The Aga Khan Foundation helped build early childhood development capacity, giving children the skills to engage with primary education. The Foundation was selected by the government to introduce the first national early childhood development plan. This resulted in over a thousand community members being trained, benefiting more than 15,000 children under five from 2014 to 2019.

The Aga Khan Academy Maputo is the third in a network of 18 Academies which His Highness the Aga Khan is establishing in countries across Africa, South and Central Asia, and the Middle East. Students are selected based on merit and financial aid is available to ensure access for students from all socio-economic backgrounds. The guiding principles of the Aga Khan Academies involve five crucial strands: Ethics, Pluralism, Economy for Development, Cultures, and Governance and Civil Society.

The Programme

The Aga Khan Academy, located in the province of Maputo, city of Matola, opened in 2013 with a Nursery School and a lower Junior School. It now offers the full Primary Years, Middle Years and Diploma programmes and has been accredited as an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School. In addition, the Academy has been granted membership of the Council of International Schools (CIS). This is one of the world’s leading quality assurance organisations and is helping the school to reflect upon and develop its practices in all areas of operation. The aim is to become a fully accredited school. This is a comprehensive three-year school improvement process.

Facilities

The Academy features state-of-the-art facilities, a multicultural student body and an experienced team of educators and staff. Students experience the highest standards of education, preparing them for lives characterised by leadership and service. With spacious, digitally connected classrooms and resource areas, outdoor spaces and sports facilities, the Academy provides an outstanding environment for engaging in physical activities, cultural events, academic studies and community life.

Residences

With the launch of the residential programme in April 2019, the Academy also provides opportunities to students from across Mozambique and across the continent to study at the Academy. Student residences are designed to accommodate students and dorm parents – teachers who have been chosen carefully and trained in their pastoral roles. The residences are vibrant, dynamic learning communities that provide students with authentic opportunities to develop as leaders, serve their community and nurture deep friendships.

Professional Development

Each Aga Khan Academy includes a Professional Development Centre (PDC) which trains teachers within and beyond the Academy. It runs programmes for local government and not-for-profit schools, and helps to develop teaching approaches which encourage intercultural learning and global citizenship. Maputo’s PDC has been operational since September 2009, and has been offering a range of language, mathematics and leadership programmes for teachers and leaders of Mozambican public schools. In 2016 the PDC launched a Teacher Preparation Programme, through which recently graduated nationals were selected through a highly demanding process. They trained in participatory methodologies at the PDC, undertook a year of AKDN-funded specialised training in the IB curriculum at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa in Kenya and took up placements in the Aga Khan Academy Maputo.

We are proud to be contributing to the improvement of learning and teaching beyond the walls of the Academy, and to be developing the educational infrastructure of Maputo and Matola. Planned new facilities for the PDC will offer exciting opportunities to increase the scope and influence of our work.