YELI has supported 375 poor children from 27 schools in Plateau State over the past 5 years, with reading & writing skills through exchange programs & donation of writing materials etc. We will within the next 9 months build a skill learning center for the poor, giving basic literacy & vocational skills to less-privileged youth in Jos, who come from poor families affected by the various crises, to prepare them for professional life & make them self-reliant to cope with the challenges of poverty.
"Everyone has rights to education. Education shall be free, at least at the basic stages."UN Article 26 Unfortunately, this is not attainable in Jos and other communities in Plateau State and as result, many youth: orphans and vulnerable kids mostly from humble homes cannot afford to attend community or government school in the area. This leads to increased youth illiteracy level with girl-child topping the list. Other challenges relating to this are youth violent conflict, drug abuse & crimes.
A pilot project center will be rented (then new one built) in Jos. 50 youth, mostly orphans and street children (7-12 years old) engaged in basic reading and writing class. And 65 youth (13-25 years old) lean vocational skills: soap making, music, pomade making, weaving, Moringa, tailoring and simple shoe making at the center. Children also do many creative tasks and watch educational documentaries (DVDs). 3 local instructors and 5 resource persons recruited and trained to handle both stages.
Building community based confidence in poverty reduction and violence control through youth engagement in literacy/vocational skills trainings; challenging government and corporate bodies to respond to educational needs of orphans, vulnerable children and crisis affected youth in Jos and Nigeria. Bridging poverty divide and extending hope to poor and hopeless families. Employment creation for vulnerable youth in the area is also a glaring potential impact of the project.
