EDUCATION
SENEGAL – Teachers declare a 24-hour strike in support of their arrested colleagues
Senegal is plunged into a situation of acute social tension. The teachers’ unions, grouped in a large movement called the G20, decided to observe a strike on Monday, March 1, 2021 to oppose the arrests of their colleagues including the secretary general of the authentic Cusems, Dame Mbodji.
In a press release released this Sunday, February 28, 2021, the Cusems (Unitary Union Framework of Teachers of Middle Secondary) supports his colleagues and demands the unconditional release of all teachers detained on charges of repeated rape against Ousmane Sonko. These teachers arrested by the national police are accused of trying to foment public order disturbances by calling for violent demonstrations.
The Secretary General of the Cusems, Abdoulaye Ndoye, considers the grounds too light and asks the President of the Republic to order the release of these soldiers from knowledge. this is an unacceptable authoritarian drift. The Executive Board also calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all prisoners, particularly teachers whose detention undermines the functioning of the institutions. The National Executive Board of the CUSEMS condemns all these acts of intimidation, threat and harassment aimed at gagging all citizens who are still standing and concerned about the general interest.The National Executive Board of the CUSEMS reminds the government that the Senegalese people are committed to democratic values, peace and respect for human dignity. Also, the day after the expiry of its notice (February 8, 2021), the CUSEMS invites all its activists and supporters to strengthen vigilance and mobilization to defend freedoms. The CUSEMS asks all its activists, sympathizers and sympathizers to observe this Monday, March 1, 2021 a stop of the courses at 9H.” , reads the communiqué of the National Executive Board of the Cusems.
In Cameroon, about 7 million children, including more than 1.5 million in school, do not have a birth certificate. The absence of this essential document for access to education, health and other public services, particularly affects rural areas and the regions of the Far North, Northwest and Southwest. The subject was discussed during the 3rd International Economic Days of Municipalities (JEICOM), held from June 2 to 4, 2025, at the Palais des Congrès in Yaoundé.
A deplorable situation at the moment when Cameroon is celebrating the 5th edition of Children’s Day under the theme “Child-sensitive budgeting and planning: a strategic lever for the promotion and protection of children’s rights”.
Faced with the constant problem of establishing birth certificates in Cameroon, the government, through the National Civil Registry Office (BUNEC), collaborates with partners such as UNICEF or the World Bank in order to provide an effective response to the phenomenon.
In this dynamic, the Bunec provides the town halls with tools to ensure a “compliant and reliable registration of births”. It also supports them in the modernization of the civil status system, including the digitization of registers. UNICEF has enabled some town halls to strengthen their human resources capacities and develop innovative strategies.
Several initiatives were launched, notably the national forum on universal birth registration, organized in April 2024, which brought together mayors, civil status officials, and partners to discuss solutions to the problem.
Founded 20 years after the ban on veiling in schools, Averroes, the first Muslim high school under contract in France, is threatened, with a favourable opinion on the termination of its contract with the State having been delivered Monday.
A consultative committee chaired by the Prefect of the North voted on Monday in favor of the termination of the association contract linking the State this Muslim school located in Lille, the big city of northern France, told AFP two sources close to the file, this Monday, November 27, 2023.
Under the terms of this contract, signed in 2008, the teachers of the school are paid by the National Education and the extracurricular staff by the Region. The last word now goes to the prefect, who must make his decision on the future of this contract “in the coming days”, said one of the two sources.
Since 2019, the local authorities have refused to pay the subsidy provided under this contract with the State, accusing Averroès of a Qatari donation of 950,000 euros in 2014.
In filigree is also pointed out the historical link of Averroes with the Muslims of France (ex-UOIF), organization stemming from the Egyptian movement of the Muslim Brotherhood.
The idea of creating a Muslim high school dates back to 1994, when 19 girls were excluded from a Lille public high school for refusing to remove their veil to go to school, despite a circular prohibiting “ostentatious religious signs”.
The Lycée Averroès opened in September 2003 with about fifteen students in the premises of the mosque of the working-class district of Lille-Sud, with the support of the UOIF.
With more than 800 students, including 400 under contract, Averroes remains by far the largest of the six Muslim institutions under contract in France. Only high school is recognized, not college.
The Academic Council of the University Cheikh Anta DIOP of Dakar, which met on Monday, June 12, 2023 under the chairmanship of the Rector, Professor Ahmadou Aly Mbaye, has decided that the 2022/2023 academic year will continue with online courses for students, “After examining and analysing the situation resulting from the destruction of educational facilities and the entire University’s car fleet on Thursday, 1 June 2023, and anxious to safeguard the achievements of the process of regularizing the university calendar, the Board made the following decision: the resumption of pedagogical activities (courses, TP, TD) in distance education format,” reads in the communiqué of the Communication Directorate of the UCAD.
The academic calendar was established for the rest of the year: «from 15 June to 15 July 2023: first semester; from 24 July to 31 October 2023: second semester; beginning of November 2023: beginning of the academic year 2023-2024».
Also, the document stresses, the practical modalities of this complete changeover will be specified by the institutions. Students can benefit from technical assistance for the activation of institutional accounts by sending an email to (support@ucad.edu.sn)».
It should be noted that the investigation opened following the violent demonstrations that broke out at the University Sheikh Anta Diop of Dakar (Ucad), has already led to the arrest of three individuals. We’re talking about two infiltrators and a student at medical school. According to the investigation, these three individuals were referred to the prosecutor of the Republic, before joining the prison of Rebeuss with a charge followed by a warrant of committal on 13 June 2023.
