UNICEF estimates that in today’s world, one in five adults are illiterate and 72 million children are not going to school. Rural areas account for 82% of all the out-of-school children and based on household surveys in 80 developing countries conducted by UNICEF, 30 percent of rural children of primary school age do not attend school, compared to 18 per cent in urban areas. No country is immune to this problem.

The story is the same for children living in remote rural areas of Angola, Zambia, Bangladesh, Brazil and even United States. In fact, according to three Cornell researchers only about 26 percent of low-income kids in rural areas of United States were served by state-regulated early education programs compared with almost 44 percent of poor urban/suburban kids.

Educating rural children presents a significant challenge in more than one ways. Most of the world's poor and hungry live in rural areas.  For these children attending school competes with a whole host of demands on their time and energy like collecting water, herding animals and looking after their younger brothers and sisters. There are infrastructure problems too and most of the rural areas lack proper schools. Then there is the problem of urban bias in teaching methods. Much of what is taught in rural schools is prepared for urban schools by urban specialists and is not in the local language. Also a large number of teachers refuse to teach in rural areas and those who do are usually under qualified. In addition, parents may not send children to school in some areas due to lack of safety and some children may quit school because they don't find it interesting.

UNICEF believes that poverty reduction begins with children and that investing in children's education offers the best guarantee for achieving equitable and sustainable human development. Hence, educating rural kids is of utmost importance. But to achieve this rural kids need more schools, with improved teaching methods, techniques and materials that focus on their real needs. It is also important to offer incentives that encourage children to attend school and their parents to send them to school - a midday meal or midmorning snack for example. Most of the children who are illiterate are also hungry and with full stomachs children can concentrate and learn better. The curriculum should also be relevant to their lives. They might not care about an amusement park or a supermarket but they may need to learn how to harvest a crop or how to handle pesticides.

The school calendar should take their working lives into account by cutting down classes during harvesting season and having evening classes if the children are working during the day. It is also important to use the local language for teaching. Intellectual development of children is very much linked to the language they speak and if they are taught in a tongue which they don't understand, their development is constrained.  But often countries have many languages and find it is easier to use the official one to develop curriculum. Also, government funds should be allocated and used efficiently to improve the conditions of the destitute rural schools.

 Education is the foundation of success for any society and educating rural kids is the only way to uplift those areas. Thus, a strong collaboration is needed between various governments, non governmental agencies and other international organizations to achieve the goal of universal education by 2015.

 

-Shamala Pulugurtha 

What would happen if half the population in America were uneducated? What if the children in America had no way of being educated? What if more than half of America were living in poverty? This is exactly what’s taking place in the developing world!  1 in 4 adults in the developing countries are illiterate while more than 100 million children do not go to school. These and many other issues in the poorest countries are still increasing and becoming a great concern. These tragic predicaments will be reduced considerably with the help of the Millennium Development Goals.

The Millennium Development Goals are as follows: to rid hunger and poverty, achieve worldwide primary education, do away with sexism, decrease the high rates of child mortality, care for maternal health, fight HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, maintain the environment, and develop a global partnership. These superb objectives should and will not go unheard or be hindered.
By achieving worldwide primary education, the high rates of HIV/AIDS will decrease. Primary education isn’t just a want in this world, but a need. How can one go forth without receiving proper education? Children in the poorest countries require proper education in order to survive. Learning about the incurable disease will most definitely bring the high cases of HIV/AIDS down and many lives will be saved as a result.

It is common for children in a poor country to work on the street. Abuse is one major factor for their doing so. Poverty is another. Working all day every day is asking too much of the children, who just want and need to be loved and cared for. However, other children are living in even worse situations. Some children are homeless and live out in the streets. These kids who lack a home, food, and clothing are more likely to be killed or abused than the children who are forced to find a job and provide for their family. Through desperation, these homeless children are pulled into making prostitution and drugs a part of their life. Some children even escape from the intolerable situations (such as abuse or neglect) at their home and live by themselves.

One nerve-wracking fact is that many fail to contemplate as to why the children are homeless on the streets of these countries. Many do not want to show compassion for the less fortunate and turn from them. They do not know that these children could have been victims of a situation, fled their home, and as a result, are homeless. “Why do they steal?” some ask. The answer to this question is clear, and will be left in the open for you to answer.

In the developing world, many believe that a woman’s only job is to stay in the house and cook, clean, and take care of her family. Another saddening fact is that many parents marry their daughters off at a young age to avoid raising her. Having no knowledge of birth control can lead the way to early pregnancy and the boy and girl become parents at  a very young age. Lack of knowledge about the proper foods to eat is another great concern. Mothers know not what to feed their children, leading to other sicknesses such as anemia and malnutrition. Men are in control of their own lives, forcing women to latch on to them being they have no money or safety.
Malnutrition is a major issue in the third world countries. Statistics show that 500 million people are malnourished. 10 million die every year. Third world countries grow desperate for food and suffer from hunger and malnutrition, while the first and second world countries are concerned only about the possibility of nuclear war.  
Diarrhea is the most common cause of death in young children in developing countries. 1 out of 10 children die in Indonesia a year. The infections start from lack of hygiene and consuming contaminated foods. Dehydration is the cause of death due to large amounts of water loss. Measles has a death rate in Mexico 180 times higher than the United States. Measles’ death rate in a few African countries is 400 times that of the United States. In West Africa, 1 in 20 people die from measles.   The Millennium Development Goals come forth to rid the third world countries of these unbearable situations. These issues can be conquered one by one as we get together  to make the world a better place.

