In Ounwala Haoussa community, adolescent girls attend a literacy class supported by Catholic Relief Services' PASAM-TAI project in Niger.

PASAM-TAI, an acronym for Programme dÕAppui ˆ la SŽcuritŽ Alimentaire des MŽnages, is funded by USAIDÕs Office of Food for Peace, and aims to reduce food insecurity and malnutrition in the Maradi and Zinder regions of Niger in West Africa.

The PASAM-TAI project has since 2013, set up literacy training centers with the aim of increasing basic literacy and numeracy skills, especially for women and adolescent girls.

The literacy program is based on a mobile phone-based literacy and numeracy program ÒAlphabetisation de Base par CellulaireÓ (ABC) which makes uses of a mobile phone, in addition to traditional literacy classes provided in the local language (Hausa), allowing participants to apply their skills attained in practical ways like calling and SMS text messaging.

Despite prevalence of educational interventions, the illiteracy rate remains high. There are more than 880 million adults who are illiterate around the world. In Niger, for instance, less than 15% of adults are considered to be literate and numerate. This affects all aspects of economic and social development of communities of Niger.

Photo by Michael Stulman/Catholic Relief Services