Child-friendly concept launched

Dharma Sri Abeyratne

The Education Ministry with UNICEF launched the 'Child Friendly Schools' (CFS) concept yesterday as the official framework to address disparities in quality and access in primary schools.

Under this programme the Education Ministry outlined an approach which seek to improve the quality of education and schools for students, teachers and communities by mainstreaming Child Friendly School as the national framework to primary education.

Child Friendly Schools focus on the development of the individual child, ensuring that all children achieve the accepted standards of learning for primary education while the CFS approach includes school development.

The CFS is already operating in more than 1,400 primary schools in the country.

The framework will be introduced to over 10,000 primary schools in Sri Lanka. UNICEF has been working closely with the Education Ministry to promote the CFS approach since 2002, investing more than Rs. 678 million.

"We welcome the Government's commitment to the continuous improvement of the quality of primary education. Mainstreaming CFS as the national approach to primary education will benefit hundreds of thousands of children," said UNICEF's representative in Sri Lanka, Philippe Duamelle.