- Deborah Rose

The target number 3 of Millennium Development Goals (MDG) laid out in the 2000 UN Millennium Summit is to “ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling”. How successful has this initiative been?

Get this: 682 million children worldwide are enrolled in primary school but there are still more than 70 million children who are missing out on a primary education. This means that though the number of children out of school has been reduced, it is still depressingly high. Based on enrollment data, about 72 million children of primary school age were not in school in 2005 according to the MDG report. In fact it is believed that there are many kids who are enrolled but not attending school and if that number is added to the already grim statistic, the number of children not getting educated becomes unsatisfactorily high.

Consider, for instance, the following data according to the MDG Monitor. For Nicaragua, the net enrollment ratio in primary education (% both sexes) was an encouraging 93.7% but the percentage of pupils starting Grade 1 and reaching Grade 5 (% both sexes) was a dismal 50.8%. What this shows is that children do get pushed into enrolling in schools but drop out too early to achieve any lasting benefits.

Nicaragua, which also ranks low in the Human Development Index, has made significant progress in some areas but is still heavily affected by the high level of discrepancies and inequalities. The general population has to face many difficulties in procuring basic services like education and justice and there is a huge chasm in any opportunity between the rich and the poor. There are also many ethnic, gender and geographical biases that need to be dealt with to change the country's fortunes.

One of the prime issues in monitoring of millennium goals is the lack of correct and up to date data from the countries. Nicaragua suffers from this issue of having a rather untrustworthy system of monitoring indicators. The government itself has requested the support of the United Nations in order to improve the current scenario in the country. In general, there has been a limited participation in the MDG drive by many sectors of the Nicaraguan society and so the poorest and most downtrodden sections still remain vulnerable to hunger, malnutrition and illiteracy. In fact, there are so many issues in the formation and implementation of good policies for sustained development in Nicaragua that many fear that the country may not be able to reach its Millennium goals by the target year of 2015.

As the second poorest country in Latin America, Nicaragua has 46% of its population living on less than $2 per day. According to this report, though the government has made education free for children and teenagers, Nicaragua has failed to make headway in reduction of extreme poverty which continues to plague 14.9% of the population. The unfortunate result of this abysmal poverty is the inability of children to get into schools in spite of free tuitions and fund allocations by the government.

The important thing is, as Kathy Adams, the founder of EI says, “we need to not make light of the process of educating the kids. It is a complex issue that requires funds for sure, but it also requires massive shifts in values”. This is because, often in the poverty stricken areas of Nicaragua, most parents don't value education since they did not have any themselves. The other issue is that overt poverty prevents the kids from attending school as parents want them to work, babysit, help around the house, house sit, collect wood to cook and wash clothes at the lake when there is no water. The kids, thus, might be enrolled into schools, but get very few chances of actually attending classes. They are burdened by too many responsibilities to shoulder the task of education.

Therefore, pushing the kids to enroll in schools is not enough. It is important to ensure that they complete their primary education at the very least. Empowerment International is making a sincere effort in this direction by not only encouraging children to join school but in also helping them to continue their primary education as well as higher studies.

We all know that the solution to almost all ills in the society is education. It is the foundation for poverty reduction, health improvement and knowledge creation. Thus, we must become partners in this global war against illiteracy. Let us help everyone get equal opportunities, let us stand up for an educated world.

 

- Neha Singh 

primary education Nicaragua

EI participant studies while her mother works.Did you know that one in four adults in the developing world - 872 million people - is illiterate (Oxfam UK – Education Now Campaign)? Or that more than 100 million children remain out of school (Source:UNFPA)? Or that 46% of girls in the world's poorest countries have no access to primary education? Or the fact that more than 1 in 4 adults cannot read or write and 2/3 of those are women (Source:ActionAid)?

These may look like mind numbing numbers but every number here refers to a human life that may become tragic due to lack of basic education. It is incredibly unfortunate that many people fail to get even the simplest facilities like primary education which so many of us take for granted. Due to the lack of opportunities, the uneducated ones remain trapped in the vicious circle of poverty and illiteracy and face harsh circumstances throughout their lives. Getting educated is the basic right of every human being and yet, a disproportionately large section of the population fails to get a chance to attend even the primary school.

Education alone can ensure that the poor find positive ways to overcome their adversities and get empowered to create bright future for themselves and their families. In fact, according to Oxfam, young people who have completed primary education are less than half as likely to contract HIV as those missing an education. Universal primary education alone would prevent 700,000 cases of HIV each year – about 30% all new infections in this age group. It is, thus, imperative that, at the minimum, primary education be made available to everyone around the world.

Is achieving universal primary education an impossible dream? Consider this data from ActionAid: Americans spend around $20 billion on ice creams every year and the cost of providing universal primary education per year is just half of that!

While adequate funds are not the only answer, it does help to allocate sufficient resources for this goal. With sustained efforts by governments and organizations, it is definitely possible to ensure that even the poorest and most disadvantaged people of the world learn the basics of reading and writing. Moreover, thanks to a well planned initiative started by the UN, achieving this goal can become simpler. The eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of the UN aim to make seemingly impossible dreams come true.

