Infrastructure such as waste disposal and water supply can no longer meet the needs of the population. Urban poverty and associated social problems are becoming increasingly evident. The health status of women and children is particularly poor. In Kiribati, only a quarter of adults over the age of 25 have attended secondary or higher education. Within schools, curricula are outdated and materials inappropriate.
Many teachers are untrained and unmotivated due to limited resources and low pay.
The VSO programme VSO volunteers have been working in Kiribati since the late 1960s. Education volunteers help to improve education in order to develop the potential of young people. Current volunteers include a pilot placement in a peripatetic teacher training project, which will strengthen English throughout the secondary school curriculum, and provide classroom teaching in science, English and the humanities. Two volunteers are teaching electrical engineering and technical English, respectively, at the Technical Institute. Another volunteer is developing a science curriculum for secondary schools.