A Mobile Library for Yemeni and Somali Refugee Children

Djibouti is a small country in the Horn of Africa. It is known for being a place of peace in the midst of a war-torn region and serves as a shelter for both Somalis who fled the civil war 25 years ago and Yemenis who are seeking refuge from their country's current crisis. Though safe from war and violence, the situation in the refugee camps is far from easy- especially for the children.

More than 50% of the Refugees in Djibouti are minors. A lot of the Somali children were born in a refugee camp and have never left it since, while the Yemeni kids arrived more recently and are often still working through the trauma of war.

Life in the Refugee Camps means survival, but often without real hope for a future outside of it. Fortunately, kids have access to schools, but the education there is limited. The main teaching language in most of the Refugee Schools is English. Yet, in the literacy assessments our NGO conducted with the support of the national Ministry of Education, we found a huge discrepancy between English reading skills and reading comprehension of the students. There is no access to books besides the occasional photocopied textbook, and teachers don't have much material to work with.

This is where we come in: By bringing our Mobile Library to the camps and engaging not just the students but also the teachers with books and workshops, we we partner with the educational system already in place to make the ability to read and comprehend standard again! We believe that reading for kids should first and foremost be fun. If children enjoy reading and have access to books that engage them at their level, they will grow naturally and the effects will be visible in the classroom and beyond.

Who are we?

ACORN Djibouti is committed to using education as a primary tool of development. Since our registration in 2016, we have worked in partnership with several established organizations and associations in Djibouti and launched our own Mobile Library in 2018. It addresses two of Djibouti's biggest educational needs: The need for English language skills, and the need for literacy. Not only do we seek to provide those with books who don't have access to them, we also offer complimentary workshops in order to increase the children and youth's passion for reading and teach reading techniques.
Find out more on our website: www.acorn.nl