Eradication of hunger and poverty, achievement of universal primary education, promotion of gender equality and women empowerment, reduction of child mortality, improvement of maternal health, combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, ensuring environmental sustainability and development of a global partnership are the eight goals that need to be achieved by 2015. These are not mere lofty statements to be relegated to the record books and forgotten but a workable blueprint formed by and agreed upon by every country in the world. This partnership to end extreme poverty from the world by 2015 was formed by the leaders of all countries and the goals endorsed at the highest political level.

In the 2000 UN Millennium Summit, these eight targets were accepted by all the countries, whether poor or rich. The poorer countries committed themselves to changing their policies and governance to improve their citizen's lives and the rich ones pledged to provide all the resources needed. The best part is the meticulous monitoring being done to ensure that the countries move steadily towards their goals. The national Millennium Goals reports and the Secretary General’s reports to the General Assembly keep track of the actual performance of every country against the millennium targets.

2007 was the mid point for the achievement of the goals and interesting results came out from the reports of the countries. Many countries have done very well in achieving most of the goals and ensuring sustainable growth. However, a lot of work needs to be done on several goals, including the goal of universal primary education.

The millennium goals, particularly the one targeting universal primary education by 2015, are within our reach. What we need to do is remind the governments about the promises made and support every endeavor made for the fulfillment of those promises. We need to galvanize help from every quarter of the society to make this mission an unprecedented success. Ensuring that every boy and girl in the world completes a full course of primary education is not that tough. We just need to be willing to help those that never get the same opportunities as ourselves - all we need to do is care.

- Neha Singh

Street children have very sad life stories. Poverty, neglect, abuse and despair are the chief components of their lives. They are neglected not only because their caretakers are too poor to provide them with the normal childhood facilities, but also because people in the social ladder think these kids are a nuisance at best.

Several factors force a child, to work on the street. Poverty and the burden of feeding too many mouths often push parents to send their child to find work. Obviously this is not a part time job to earn pocket-money, but a full-time occupation that could make a difference between a family being fed that day or going hungry. Children prove to be an important source of income for the family. They may have to sell goods or resort to begging. The hand-to-mouth situation of living means no health care facility and certainly no education. Procuring food and water everyday is such a struggle, the parents fail to see too far into the future and can only dream of the possible advantages of educating their child.

If the description of this child moved you, you will probably be amazed to know that another category of street kids exists that is generally considered more unfortunate than the one that is referred to above. “Homeless street kids” are completely alone. They have no family and no home to go back to everyday. They are at the highest risk of being murdered and abused. With no safety net to fall back on, these kids are consistently ill-treated and fall into the traps of drugs and prostitution early in life.

Due to lack of protective care that a family might provide, they are very vulnerable to emotional and physical abuse. Needless to say health and education are completely ignored because of lack of funds and proper guidance. Unbearable conditions at home often force these children to flee and live by themselves. While there are many who have no family, there are others who run away from violence or lack of care. For them, home is a place of such fear and misery, they look for livelihood and comfort on streets. However, their search for protection and care fails as most believe they are a threat to society which must be removed.

“The worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them; that is the essence of inhumanity” – George Bernard Shaw

One of the saddest aspects is the complete lack of understanding many people in the world show towards street-kids. They are mistrusted and looked down upon universally. Instead of seeing them as victims, people turn away from them because of the common misconception that they are thieves. Despite popular belief, research shows all street kids are not into illegal activities. While it is the toughness of life on the streets which breaks their back, it is the moral policing of the society which breaks their spirit.

An attitude change is important. Only when we develop a true understanding of their plight will we be able to work towards removing the “street” from these kids’ lives.

~ by Neha Singh

“Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army.” said Edward Everette, the former US Secretary of State.

Education is power. It helps individuals to be aware of their rights, to make rational decisions and to protect themselves against abuse and oppression. However, millions of people around the world are being denied access to education and the vast majority are women. UNICEF believes for every 100 boys that are out of school, there are 115 girls in the same situation across the world. There are several deep rooted social, religious and cultural norms that serve to exclude women from receiving an education and thereby, occupying a position of power and authority.

Lack of education has an impact through out a woman’s life cycle. Even before birth, female fetuses are killed in countries like India and China where the birth of a baby girl is not preferred. This is because a girl would lead to a greater financial burden on the family to get her married and virtually no income. In the middle years, girls face another type of discrimination. They lack access to education. Many of them have to help out with the household work and take care of their siblings instead of going to school or playing. Although the rates of girls’ primary education have improved in most countries, only 43 per cent of girls in the developing world attend secondary school.

Child marriage is another practice prevalent in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Parents in these regions tend to get their daughters married off at a very young age to rid themselves of the burden of raising them. Early marriage and lack of knowledge about birth control leads to early pregnancy and parenthood. HIV is also a consequence of illiteracy. Lack of information about HIV and their sexual rights makes women more susceptible to HIV.

Adolescent mothers are less likely to seek medical attention as a result the rates of infant and maternal mortality are higher in these cases. Uneducated mothers are also not aware of the nutritional choices for their children. This leads to problems like malnutrition and anemia among the children. They are less likely to send their own children to school and often do not participate in the labor force or the political process. They rarely have any say in the household affairs. Men often control every aspect of their lives including their freedom, mobility and health care. As they grow into old age, women face the double discrimination of age and gender. They again, totally depend on men as they don't have any savings and security of their own.

