If we were all to redirect a mere 5% of the billions of dollars that we already spend each year on gifts, there would be enough to eliminate extreme poverty in about 15 years.
UEnd:Poverty. Gift different.
Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
Friday Photo
Amazing work being done by the Global Enrichment Foundation in Somalia. Like the Hoops for Hope project providing funding and gear for a female basketball team. Awesome.
Learn more about this project here: http://www.uend.org/dt/projects/165
POTW: Somali Women’s Scholarship Program (Year 1 of 4)
This post written by UEnd uber-supporter Eric Gerchikov
(Please note: before Eric knew it, this project was funded! But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t deserve the attention is does. Please… read on!)
Project Snapshot:
- Lives affected: 1,000
- Project cost: $25,000
- Dollars raised: $18,882
- Dollars needed: $6,118
One of the major causes of poverty is systematic gender discrimination. That is why the third United Nations Millennium Development Goal is to promote gender equality and empower women. One of the best ways to do that is by providing women with an education. When women are educated, they become empowered and are in better positions to truly create social and economic change. Women who are educated are also better advocates for their own rights.
About the project:
The Global Enrichment Foundation has created the Somali Women’s Scholarship Program. The program provides women with full university scholarships. These scholarships cover full tuition, all fees for each year of the program as well as a living allowance. The living allowance allows the women to commit to their studies without being burdened by poverty.
The SWSP believes that every Somali woman has the potential within her to make substantial contributions to the development of Somalia. With the education these passionate women receive, they are able to go into their communities and create positive and sustainable changes.
The program first started in 2010 where 11 Somali women received full scholarships. The program’s next goal is to provide another 25 scholarships in the fall of 2011. It is the ultimate goal of the program to create women leaders in Somalia.
Cost of the program:
25 women at a cost of $1,000 ($600 for tuition and $400 for living expenses) per year, per woman.
About the area:
Somalia, located in the Horn of Africa, is one the poorest and most violent countries in the world. The country has had no central government since the Somali Civil War in 1991.
The majority of children in Somalia do not have access to education, especially formal classrooms. In recent years there have been substantial increases in the number of operational schools and rates of enrollment. However, there are still considerable disparities, especially gender-related disparities. In lower primary schools, slightly more than one-third of the student are girls. And only 13% of the teachers are female.
How can you help:
You can learn more about the project by visiting the project page on our website. You can also check out Year 2 of this project here!
Fully Funded Project Update (everyone celebrate!)
UEnd:Poverty is so excited to announce the successful completion of a partner project – The Somali Women’s Scholarship Program with the Global Enrichment Foundation (year 1 of 4) has successfully been fully funded… thanks to YOU!
In 2010, Canadian and fellow poverty-ender, Amanda Lindhout, endeavored to create a better Somalia after a torturous kidnapping experience in the same region in 2008. Her Global Enrichment Foundation provides opportunities for women to empower themselves through education, health and wellness, ultimately helping thousands of women and their families avoid extreme poverty situations. Amanda and the Foundation will continue to push to end poverty with “Year 2” beginning right away (which you can find right here)
More updates and proof of impact about “Year 1” will be shared soon.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
- UEnd:Poverty
New Partner for UEnd
This will be a quick blog post.
UENd” Poverty has a very exciting new partner. The partner is the Global Enrichment Foundation. They are based on Canmore, AB but they work in Somalia. It is lead by a woman by the name of Amanda Lindhout.
GEF’s interest is womens’ higher education with the caveat that the women upon graduation return to the community to help bring it out of the cycle of poverty. It is an excellent example of the grassroots approach to developing local skill sets and then allowing the community to self -develop based on those skills to better itself and grow into the future.
It is interesting because the big change that happened in Liberia, was lead by women… something to ponder.
Check out the new projects details at this link.
Cheers,
The UEnd: Poverty team
