schools for indigenous children, called ORA
(Observe, Reflect, Act). To this, must be added the project to support basic education
(PRAEBASE) funded by the World Bank and implemented as part as a cooperation between
The cooperation programme UNICEF Congo has been accompanying the efforts of these
NGOs for several years and recently conducted the evaluation of ORA schools. This study
finalised in July 2012 has established that these particular bridging schools are often the only
opportunity for indigenous children to access education, but they suffer from many
shortcomings. To improve quality and efficiency, the study recommends integrating them to
the school board. They also require strong technical and financial assistance from the
95