The situation in Central American countries like Nicaragua is no different. UNICEF believes that poverty, lack of education and few opportunities epitomize the lives of many women in this region. The country has exceptionally high maternal mortality rate and adolescent mothers account for 1 in 4 births. Women constitute only 30% of the labor force and they also play a limited role in the political process.

Education is the only tool that can break this intergenerational cycle of oppression, abuse, and poverty of women. Education has the power to transform societies. Educated women are more aware of their rights. They are likely to have fewer and healthier children. They can protect themselves against diseases like HIV. They are more likely to send their children to school. A greater participation of educated women in the economy and political process would lead to a better world today as well as future generations.

Aristotle had once said “The educated differ from the uneducated as much as the living from the dead.”

It is time for all the people and their governments across the world to realize this and join together to make education an international priority. It is the responsibility of all educated citizens of the world to help our fellow beings live better lives.

~ by Shamala Pulugurtha 

“La educación es un mejor salvaguardia de la libertad que un buen ejército.”  Declaró el que fue Secretario de Estado de Estados Unidos, Edward Everette.

La educación es energía. La educación ayuda a los individuos a estar conscientes de sus derechos, de tomar decisiones razonables y de protegerse ellos mismos contra el abuso y la opresión. Sin embargo, alrededor del mundo a millones de persona les son negados el acceso a la educación encontrándose las mujeres ser la vasta mayoría. El Fondo de las Naciones Unidas para la Infancia ( UNICEF) cree que por cada 100 niños que están fuera de la escuela, existen 115 niñas en la misma situación a través del mundo. Existen varias raíces profundas en lo social, religioso, y normas culturales que contribuyen a la exclusión de las mujeres de recibir una educación y por lo tanto, de poder ocupar posiciones de mando y autoridad.

La carencia de la educación tiene un impacto a través de la vida de una mujer. Aun antes de nacer, los fetos del sexo femenino son destruidos en países tales como la India, China donde el nacimiento de una niña no es favorecido. Esto es porque una niña conlleva una carga económica a la familia en el proceso para casarlas, sin prácticamente ningún ingreso monetario. En las edades medias de la adolescencia, las niñas enfrentan otro tipo de discriminación: ellas carecen del acceso a la educación. Muchas de estas niñas tienen que ayudar en las tareas caseras y cuidar de sus hermanos menores, en vez de salir a jugar. Aunque el porcentaje de las niñas recibiendo la educación primaria ha mejorado en la mayoría de los países, solamente el 43 por ciento de las niñas en los países en desarrollo asisten a la escuela.

El matrimonio de niñas a una edad muy temprana es otra práctica prevalente en el sur de Asia y en el sub-Sahara de África. Los padres en estas regiones tienden a tener sus hijas casadas a una muy temprana edad para evitarse el cargo de tenerlas que criar y mantenerlas. El matrimonio a temprana edad y el desconocimiento acerca del control de la natalidad trae como consecuencia un embarazo y responsabilidad parental inmediatos. El VIH es también una consecuencia en las mujeres sin educación. Falta de información acerca del VIH, y sus derechos sexuales hacen a las mujeres más susceptibles al VIH.

Las madres adolescentes son menos propensas a solicitar atención médica; como resultado, los porcentajes de la mortalidad de recién nacidos y las madres mismas son más altos en estos casos. Las madres que no han recibido educación escolar desconocen de la variedad de medios nutritivos disponibles para sus hijos. Esto presenta problemas tales como la malnutrición y anemia entre los niños. Ellas también son las menos probables de enviar sus propios hijos a la escuela y muy a menudo no participan en la fuerza laboral o el proceso político. Ellas raramente tienen un decir en los asuntos del hogar. Es muy común que los hombres controlen cada aspecto de sus vidas incluyendo su libertad, movilidad, y el cuidado de su salud. A medida que envejecen, las mujeres enfrentan la doble discriminación de la edad y el sexo. Ellas de nuevo, dependen totalmente de los hombres ya que no tienen ningunos ahorros y seguridad monetaria para sí mismas.

La situación en los países de América Central como Nicaragua no es diferente. UNICEF afirma que la pobreza, la falta de educación y las pocas oportunidades caracterizan las vidas de muchas mujeres en esta región. El país tiene una excepcionalmente alta mortalidad maternal y el porcentaje de madres adolescentes son de 1 por cada 4 nacimientos. Las mujeres constituyen solamente el 30% de la fuerza laboral y ellas también juegan un papel limitado en el proceso político.

La educación es el único instrumento que puede romper el ciclo de la opresión, el abuso, y la pobreza de las mujeres que toma lugar de generación en generación. La educación tiene el poder de transformar las sociedades. Las mujeres educadas están más conscientes de sus derechos. Es más probable que ellas tengan menos hijos y que estos hijos sean saludables. Las mujeres pueden protegerse ellas mismas contra enfermedades tales como el VIH. Es también probable que ellas envíen sus hijos a la escuela. Una mayor participación en la economía y el proceso político por parte de mujeres educadas pudiera guiar el mundo hacia un camino mejor para ahora en el presente y para futuras generaciones.

