Defence for Children International (DCI) is a non-governmental organisation dedicated to the protection and promotion of children’s rights on local, national, regional, and international levels. In Ivory Coast, DCI implements projects that are focusing on bringing justice to children, fighting child labour, giving social and economic autonomy to children and providing education on children’s rights.
In 2010, DCI became an Aflatoun partner and started a pilot programme in an urban setting in the city of Abidjan. Teachers and facilitators were trained, which allowed them to adopt the Aflatoun methodology and acquire new skills, helping them in their daily school duties. The pilot programme also received the approval of the local authorities of the Ministry of Education, but faced serious challenges with the unrest that Ivory Coast used to see.
After the pilot, DCI continued its support to schools, trainers, teachers, and children in Port-Bouet, a suburb of Abidjan. This programme is often advocated as a model of implementing social and financial education into public schools in Ivory Coast. It was also presented as a best practice during the national stakeholders meeting for the National Strategy for Financial literacy in 2012.
