Questions and answers: meet Chris Berry, the new year of DFID

LONDON – A senior educational counselor at the UK Department of International Development joined the "Monty Python" star Michael Palin and model Twiggy on the New Year Honors list for his work in Sierra Leone.

Chris Berry was honored along with three other DFID staff members on the 2019 list, which recognizes the contributions and achievements of the British people and this year has included 1,100 people.

Berry said he was "very surprised at the start and then felt very proud" to discover that he was appointed member of the British Empire order for his work, helping to develop the education system of Sierra Leone and bringing young people back to school after the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak.

The training veteran was nominated for the award by his DFID team leader in Sierra Leone, and worked for the 11-year aid agency, including stints in Tanzania and Ethiopia.

Devex spoke with Berry to learn more about his work in West Africa.

What were some of the educational challenges facing Sierra Leone before, during and after the Ebola crisis?

Five years ago [when the outbreak began], a low percentage of children went to secondary school because they could not afford it and there were low levels of learning. Even girls were less likely to attend secondary schools than boys: 64% of girls compared to 68% of boys were enrolled in middle school.

The Ebola crisis in 2014 led to the closure of schools for the better part of a year to prevent the spread of infections and many schools were to be used as treatment centers. [By the time the outbreak was over] many children have also seen or experienced things that left them traumatized, causing them difficulty returning to normal school life.

What role did you and DFID play in Sierra Leone after the end of the Ebola crisis?

DFID [helped lead] the recovery effort and … I volunteered to join the DFID team in the country to help establish the education recovery program. Humanitarian aid funded additional classrooms to reduce overcrowding, sanitary kits to reduce the chances of infection, and helped develop an accelerated curriculum so that children could recover what they had lost. In total, we have helped about 1.2 million children to enroll safely and start learning again.

The key was to work closely with the Government of Sierra Leone to establish and reach mutually agreed objectives. We have been able to use this cooperation as an opportunity to reform other areas of the system, such as working with the government to start giving priority to girls' education – 900 schools have developed plans to do so. action to get [girls] go back to school.

These lessons have been incorporated into our current program, and now U.K helps. help the government of Sierra Leone to meet their ambition to offer 12 years of free education for all.

Pregnant girls are not allowed to go to school in Sierra Leone, even if it is so be challenged in court. This is also the case in other African countries. Why does it happen and what does DFID do to try to ensure that these girls still have an education?

In Sierra Leone, girls and boys did not go to school during the Ebola crisis and, as such, there were higher rates of teenage pregnancy. It was estimated that over 3,000 girls were at risk of not enrolling again because they were pregnant or had given birth, which left a generation of girls at risk of losing their education in the wake of the Ebola crisis.

Supporting girls' education is a priority for DFID … [and] DFID and Irish Aid have worked with [Sierra Leone’s] Ministry of Education to establish a liaison program for pregnant girls [and] nursing mothers, including both education and health care in informal centers. These learning centers have ensured that pregnant girls can continue their education and return to school after giving birth rather than abandoning. When the liaison program ended in 2016, it helped over 5,000 pregnant girls return to formal education.

DFID is now focused on working with the new government in Sierra Leone to ensure that schools are inclusive of all children, with the ambition of at least 12 years of free education for all. We are currently working with a number of partners to progress with the government on the education of girls in particular and also [so] this provision is envisaged for family planning education. Access to voluntary family planning information and services is important for girls to make the informed choice that is right for them; use contraception if you wish, and access it if you are not yet ready to have children.