Aristóteles dijo una vez: “La persona educada es diferente de la que no lo es, de la misma manera una persona que vive lo es de una persona muerta.”

Es hora que todos los pueblos y sus gobiernos a través del mundo se den cuenta de esta situación y que unidos hagan de la educación una prioridad internacional. Es la responsabilidad de todos los ciudadanos educados del mundo ayudar a sus semejantes a vivir una vida mejor.

~ por Shamala Pulugurtha / photografia por Leslie Alsheimer, Santa Fe Digital Darkroom

If you think education is expensive, try ignorance. - Derek Bok

It is so important to continuously challenge ourselves, learn something new, refresh our knowledge and keep our brains active. Good education instills in us the importance of learning, making us more skilled, understanding and confident. Someone without education often fails to have clear cut goals and this lack of vision for his own future makes him disillusioned and sometimes destructive. Violence at home, poverty, crime, addictions may be some of the sad aspects of illiteracy. Education is an asset that helps its owner communicate better and have access to more information. Thus, shortcomings of ignorance overshadow financial strains of education. In fact long term gains of education are life altering.

Each additional year of education translates into an increase in an individual’s earning potential. Wages of educated workers are higher, as are earnings of small business owners and farmers who are inspired to take advantage of new technologies. In fact there is a huge gap in the salaries between those who complete higher education and those who manage to finish high school.

Lack of education translates into much more than just monetary loss. An uneducated person knows and understands little about the political scenario of their country and hence fails to demand rights which benefit them and others around them. They continue to be exploited, abused and ignored by society. They fail to understand the changing scenario of their society and have a hard time adapting to new systems or accepting new ways of life.

Ignorance in women is all the more damaging because it translates into many lost opportunities for not just herself but also her children. Women’s education enables them to marry later, have fewer kids and thus afford better health and education for each child.

It has been found that independent of household income, mothers with primary education have better access to information that can keep their children healthy. Since educated mothers access and use information about health care for themselves and their family, they are instrumental in creating a healthy society. The society also benefits due to lower fertility and the at-home schooling that educated mothers provide to their kids.

Basic literacy is a fundamental right. As defined by the United Nations, it is the ability to read 40 words per minute, write 20 words per minute, and do 2-digit arithmetic. The percentage of poor who are lacking in basic literacy skills is very high. Unfortunately due to lack of education the gap between the poor and the rich gets wider. The best education stays confined to the wealthy section of the society while the section that is economically deprived craves for simple primary education.

One of the important goals of the UN Millennium Project is to “ensure, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, be able to complete a full course of primary education.”

This goal is particularly important for the poorest section of the society. Not only does gender parity in education decrease with poverty, drop out rates rise significantly in low income families. While low rates of enrollment is a huge problem in south Asia, in Latin America enrollment is moving towards being universal in many countries, but drop out rates and repetition lead to low completion rates. Children with disabilities are even less likely to be enrolled in schools. Lack of education thus makes them doubly disabled.

At the bare minimum, people should be able to read and write with sufficient proficiency to manage day to day activities like reading a newspaper, road signs and the like. Obviously there is no maximum. The right education opens doors that were previously closed. Guiding them through new paths, helping them conquer their fears and allay their self-doubts, pushing them to keep looking for better ideas - good education becomes a person’s most trusted friend and mentor throughout life. It is high time everyone in the world had such an indispensable companion.

~ written by Neha Singh / photos by Leslie Alsheimer, Santa Fe Digital Darkroom

Si usted cree que la educación es costosa pruebe la ignorancia - Derek Bok

Es tan importante el continuar retándonos a nosotros mismos, el aprender algo nuevo, el poner al día nuestro conocimiento, y de mantener nuestra mente activa. La buena educación nos infunde la importancia de aprender, haciéndonos más capaces, comprensivos, y llenos de confianza. Alguien sin educación no logra frecuentemente en tener unas metas bien definidas y esta falta de visión para su propio futuro hace de la persona un individuo desilusionado y algunas veces destructivo. La violencia doméstica, la pobreza, el crimen, las adicciones a drogas y alcohol, pueden ser en parte los resultados trágicos de la ausencia de una educación escolar. La educación es un goce que le facilita al que la posea poder comunicarse mejor y tener acceso a más información. Así que, los resultados negativos de la ignorancia, después de todo, son peores que las demandas el costo de la educación conllevan. De hecho, los beneficios a largo plazo de la educación son elementos importantes que cambian la vida para algo mejor.

Cada año de educación recibida se convierte en una mejor posibilidad de ingresos para una persona. Los salarios de los trabajadores educados son más altos, así como las utilidades de los pequeños propietarios y agricultores quienes están motivados en disfrutar las ventajas de nuevas tecnologías. En realidad, hay una gran diferencia de salarios entre los que completan la educación superior y aquellos que malamente apenas terminan la educación secundaria.

La falta de educación significa mucho más que simplemente las pérdidas monetarias. Una persona sin educación sabe poco y entiende poco acerca de la situación económica de su país y por lo tanto no sabe como demandar los derechos que le pertenece y que le beneficia a él mismo y aquellos que están a su alrededor. Estas personas continúan siendo explotadas, abusadas, e ignoradas por la sociedad. Estas personas no logran entender los cambios que ocurren en su sociedad y les cuesta trabajo adaptarse a nuevos sistemas, ó aceptar nuevas maneras de vivir sus vidas.

