Archive for category: Education

Information and stories on education.

,

5 Facts About the JAAGO Foundation in Bangladesh

JAAGO Foundation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh is a South Asian country that encircles the Bay of Bengal. With 20.5% of the population living below the poverty line in 2019, community building is incredibly beneficial to the nation. The JAAGO Foundation in Bangladesh is a youth movement that began in 2007 to provide improved education for future generations while encouraging citizens to get more involved in their communities to break the poverty cycle.

5 Facts About the JAAGO Foundation

  1. Origins: JAAGO Foundation began in a single room in the Rayer Bazar slum. In April 2007, Korvi Rakshand and a group of friends rented a room in the Rayer Bazar slum of Dhaka, Bangladesh, with a vision of improving the lives of the local youth. Now executive director of the JAAGO Foundation, Rakshand had previously worked in London as a marketing Assistant, student coordinator and event manager. However, he strived to do something more meaningful with his life to make a significant change in the world. From the single room, Rakshand and his friends began teaching 17 local children from the area. The very “first supporting project” of the JAAGO Foundation in Bangladesh was a relief supply distribution in response to a flood that ravished the Rayer Bazar in 2007.
  2. Education: Education reform is a top goal of the organization. In 2022, about 98% of Bangladeshi “children of primary school age” are enrolled in schools in Bangladesh. However, many students have difficulty with basic reading skills. In spring 2018, a USAID-funded study in Bangladesh revealed that 44% of students who complete the first grade cannot “read their first word” and 27% of students completing the third grade could not “read with comprehension.” In addition, about “20% of all students drop out before completing fifth grade.” Quality education is essential to improving the economy of Bangladesh because most jobs require foundational skills, which many people lack if they do not receive proper schooling. The JAAGO Foundation in Bangladesh has completed several projects that promote and encourage youth to complete their education to break cycles of poverty. The Future We Want program, running from December 2019 to May 2020, provided direct benefits to “320 youth participants” from four Bangladeshi districts. The project’s goal was to provide students with knowledge of “civic engagement, education and employment” while developing networks to prepare youth for the workforce. Participants connected with young leaders and experts who provided them with tools and knowledge to enhance their understanding of the importance of education and the future labor market. Four seminars taught students about employable skills, employment and entrepreneurship possibilities. The project also reached 500,000 individuals “through mass media and social media.”
  3. COVID-19: The organization works to reduce COVID-19 cases in Bangladesh. The JAAGO Foundation in Bangladesh also aims to educate youth on reducing the spread of COVID-19. With nearly 2 million cases and more than 29,000 deaths in Bangladesh by March 15, 2022, efforts to decrease COVID-19 infections are crucial. JAAGO implemented the Apnar Mask Kothay project that ran from January 28, 2022, to January 31, 2022. For three days, 7,000 youth volunteers in 64 districts of Bangladesh worked to raise awareness of mask usage to combat the spread of COVID-19. Volunteers handed out masks and pamphlets about COVID-19 to citizens while debunking COVID-19 misconceptions in public spaces such as mosques, bus stops and streets. The volunteers reached around 1 million beneficiaries.
  4. Volunteer for Bangladesh: In 2011, the JAAGO Foundation in Bangladesh pioneered a youth wing called Volunteer for Bangladesh with assistance from the U.S. Embassy. What began with just 500 volunteers has now skyrocketed to 40,000 registered volunteers who work in 56 districts of Bangladesh. Volunteer for Bangladesh aims to motivate youth to get involved with volunteerism and leadership that would positively impact their communities. Projects include Water and Sanitation for All, the Great Kindness Challenge and Child Rights UCD.
  5. Anyone Can Get Involved: Opportunities presented by the JAAGO Foundation in Bangladesh are not exclusive to the people of Bangladesh. Those who are interested can donate to the welfare of underprivileged children of JAAGO. One can also sponsor a child for $27 a month and provide them with necessary school supplies and meals or register to become a volunteer.

The JAAGO Foundation in Bangladesh is paving the way for improved education and leadership opportunities for citizens. The organization’s work has seen success so far and will continue to benefit the country for future generations.

– Megan Quinn
Photo: Flickr

,

Education Initiatives in Pakistan

Education Initiatives in Pakistan
Pakistan, a country of 220 million people, currently holds the “world’s second-highest number of out-of-school children,” according to UNICEF, equating to about 22.8 million children. Some factors that contribute to this high out-of-school rate are gender inequality, socioeconomic status and location of residency. USAID and UNICEF have implemented several education initiatives in Pakistan in recent years to help address the education crisis.

