Children, Transport and Mobility - Sharing Experiences of Young Researchers in Ghana, Malawi, and South Africa

In their own words ..

 Recent research has shown that some of the common challenges faced by children walking to school in Ghana, Malawi and South Africa are the long distances travelled and the domestic chores that must be completed before setting out. This can result in lateness or untidy appearances, both of which can be punishable by lashing, whipping and duties such as weeding.  Children are also scared of wild animals (snakes and dogs) and bandits that they may encounter on their journey.

The University of Durham led research project 'Children, Transport and Mobility in Ghana, Malawi and South Africa' focused on main three issues:

1. The mobility constraints faced by girls and boys in accessing health,education, markets and other facilities.
2. How these constraints impact on children’s current and future livelihood opportunities.
3. The lack of guidelines on how to tackle them.

The principal project aim was to generate knowledge that can serve as evidence to help change transport policies and practices, especially where these have impact on the educational and health opportunities for children and young people.

A new publication is now online that shares the experiences of the young researchers from Ghana, Malawi and South Africa who participated in the project.

The idea for the book came from the young researchers themselves. They wanted a vehicle for sharing their experiences and research findings with a wider audience. They worked hard to sift through all of the materials that they had collected, picking out the key themes that had emerged from the research. They also reflected on their experiences as young researchers in the different contexts in which they had worked. The result is very much their own work, indeed most of the book was written by the young researchers, in their own words.

Find out more about the Children, Transport and Mobility Project here: http://www.dur.ac.uk/child.mobility/

Production of the book has been funded by AFCAP www.afcap.org