La ignorancia en las mujeres es más dañina porque significa carecer de oportunidades no solamente para ellas sino también para sus hijos. La educación en las mujeres les permite ser más independientes y pueden casarse más tarde, tener menos hijos lo que las posibilita tener mayor atención médica para cada uno de sus niños.

Se ha comprobado que aparte de la entrada económica en el hogar, las madres que poseen la educación primaria tienen mejor acceso a la información que les ayuda en mantener a sus hijos saludables. Debido a que las madres educadas tienen acceso y utilizan la información acerca del cuidado de la salud para ellas y sus familias, son ellas instrumentos en el desarrollo de una sociedad saludable. La sociedad también se beneficia cuando la fertilidad es más baja, y la educación escolar que dichas madres educadas entonces pueden impartir a sus hijos en el hogar mismo.

La educación básica en un derecho fundamental. Definida por las Naciones Unidas, es la habilidad de leer 40 palabras por minuto, escribir 20 palabras por minuto, y hacer cálculos aritméticos que contengan dos números. El porcentaje de las personas pobres que carecen de conocimientos escolares es muy alto. Desafortunadamente, debido a la falta de educación la separación entre los pobres y los ricos se acentúa. La educación de más calidad está disponible solamente para el grupo de personas pudientes de la sociedad, mientras que el sector que carece de esos recursos económicos simplemente clama por una educación primaria básica, por lo menos.

Una de las metas más importantes del Proyecto Milenio de las Naciones Unidas es “asegurar, que para el 2015, tanto los niños y las niñas igualmente, en cualquier parte del mundo, estén posibilitados de completar al menos un curso de la educación primaria”.

Esta meta es particularmente importante para el sector más pobre de la sociedad. No sólo la pobreza reduce la posibilidad de que ambos sexos, igualmente, reciban una educación, sino que también contribuye al incremento en el porcentaje del abandono de los estudios en las familias de bajos ingresos. Mientras que en el sur de Asia la matricula es un gran problema, en América Latina se está encaminando en la dirección de ser algo general en muchos países, pero el descontinuar los estudios y la repetición de los grados resulta en porcentajes altos de aquellos que no terminan sus estudios. La posibilidad de que niños físicamente incapacitados se matriculen en las escuelas es mucho menos. La falta de educación los hace doblemente incapacitados.

Las personas deben estar instruidas para leer y escribir con suficiente habilidad para al menos funcionar en las actividades diarias tales como la lectura de un periódico, de los letreros direccionales de las calles, y otros. Obviamente, no existe un límite máximo de cuanto más la persona debe estar educada. El derecho a la educación abre las puertas que antes estaban cerradas. La educación lleva a los individuos por caminos nuevos, ayudándolos a conquistar sus propios temores y eliminar las dudas que puedan tener de sí mismos, estimulándolos en la búsqueda de mejores ideas – una buena educación pasa a ser el mejor amigo y guía de la persona a través de su vida. Es hora que cada persona en el mundo posea una compañía tan indispensable.

~ por Neha Singh / photografia por by Leslie Alsheimer, Santa Fe Digital Darkroom

So what can we do for security was the question in Nicaliving. For me it seems it would take  a paradigm shift.

Processing the disparities of the 'us' and 'them'  in my own mind and it feels so unjust.

Imagine... some families we work with earn $40 a month. What must it feel like to a local with what must seem like an invasion of foreigners on their land flashing around $40 or more just for a dinner for two an upscale restaurant. What must they feel as they see us with all kinds fancy gear that we wave around, obliviously shooting pictures and videos, listening to ipods, playing on our laptops, driving around in new rental cars  (locals always walk or bike). Then we marry their lovely young women and sometimes men. We buy their property and turn it over to millions of US dollars by selling it to our peers. 

This has bothered me long before the crime wave started.

While compassion or empathy won't cure it can help to look at the root causes of the situation. I think we need to look at the whole picture and work with the local Nicaraguans to make their lives better especially if the motive is to move to their country is to live better and often more luxurious lives. Connect with them....  We need to think before inviting them to our homes which even if simple to you will be luxurious to them. And if luxurious to you well, you can imagine what they must think if they are from a hut with dirt floors. Create a friendship on common ground which may mean a walk near the lake, a coke in the park. Don't invite them to places they can't afford then treat them because they can't pay. It creates more division and depowers them.  

We could say we worked hard for our money and can now enjoy the fruits, but they work harder than most people I have ever met and they barely survive. As a matter of fact, many need their children to work to just to survive. If we do good things for them (not just giving them things since this just feeds the cycle, but by actually helping to empower them) this will be recognized and create more natural protection and less division. Our neighbors have the power to naturally protect us or not.  If they see us in trouble, they can help or not. If they see our home being robbed they can call the police or not. One night as dusk was approaching as I reached my door a man on glue jumped out of no where and blocked my door. My heart jumped.  My hands trembled as I asked him to move. Luckily a gentlemen who had been walking next to me for some time with his young daughter came to my rescue and literally forced the man to move so I could enter. He waited until I was safely inside. I wonder if this type kindness will continue if we 'gringos' continue in the manner we are.

