Post by Results UK

🇲🇼 This week, we're in Malawi with MPs Bambos Charalambous and Rachel Gilmour, seeing firsthand what UK investment in foundational learning means – and what its absence could mean. Here's the reality on the ground: 87% of 10-year-olds in Malawi cannot read. Only 13% of children have foundational numeracy skills. Malawi ranks among the very poorest countries in the world – and the poverty rate has barely shifted in 15 years, with millions more people falling into poverty in absolute terms. 📚 The UK-supported National Mathematics Curriculum Reform Programme – rolled out to 5,900 schools – has been independently evaluated and found to deliver the equivalent of an extra half-year of maths learning per child. It is now considered one of the most effective numeracy programmes on the African continent. However, cuts to education programmes mean, for girls especially, the consequence is not abstract. Families already weigh school fees, safety risks on long journeys, and a stagnant economy with few jobs. ⚖️ Every signal that investment is retreating tips that calculation toward early marriage or domestic labour instead of education and opportunities to have agency over their own future. ❤️ These children are not responsible for the failures of governments. They deserve better than to be collateral damage in a funding retreat. More from our trip to come. #EnsureEveryChildLearns #FoundationalLearning #Malawi