Food & Education to 500 Homeless Children

Team of Muwakhat foundation invited by St. Monica High School located in village Clarkabad Kasur District. The purpose of this visit to overview school for chosen as community school for following objectives:

• Provide better environment to students age 04 to 10 years for improve mental, physical and spiritual health.
• Introduce holistic approach education for development mind, body and character of children for break poverty trap and become responsible citizen.
• Bring back drop out girls to high school
• Support poor child for education

Other than Muwakhat Foundation offer

• Dry Food to household for improves malnourishment of children and women and
• Donate goat mother of every girl student
• Free health camp and service by liaison with hospitals and insurance companies.

During visit Imran Parkash chairperson shared, more than 200 children waiting for join school. These children’s parents working as bonded labour at bricks kiln. These families have inconsistent income, receive wages lower than market from owner of bricks kiln. In rainy season or fog days brick kiln work stop, and workers’ life become very miserable by not have cook meals three times a day. It will be never possible for families to afford education of their children. They believe that our children spend same life, “NO WAY OF ESCAPE”.

WAYFORWARD

Muwakhat Foundation will collaborate with St. Monica secondary high school for support quality education for girls and poor homeless children

JOIN HANDS for change destiny of 200 children by send them to school.

Problem :

Despite Pakistan being one of the major food producing countries in the world, 50% of its population is food insecure, said a top representative of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to Pakistan,.

“To me this country has contradictions as far as food is concerned. On the one hand it is the 8th largest food producing country and on the other, its 50% population is food insecure,”

Further he said that 40% of its children are malnourished and underweight due to lack of access to adequate food. “Pakistan produces enough food for its people. But the issue is access of its people to food.”

With the increase in poverty, people spend more on food as compared to non-food items. Within the poorest group, the average household’s expenditure share on food has gone up to 61.6 percent in 2009 against 55.6 percent in 2005-06.

Result of Need Assessment Survey

Muwakhat Foundation did a Need Assessment survey of the members revealed that they not only need financial assistance but also require help in other day to day matters. Keeping this point in consideration a Need Assessment survey was conducted in Lahore and Kasur area. Besides this same was conducted for the households in Swat, which helped us in concluding that:

• 62% of the total household income is spent on food items.
• 90% household purchase food items on daily basis.
• 69% household earn income on daily and weekly basis
• 50% women and infants undernourished.
• Most of families pull out money from their business, ultimate capital dry and business close down

It’s further revealed that daily & weekly wage earning families is serious food insecurity because their purchase of food items link with income earn on daily basis. In case any day breadwinner not gets labour then his family either cook food by purchase items on credit or sleep without food. Facts found from survey which make them more vulnerable and hunger:

• There is no concept of monthly grocery in these households; they are more in the habit of day to day purchases.
• They buy things at market rate which is not even of good quality
• The income is not fixed/stable whereas the house expenses are there and as a result they have to pull out money from their businesses in order to meet their daily expenses
• Daily wagers often borrow money to meet their expenses thus resulting in debts
• In case if the breadwinner of the family dies the family is left with no other option but to beg
• In most of families having no stable income, they take the loan from MFIs and instead of fully investing in the business they use the money for emergency or some other domestic purpose. As a result they fall deeper into the poverty quagmire

SOLUTION:

Keeping in view all these issues, Muwakhat launched the “Feed the Poor” solution to overcome food insecurity of destitute and poorest.

OBJECTIVES OF THE FOOD SECURITY PROGRAM

• Consistent access to quality food for healthy and active living
• Elimination of hunger and malnutrition from the poor families, especially women and children

In order to achieve these objectives, Muwakhat Foundation has launched interest free loans for the food security program so that

• All members get the monthly grocery on the first of each month, all year round.
• Provision of quality products at economical rates
• Asasah provides this food package every month without any additional cost and the members pay back at the time of their convenience.

PROCESS OF SELECTION, DISBURSE FOOD PACKAGE & RECOVERY OF LOAN

Process of Selection:

• Muwakhat Foundation have branch offices located in poor communities. Operational staffs conduct community meetings for awareness of solution for food insecurity and identify potential households meet set criteria.
• CRITERIA:

1)      PPI score should be above 40%

2)      Not able to meet the basic needs of the family

3)      Skilled labor but have no work to do

4)      Sole breadwinner of the family and scarce income

• Staffs form a group of 15 women live in same community and select group leaders who responsible for timely monthly meeting at community center, assure 100% recovery of members and resolve group issue with coordination of members.
• Fill application form by community development officer and branch manager verify and approved food package.

Process of disburse food package:

• Prepare demand of food packages and send to head office
• Head office forward demand of food items to SALWA distributor
• SALWA prepare food package for each member and deliver at Branch offices.
• Branch office disburse food package to members till 5^th of every month

Process of recovery:

• Group leader collect installment from members on every Sunday
• Community Development officer go to community center (place is at group leader home) to collect recovery and write acknowledgement in their passbooks.
• Monthly meeting conduct at community center, all members attend and community development officer share performance of group and register new members if recommend by group

SUSTAINABILITY:

Food Program initiative survives due to sustainable approaches.

Muwakhat Foundation covers operational cost from discounts given by SALWA on food package. These discounts vary from month to month and range between 2.5% to 5% per month on grocery items. Our branch office becomes 100% sustainable in 4 to 6 months by serve to 450 members of community.