I think bridging the gap as a community of expats is the most effective way. I recommend when moving to any country to learn the language, the subtleties unspoken language, stay humble, thoughtful, walk in others shoes mentally day after day, don't give money since that only will make you an ATM not a friend. Make your presence a worthwhile one and not one to be resented. Know them as people who have much to offer us if we can only take the time to take in their richness. 

~ by Kathy Adams / photo by Leslie Alsheimer, Santa Fe Digital Darkroom 

 

What are your goals for 2007 - 2008?

We are hoping to increase our retention rates (number of children which stay in the program) from 88% in 2006 to 95% in 2007. Our current focus is on refining processes and procedures so the program is more sustainable and reproducible – our objective is to devise a model which is easy to implement in other communities.

We want to foster even more community ownership and help the parents take a greater level of ownership for their children’s education. Our plan is to stay relatively flat in 2007 in enrollment, as we strengthen EI’s foundation. In 2008 we will identity two new communities and start working with them, with the intention of doubling our number of students enrolled.

Financially our 2007 goal is to raise enough funds to create a reserve fund for more financial stability before we increase enrollment in 2008. We would also like to hire at least two more local employees and use volunteers for less critical roles. We believe this can provide more stability for the program and heighten community ownership overall. We expect this will accelerate the development of a more skilled parental directive within the communities. We will continue to increase the number of Nicaraguan volunteers both in the community and outside.

What are some of the success stories of the graduates of the program?

Firstly, what is success to you?

I used to think that success was finishing high school and maybe even college. Over time I realized I was projecting my own values and beliefs onto these families. I realized success to these families - where on average, parents reached about 3^rd grade - is for our kids to surpass their parents by at least 2 years.

We are now pleased if they get through primary school, more pleased if they make it to high school. Currently we have two kids just about ready to go to college next year. This is a new level for us and we are looking at how to handle this and facilitate their next educational needs.

How have you traditionally found donors? What works and hasn’t worked?

For years now I have been juggling tech jobs and my many EI responsibilities. Due to lack of time, most of our donors have just appeared from interpersonal connections of mine, our volunteers or our staff. The biggest gain has been from volunteers promoting the program once they have been to Nicaragua. I can’t say what has not worked. We have been too small to experiment. It has either happened or it hasn’t. Again it’s been an organic process.

How do you keep donors?

We try to stay connected to them and keep them informed, so they feel they are really making a difference with their donations. We find our most committed donors are those who feel connected either to me personally or to the project, the children and the communities we serve. Our most loyal donors have either been exposed to this type of poverty or have been to the countries themselves.

Why are you doing this?

Because I love it. I believe education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty as is developing the community spirit. It fills me, energizes me and makes me happy. Seeing the kids smile and in school instead of or as well as selling on the streets is wonderful. Every child deserves the chance to go to school.

What is in it for you?

Satisfaction. Joy. My payment is seeing those children go to school, them eagerly showing us their school work, seeing the shift of family values to include education as a high priority. Seeing the parents proud of their children and participating in a world they never dreamed of until EI came to them. I have to say another exciting factor has been witnessing our visitors and long term ground team volunteers become positively affected by the work and by the community. It seems we all receive more than we could possibly give to these amazing people.

Why quit a presumably good job to do this?

Actually, while I continue to try to leave the tech world, financial necessities continue to drive me back and I dream of the day where I can focus completely on my true love…Empowerment International. It will be interesting to see how far it can go when I can one day focus 150% of my time to it as opposed to only 60% now.

I am much happier doing something which makes a difference in the world and I feel educating children can affect so many of our world issues. My tech job is fun, but it has never filled my soul or made me feel satisfied. Honestly, this comes from a place beyond me… it is something I feel driven to do from a higher place and I am the vehicle that is being used to do this work. May sound esoteric by hey you asked…

~ by Janine Ramlochan

¿Cuales son sus metas para el período 2007 – 2008?

Esperamos tener un incremento en el porcentaje de retención (número de niños que permanecen en el programa) de 88% en el 2006 al 95% en el 2007. Nuestra concentración en estos momentos es en perfeccionar los procesos y procedimientos para que el programa sea más sostenible y que se pueda extender – nuestro objetivo es crear un modelo el cual sea fácil de implementar y ser emulados en otras comunidades.

Queremos exhortar aún más que la comunidad se haga propietaria del programa y ayudar a los padres a que se interesen más en la educación de sus hijos. Nuestro plan es mantener justamente el mismo nivel de participación en las inscripciones del 2007, mientras que al mismo tiempo fortalecemos la base de EI. En el 2008 seleccionaremos dos comunidades nuevas y comenzaremos a trabajar con ellas con la intención de duplicar el número de estudiantes inscriptos.

En el aspecto financiero, nuestra meta en el 2007 es recaudar suficientes fondos para crear una reserva de los mismos para obtener más estabilidad financiera antes de comenzar las inscripciones en el 2008. Nos gustaría dar empleo a dos personas locales más, y utilizar los voluntarios en situaciones menos críticas. Creemos que esto pueda ofrecer más estabilidad para el programa y aumentar una participación más integral por parte de la comunidad. Esperamos que esto acelerará el desarrollo de padres mejores entrenados en las juntas de padres, dentro de la comunidad. Continuaremos el incremento de voluntarios nicaragüenses de dentro de la comunidad y fuera de ella.

