With 70 percent of Somali school-age children out of school, Bar ama Baro is committed to expanding access to quality accelerated basic education in Somalia that is aligned with the formal primary system. Somalia has begun to plan for a brighter future for its 4.7 million school-age children. With a new national curriculum and Education Sector Strategic Plan that sets a stronger, inclusive vision for education, it has begun to tackle the challenging issues facing out-of-school children and youth.  

The U.S Agency for International Development’s five-year Bar ama Baro (“Teach or Learn” in English) is a comprehensive primary education program designed to support the government of Somalia’s efforts to create safe learning spaces and where students can improve literacy, numeracy and socio-emotional skills. Bar ama Baro’s efforts build on Somalia’s new national curriculum, Education Sector Strategic Plan and National Development Plan-9. 

Working at both the national and local level, Bar ama Baro systematically and strategically assists government and community actors to design and deliver comprehensive, non-formal accelerated education to marginalized children across the country. The program directly supports the government in policy and program design, while also rolling out implementation in eight districts, with the goal of reaching approximately 100,000 school children. 

By designing and delivering programming and supporting systemic policy changes, Bar ama Baro and its diverse pool of partners aim to expand curriculum, extend service reach and strengthen learning support to ensure that all children, and especially marginalized children, will be able to access equitable, safe and conflict-sensitive education.