According to the U.N. Fund for Population Activities, “Education is one of the most important means of empowering women with the knowledge, skills and self-confidence necessary to participate fully in the development process. Educating women has a more significant impact on poverty and development than men’s education. It is also the most influential factor in improving child health and reducing infant mortality”.
Thanks to you, our generous GlobalGiving partners, at least six village girls in northern Burkina Faso will go on to post-secondary training (primary school teacher training, 2 & 3 year nursing training and midwifery training) this fall. Your generous support through the microprojects and through this “parent” project has made this possible.
On average, 200 qualified village girls have applied for our scholarships in each of the past three years. Of the 33 girls whose post secondary training/education we have supported, 14 have successfully completed their training/education and 19 are currently in school. Twelve of the 14 graduates are actively employed and two are awaiting civil service exams to enter government service.
As you can see, the demand is great and the girls who have received our scholarships are successful. With your generous and continuing support, we aim to double the number of girls we support this fall, including supporting at least one girl at the university level.
A heads up: Wednesday, June 12, is GlobalGiving’s biggest Bonus Day of the year. GlobalGiving will match all donations to this project by 50% up to a maximum $1,000 donation. To qualify for matching funds, donations must be made through the GlobalGiving website.
Thanks again for your support!
Thanks to donations made by 27 very generous individuals, this project has been fully funded and a lucky secondary school graduate will be able to enter a three-year midwifery training program this fall. Association NEEED (Nimbus Enfance Environnement Education et Developpement in French), the non-governmental organization in Burkina Faso that runs this project, will offer a scholarship for midwifery training to a village girl who has successfully completed secondary school. NEEED will announce the availability of the scholarship via radio and will work with the Ministry of Higher Education to review applications and select the most promising candidate for this training and profession. They will notify Friends of Burkina Faso of their choice of candidate and send us the name and a photo of the candidate.
Our sincere thanks to all donors to this project!
For further information about this project, you may contact me at smplopper@aol.com.
Meet Abibata and Alimata
Meet two of the girls whose educations you have helped launch. It is hard to get girls to smile at this age. But after a few years of education, it is a whole different story (as exemplified by the photo of middle school girls).
Abibata, from the village of Koeneba, is doing very well in primary school. When asked what she likes most she replied: “I like reading and arithmetic. The teacher and my parents say that if I work hard at school, I will go to middle school. I want to become a nurse so I can treat people who are sick”. Abibata’s parents are very grateful to GlobalGiving donors for giving their daughter the opportunity to enter school. The father explained that NEEED (our partner organization that runs the project) told him that “ ‘all children must go to school regardless of their sex’. This is why we have sent our daughter to school so that she learns to read and write. She works hard”. Abibata’s mother added “I hope my daughter will have a job one day and be able to help us with a little money and food”.
Another high-achieving student is Alimata, from the village of Danaoua, who is being raised by her grandparents. Both grandparents understand the importance of education for girls and appreciate NEEED’s offer of school materials and a lamb to help their granddaughter enter primary school, after which they will help her raise her lambs and sell them each year to support future years of schooling. The grandparents are adamant that they do not want their granddaughter be like them. They want her to get an education and become a teacher or a doctor.
Abibata and Alimata are two of the 300 girls we supported last year, thanks to our GlobalGiving partners. Nearly 90% of “our girls” passed national exams last year to go on to middle school compared with 63% of their peers in the region. This is a testament to the structure of this self-help program, the manner in which NEEED engages the commitment of village parents and young girls, and what NEEED provides each girl in her first year (including a lamp to study by at night AND a lamb which enables parents to assume responsibility for the remainder of their daughter’s 12 years of primary, middle and secondary school) – all for $90.
Important: Wednesday, June 12, is GlobalGiving’s biggest Bonus Day this year. GlobalGiving will match all donations to this project by 50% up to a maximum of $1000 per donor. So mark your calendars. We’ll post a reminder early June.
As always, our most sincere thanks for your continuing support of these girls!