¿Cuales son algunos de los éxitos de aquellos que ya se han graduado del programa? Primeramente, ¿qué significa “éxito” para usted?

En el pasado yo pensaba que tener éxito era el terminar la educación secundaria y quizás aún la universitaria. Al pasar el tiempo me he dado cuenta que he estado llevando mis propios valores y conceptos a esas familias. Me di cuenta que “éxito” para esas familias – donde el average de los padres han recibido educación quizás hasta el 3er. grado – era que nuestros niños sobrepasaran a sus padres en el nivel escolar por dos años al menos.

En estos momentos estamos satisfechos si ellos logran terminar la educación primaria, y estaríamos más satisfechos aún si se encaminan hacia su educación secundaria. Al presente tenemos dos muchachos que irán a la universidad el próximo año. Esto es un nuevo nivel para nosotros y estamos estudiando como manejar esta nueva situación y facilitarles las futuras nuevas necesidades educacionales.

¿Cómo usted ha, tradicionalmente, encontrado nuevos donantes? ¿Qué es lo que ha trabajado y no?

Por muchos años he estado manteniendo mis trabajos técnicos y las muchas responsabilidades que tengo con EI, todo al mismo tiempo. Debido al poco tiempo disponible que poseo, la mayoría de nuestros donantes han surgido más bien a través de mis contactos personales, de los voluntarios, y de las personas que forman el equipo de trabajo. El mejor resultado ha sido procedente de parte de los voluntarios que han estado comunicando a otros acerca del programa una vez que han estado en Nicaragua. No puedo decir lo que no ha trabajado. Nuestra organización es pequeña para estar experimentando. O bien hemos logrado lo que queríamos, ó simplemente no. De nuevo, ha sido un proceso de carácter orgánico.

¿Cómo usted retiene los donantes?

Nosotros tratamos de estar en contacto con ellos y mantenerlos informados, de tal manera para que se sientan en realidad que ellos están haciendo la diferencia con sus donativos. Descubrimos que los donantes más permanentes son aquellos que se sienten conectados a mí personalmente, ó al proyecto, los niños, y las comunidades que servimos. Nuestros donantes más leales bien han estado ellos expuestos a este tipo de pobreza, ó ellos mismos han estado en esos países.

¿Por qué usted está haciendo esto?

Porque amo este trabajo. Creo que la educación es la llave que rompe el ciclo de la pobreza al mismo tiempo que desarrolla el espíritu comunitario. Me llena, me energiza, y me hace feliz al ver los niños sonreír y asistiendo a la escuela en vez de estar vendiendo en las calles; es maravilloso. Cada niño merece tener la oportunidad de ir a la escuela.

¿Qué obtiene usted de esto personalmente?

Satisfacción . Regocijo . Mi compensación es el ver esos niños asistir a la escuela, ellos al querer ansiosamente mostrarnos sus trabajos de la escuela, viendo que hay un cambio en los valores de la familia que incluye la educación como una alta prioridad. Viendo que los padres están orgullosos de sus hijos y que participan en un mundo que ellos nunca soñaron estar hasta que EI vino hacia ellos. Tengo que decir que otro factor excitante ha sido el ver a nuestros visitantes y los voluntarios que han estado por largo tiempo ser conmovidos de una manera positiva por la labor y por la comunidad. Me parece que todos recibimos más en retorno de lo que nosotros pudiéramos darle a esas buenas personas.

¿Por qué renunciar a un buen trabajo para hacer esta labor?

Verdaderamente, mientras que continuo en el proceso de dejar, eventualmente, un mundo técnico mis necesidades financieras personales me obligan a continuar con mi empleo, pero sueño en el día en que pueda dedicarle mi atención completamente a mi verdadero amor....... Empowerment International. Será interesante ver cuan lejos EI puede ir cuando yo pueda dedicarle 150% de mi tiempo contrario al 60% que le doy ahora. J

Soy mucho más feliz en hacer algo que haga una diferencia positiva en el mundo, siento que educando a los niños puede afectar positivamente a los problemas del mundo. Mi trabajo técnico es agradable, pero nunca ha llenado mi espíritu o me ha satisfecho completamente.

Honestamente, esto procede de algún lugar más allá de mi misma……… es algo por el cual me siento conducida por algo superior a mí y que soy el vehículo que está siendo utilizado para realizar esta labor. Esto puede sonar esotérico, pero después de todo usted fue el que me preguntó….

~ por Janine Ramlochan

How did you select the communities you are working in?

The first community in Costa Rica happened very organically by meeting 2 boys on the street. In Nicaragua, an organization called Casa de Ninez introduced us to 5 very poor communities outside of Granada. We chose Villa Esperanza because it was extremely poor and there was already a sense of community established, including a community leader. We were really impressed by this. The kids and families in the project were all interviewed. The first year we chose 76 kids, who were mostly from single parent households. The second year they were again from the same area and had to demonstrate the need (although, they are all in need in this community) and both the parents and the children had to show a strong desire for education and parents a willingness to participate in their children’s educational development.

In the future, we are exploring communities which are connected with an organization called Opportunity international. They are starting community-based library projects where the community actually takes complete ownership of the libraries. We feel our synergies in these communities will accelerate their development, especially considering the community is starting to work together as a whole and has demonstrated strong interest in educating their children.

What is EI’s evaluation process for the children in the program?