This project will reduce dropouts from primary and high schools, prevent early marriage, and improve menstrual hygiene of girls in the district of Meherpur in Bangladesh. Disadvantaged girl students of G1 to G3 will be taught by trained paid volunteers for quality education and retention at school. Disadvantaged adolescent school-going girls will be provided with vocational skills training, if they drop out, along with awareness about their sexual hygiene and the bad sides of child marriage.
The district of Meherpur is lagging much behind in respect of literacy and child marriage rate in Bangladesh. The average literacy rate of Meherpur as per the Census of 2011 is 53.6% (male-56.2%, female-51.0%). The dropout rate in primary education was as high as 24.3% in 2013.The dropout rate is highest in primary schools in grade-1 to grade-3.The rate of child marriage in Meherpur was 53.7% in 2013. The high rate of child marriage contributes to the high rate of child and mother mortality.
1. Disadvantaged girl students of grade-1, grade-2 and grade-3 will be provided with special care in an education center nearby or in the primary school by a trained volunteer; and 2. Workshops for headmasters and school management committees (SMC) will be held.
1. At least 2880 girl students and 200 school teachers will be direct beneficiaries; 2. Quality primary education will be ensured for 2880 girl students in 92 primary schools; and 3. 90 school administrators and the local education department will be empowered.
This project has provided additional documentation in a Microsoft Excel file (projdoc.xls).
