UNICEF: Executive Board visits rural projects in Kenya

NAIROBI, Kenya, 13 March 2009 The members of the Bureau of the UNICEF Executive Board have concluded a weeklong field visit to Kenya, where they observed huge disparities in education and health care in the country.

The delegation, composed of the Executive Board's top officers, met with the Education Minister, Professor Sam Ongeri, other senior government officials and the UNICEF Kenya staff, led by Representative Olivia Yambi. They also held meetings with UNICEF Regional Director Per Engebak, members of the United Nations country team in Kenya, donors, private-sector partners and representatives of local non-governmental organizations.

Executive Board President H.E. Omar Daou, Permanent Representative of Mali to the UN, commended the Government of Kenya for its "strong commitment to ensuring education for all" through the introduction of free primary education in 2003.

However, he urged the Ministry of Education to continue to address disparities in access to schooling and quality of education, which were much in evidence when the delegation travelled from Nairobi to the semi-arid North Eastern Province, 300 km from the capital.

To read the full story, visit http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/kenya_48660.html

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