Gambiaj.com – (BANJUL, The Gambia) – The Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education (MoBSE) has provided clarifications regarding its decision to use the Olof language as a trial medium of instruction in the Mainstreaming Effective Intervention Strategies in Schools (MEISS) pilot program. According to MoBSE, the MEISS program is part of efforts to improve foundational literacy and numeracy among young learners in Grades 1-3 by integrating strategies that have proven effective in out-of-school programs run by the NGO Effective Intervention (EI). The MEISS pilot, supported by the World Bank’s Resilience, Inclusive, Skills, and Equity (RISE) project, is currently being implemented in 55 public lower basic schools across Regions 1, 2, 3, and 5 (North and South), covering only 10% of public schools.