The Decolonising Education for Peace in Africa (DEPA) project explores knowledges and values underpinning peace and how these can be connected and compared across countries.
In Nigeria DEPA implementing partners PADEAP Nigeria and the University of Abuja are working with Sharing Prosperity Primary school based in New Kuchinguro Internally Displaced Persons camp in Abuja Nigeria. The camp came into existence in 2014 when several people living in Borno and Adamawa States, North East Nigeria, fled the Boko Haram violence and relocated to different parts of Abuja. New Kuchingoro IDP camp is situated in Kaura, FCT Abuja.
The IDPs living in New Kuchingoro IDP came from Gwoza local government council in Borno State and Madagali local government council in Adamawa State. Kuchingoro is a mixed faith camp in that 70% of the people are Christians while 30% are Muslims. Nearly 2000 men, women, youth and children live in New Kuchingoro IDP camp, living in substandard accommodation with poor access to health education and sanitation.
DEPA supports the work of PADEAP Nigeria’s Education plus project with Sharing Prosperity Primary School. Sharing Prosperity Primary School has 250 children enrolled from early years/nursery to primary 5. The school has a team of 14 staff, including Head Teacher, Assistant Head Teacher, 4 Classroom teachers and 6 early years/nursery workers. The overall aim of Education Plus is to ensure all children and young people living in Abuja based IDP camps have access to quality primary, secondary and post-secondary education.
PADEAP Nigeria are working with children, teachers and the elders living in the camp to explore how African knowledges and beliefs can decolonise pedagogies around how peace is taught and incorporated into education in Africa. We are utilising drama and storytelling methods to ensure the voice of the displaced communities are heard.
Participatory Arts and Humanities research methods including drama, storytelling and theatre for development will continue to be used to learn from local peace practices. Using co-design and co-production techniques we will establish a network of researchers to refine a conceptual and methodological framework that explores the meanings and mechanisms of peace in Nigeria. Outputs will include the development of training for educators using decolonised learning pedagogy and content.
The PADEAP team and teachers at Sharing Prosperity have also been taking part in the Open University’s Covid-19 Chronicles from the Margins project that is led by Professor Marie Gillespie. This project is documenting and archiving the experiences and impact of covid lockdowns on different refugee communities around the world. In this short video, you can see the teachers performing a song they devised as part of this work.