During her visit to Yaoundé for the International Literacy Day celebrations on September 9-10, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay announced a $44.5 million (approximately FCFA 26.5 billion) initiative to strengthen education in Cameroon.
The funding will be used to modernize school curricula and train more than 28,000 education professionals, Azoulay said.
UNESCO and the Cameroonian government will collaborate to enhance school programs, with a focus on promoting multilingual education.
The initiative will provide over 4 million school textbooks and teaching materials, while supporting the training of 15,000 teachers and 13,000 head teachers, trainers, and other education professionals.
Additionally, the program will offer school meals to children from the poorest families, further supporting their education.
Azoulay also visited the Yaoundé Distance Education Centre, which was established in 2020 to ensure continued learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The center, which has more than 300 teachers and offers over 1,800 multilingual courses in both technical and general education, remains a vital resource for students in remote areas.
This year, the Yaoundé Distance Education Centre will launch its first recording studios for EDUCA-TV, UNESCO’s new educational channel.
The channel, set to broadcast 24/7, will feature school content to help students prepare for exams, as well as non-formal educational programs on topics such as public health, environmental protection, and media literacy.
EDUCA-TV will be accessible free of charge in 20 countries across the region.
While Cameroon was commended for its efforts in promoting multilingual education, Azoulay highlighted global literacy challenges, noting that over 754 million adults remain unable to read or write, and more than three-quarters of 10-year-old children cannot read and understand a simple text.
UNESCO called on all countries to work together to make education accessible to all.
