Support 50 Muslim Girls to Become Nurses

To foster enthusiasm in youth who come from impoverished environments to enter the nursing profession requires exposure to performing service for family and friends at an early age.  Sulu Province in the southern Muslim Mindanao area of the Philippines is such a place.  Dire poverty, armed conflict, classrooms without books or chairs and lack of quality public health facilities has led to Sulu to be considered as one of the most impoverished regions of the world by the United Nations. Any hope of a higher education seems out of the realm of possibility for most children. With less than 20 doctors for some 1 million residents of the province, nurses are often the lead health care providers. In 2016, Asia America Initiative made a commitment to provide scholarships, books and other learning materials to support 50 Muslim girls in Sulu to achieve a nursing degree and license to practice the healing profession. In the past 3 years, we have surpassed that goal by supporting more than 200 nurses to become registered nurses and midwives and revitalized degree programs at both Sulu State College and Mindanao State University.

"The contribution of hundreds of textbooks and other learning materials has been a great help to our instructors and students," states Dr. Annisa, Dean of the Graduate School at Mindanao State University. "In addition, test scores have dramatically improved."

The Rainy Season of 2019 in the Philippines has fostered an epidemic of deadly dengue fever across the Philippines. Helping to stop the spread of this deadly mosquito-borne disease has involved elementary student nurses, especially in the southern province of Sulu. The little nurses are inspired to make nursing their career by the pride they feel in fighting the epidemic conditions through cleaning stagnant water and debris piles where mosquitoes breed. The confidence level of the little nurses in each school is raised when they know they are helping to protect their friends from the deadly dengue virus. They feel the appreciation and love from those children’s parents, their own, their teachers and school nurses. These real life experiences are the impetus the students need to seek higher education as qualified nurses.

Asia America Initiative supports the Nursing program with funding support by Global Giving donors.

Thank you!

UPCOMING EVENT

On Thursday July 18, Global Giving is offering a Bonus Day which will match your donation at the $100 level or above. If you are interested in providing a smaller monthly contribution for these young nurses, Global Giving is offering a match at 100% ! Just select "monthly" when making your contribution. Thank you !

Links:

• Asia America Initiative website

Globally, Muslim females of all ages are being denied the opportunity to receive a quality education and to develop professional skills to remedy the health, social and economic needs of their communities. In the predominantly Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao in the Philippines, Sulu State College College and Mindanao State University have provided such opportunity. However, the schools are surrounded by high poverty and communal violence. Students struggle to complete their studies.  More significantly, the Philippines is considered by the United Nations and other international agencies to be among  the most victimized by natural and man-made calamities such as tropical, storms, floods,eathquakes, volcanoes, deaths in childbirth and infant mortality, and communal violence.

The AAI Nursing Development program began in 2015 to provide at least 50 female students a quality education in public health service in Sulu, Philippines. Sulu, with more than 150 islands, is comprised of 19 districts, subdivided into 410 barangays [villages] has a population of close to 900,000 people,mostly earing less than $2 per day.  Tragically the province has less than 16 medical doctors. Nurses are the framework of public health. Thus far, Asia America initiative has surpassed our original goal by helping some 200 females become nurses.  An additional 500 elementary and high school nursing and first aid volunteers assist their schools' nurses and are trained in emergency response and first aid techniques if a calamity strikes.

In early 2019, AAI received a large batch of medical and nursing books and other medical equipment from hospitals, schools and churches on the east coast of the United States which we immediately shipped to Sulu. Funding from GlobalGiving donors make it possible for us to pay for the shipping and transportation costs.  And with targeted GlobalGiving donations we were able to purchase first aid medicines and hygiene soaps and disinfectants to prevent the spread of communicable diseases. 

"We are very fortunate to have sponsors and donations coming from outside of pour country,"  says Dr. Anissa, the Dean of the Graduate School at Mindanao State University. "This is a one in a million blessing.  Because it is such a rare opportunity we have learned to value the efforts of our donors who have been so supportive and thoughful toward us, who they don't even know.  It also sets an example for students and teachers and everyone on the grassroots level to not be selfish or greedy." 

By supporting so many additional female nursing students with their basic educational needs, classroom materials, graduation fees and the cost of licensing exams, we have made a life-saving contribution to the grateful people of Sulu.  The young women nursing students demonstrate the potential for success for Muslim women around the world. As health care providers, the nurses are providing vital services to all community members and expand the employment base in one of the most economically deprived areas of the world. They also are positive symbols for local youth to give to their neighbors unselfishly. As we grow in scope and quality, our nursing programs in Sulu are a beacon of hope for the entire community. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all of our donors.  We could not do this without you!

Links:

• Asia America Initiative Website