TILL TODATE FINACIAL HIGHLIGHTS

# of Food Package Disbursed from July 2013 till sep 2019

22,300

Total Value of Disbursed Package

Rs. 91.1 million

Recovery Rate

99%

Members Speak Out…

• Sajida – Ghaziabad, Lahore – Mughalpura Branch

MUWAKHAT food package has saved us from the daily purchase of one item or another. We had to wait for the daily wages in the evening, get the food stuff and then cook the meals. In case there was no work for the day, then we had to borrow the food item from the grocer. These items, since we were not paying for them, proved to be costly and were of inferior quality. With the MUWAKHAT Food Security facility, now we get our food items in the beginning of the month and pay no extra cost at all.

• Mohsin – Dharampura, Lahore – Mughalpura Branch

Food items included in the package are of good quality. We are now no more dependent on the grocers for borrowing food items. Secondly, it is always better to get the month’s rations in one go.

• Kausar  – Mohallah Qureshi, Lahore

Before the provision of MUWAKHAT food package, I used to buy the food items on daily basis, sometimes since there was no money we had to request the grocer to borrow stuff, due to this fact had to compromise on quality and price. We then availed the MUWAKHAT food package facility and are very happy with this. We now need not buy ration everyday and can cook whatever we wish to. There is no tension of payment and we get the monthly ration all in one go. We are very happy and pray that MUWAKHAT continues to help the poor families for their welfare and betterment. Ameen.

Samina lives with her two sisters and mother in a small village distance 6 kilometer from kasur city. Her father died two years ago and he was the only bread earner of her family. After death of her father, mother started work as cook in nearest school canteen but income is not enough to cover all basic needs including school expenses of Samina and her both sisters. She wants to be a teacher and financial hurdles unable to stop her from study. Daily, she is going to school by walk and it took 55 minutes to reach school. In hot summer and cold winter, become most difficult for her but she want to continue her study.

MUWAKHAT VISIT GIRLS SCHOOL

Tabinda Alkans Jaffery Director ( Muwakhat Foundation) visited Girls school located near Kasur City province Punjab. The purpose to study & analyse dropout rate of girls, reason for left school, challenges facing by girls to get education in school and how Muwakhat Foundation can facilitate female students for continue their education.

BIGGEST CHALLENGE

Girls school of Kasur city not have sufficient class room, so 60% students study in open area and it become most difficult to continue class in cold winter, hot summer and rainy days.

OTHER CHALLENGES

15% female students not afford transportation expenses and come to school by walk. It is not safe for woman and girl in rural area where people not give preference to girl education

MUWAKHAT PLAN TO PROVIDE TRANSPORTATION FOR GIRLS

Muwakhat will provide transportation expenses for pick and drop to 15 girls who live at distance from school between 3km to 8km.

Every year will raise funds through post micro project at GlobalGiving.

Our regular donors and supporters know that Muwakhat Foundation started the project of clothes and food distribution in July 2015 and serving to vulnerable group especially women and children. The project is for five years with purpose to:

• improve their nutrition by  consistent food
• Provide winter clothes for children
• Educate these homeless children who are not accepting by any regular school to educate them.
• Provide awareness on basic legal rights to women so decrease violence and also give free legal aid to victim women
• Establish skills training center for girls
• Launch adult literacy for girls and women who never went to school.
• Make women productive to earn income and help in enhance income of households

ACTIVITIES during 2^nd Quarter of this Year

Muwakhat Foundation is going to establish Rehabilitation and pre-school center for street children. These children involve in child labour, begging, forced into a life of crime, violence and are exposed to abuse. This center helps them into two phases:

• Phase 1: rehabilitate them from shock, relax, break negative habits and bring them back to normal life.
• Phase 2:  give them elementary education through fun and entertainment and ultimate purpose to graduate them for regular school.

Registration of street and homeless children for rehabilitation center

Muwakhat Foundation was given several awareness sessions on education to parents and result is 34 children registered for center.

PLACE OFFER BY COMMUNITY FOR REHABILITATION & PRE-SCHOOL CENTER

Parents, who are willing for education to their children, offer a land for center. We will build temporary infrastructure with support of community in July 2018.

MULTI SERVICES OFFER FROM THIS CENTER

We are establishing this center for street children but this center will offer multi services to women and children of poor and homeless families. i.e

• Part time skills training to girls
• Women who have skills of embroidery and patch work to link them with market to earn income and increase financial security of their families
• Awareness sessions to families on basic legal rights

We request to support for developing “Child Rehabilitation and Preschool Center” to help homeless & street children for see dreams about secure future, overcome malnourished and go to regular school.

Link of Project: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/child-rehabilitation-and-pre-school-center/

Muwakhat Foundation started this project with distribution of clothes and dry ration for homeless children. We are serving to vulnerable group especially women and children. During our survey, it were observed that due to inconsistent of household income, family members average two days a week not able to cook and feed their children, so Muwakhat take this as a project for 5 years with purpose to:

• improve their nutrition by  consistent food
• Provide winter clothes for children
• Educate these homeless children who are not accepting by any regular school to educate them.
• Provide awareness on basic legal rights to women so decrease violence and also give free legal aid to victim women
• Establish skills training center for girls
• Launch adult literacy for girls and women who never went to school.
• Make women productive to earn income and help in enhance income of households

First two years Muwakhat Foundation disbursed dry ration and clothes in winter and at Muslim event “Eid” Now next step to establish “Rehabilitation and Pre-school center” for homeless children who never went to school. This center will help to break their bad habits because these children mostly involve in beggary, theft and child labour. Also going to launch skill center for girls to learn and earn income. In May, we move on next step to involve women who have skills of hand embroidery and patch work and provide them market linkages.

This seems to be very positive that we started from giving clothes and ration and now moving to education and income generation activities.

Thanks!, to all donors of GlobalGiving for trust and support to our cause.

We request to support for developing “Child Rehabilitation and Preschool Center” to help see dreams, overcome malnourished and go to regular school.

Link of Project: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/child-rehabilitation-and-pre-school-center/