Pakistan’s Education Overview

According to a  study by Pak Alliance for Maths and Science based on data from the  Pakistan Social and Living Measurements Standards survey 2019-20 (PSLM), 32% of Pakistan’s children from age 5 to 16 years old are not in school. There are many reasons for this, such as gender norms, which assert that females’ sole roles should involve household chores and caregiving. Poverty also plays a role as many impoverished families simply cannot afford to send their children to school. Area of residency also factors in —  children who live in rural areas, such as the province of Balochistan, do not have access to a school within walking distance.

In addition to these factors, Pakistan’s education system faces several barriers that intensify the difficulty of completing a full education,  such as deteriorating school facilities that lack proper sanitation and electricity. In addition, underqualified teaching staff, widespread corruption and thousands of staff who do not show up for work leave children unable to receive a proper education.

USAID Initiatives

USAID has partnered with Pakistan’s government to increase access to education, especially for out-of-school children, and improve the quality of education in Pakistan overall. Given that the quality of teachers significantly impacts students’ education, USAID prioritizes the training of educators. In partnership with Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission, USAID established “two professional teaching degree programs.”

USAID has also provided training to educators “on how to teach reading” to students using appealing and age-appropriate materials in local languages. USAID has also created libraries in thousands of Pakistani classrooms to encourage literacy. Since 2013, USAID has given training to “more than 46,000 teachers and school administrators.” USAID also prioritizes developing education policies that cater to “local needs,” which will ultimately improve community involvement and enrollment in schools.

Since its education partnership with Pakistan in 2013, USAID has constructed “17 faculties of education” for teacher training and “built or repaired more than 1,600 schools” throughout Pakistan. USAID’s assistance has benefited more than 2 million primary school students in Pakistan and “improved oral reading fluency for 26% of grade-two graduate students.” USAID also gave around 19,000 scholarships to outstanding students so they can “attend tertiary education.”

UNICEF Initiatives

Since 2016, UNICEF has committed to reducing the number of out-of-school children in Pakistan. The organization is helping to strengthen Pakistan’s Early Childhood Education (ECE) systems “to improve school readiness,” reduce dropout rates and encourage school completion. Children from impoverished and vulnerable communities will see the most benefits from these efforts.

UNICEF has committed to promoting educational awareness to parents about “early learning, the importance of on-time enrolment and the lack of social protection schemes,” which will help break down barriers to students completing their education. Lastly, UNICEF’s education initiatives in Pakistan promote discussions on the Pakistani government’s “education budgeting and public financing” to highlight areas in need of improvement that can help strengthen Pakistan’s education sector as a whole.

Looking Ahead

These initiatives are essential to improve Pakistan’s poverty rate, which stands at 39.3% as of 2021 because education is a proven path out of poverty. According to the Global Partnership for Education, 420 million people would rise out of poverty through secondary education and “one additional year of school can increase a woman’s earnings by up to 20%.”

The education initiatives in Pakistan have already begun to address the education crisis and will continue to do so in the coming years. These efforts will encourage more enrollments and give way to higher school completion rates despite the socio-economic disparities that many impoverished children face, which will ultimately reveal itself through economic growth in the nation and a broader job market.

– Isabella Elmasry
Photo: Flickr

, , ,

Gene-edited Crops to Enhance Food Security in China

Food Security in China
On January 24, 2022, China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs published new guidelines for the approval of gene-edited crops. These guidelines come amid an influx of measures “aimed at overhauling China’s seed industry” and ensuring the nation has the ability to provide enough food for its own people as the world’s largest population. Given the Chinese government’s strong investment in gene-editing, it is important to examine the impact of this technology on food security in China.

Barriers to Food Security in China

  • Limited Fertile Land: China has about “20% of the world’s population” to provide food with only 7% of arable land. In 2016, Beijing established a “red line” with the aim to set aside a minimum of “120 million hectares of arable land” for agricultural purposes. However, industrialization, urbanization and the growing preference for the cultivation of cash crops over grains and legumes have “accelerated the loss of agricultural land since then.” With soil fertility becoming increasingly poor, China is at the risk of falling below its red line.
  • Lack of Self-Sufficiency in Food Production: Greater self-sufficiency in grains, soybean and oil crops production is a policy priority for the Chinese government in efforts to maintain food security in China. For example, as of 2020, China has relied on imports to supply about 85% of its soybeans. While this has allowed China to stock up on other staples, such as rice, wheat and corn, many view the nation’s reliance on imported soybeans as a weakness for stability and food security in China. In 2021, “China imported a record 164.5 million tonnes of grain,” an 18.1% increase from 2020. China’s weak influence in global supply chains has caused its food self-sufficiency rate to decrease from 101.8% in 2000 to just 76.8% in 2020. This is a percentage experts predict will decline further to 65% by 2035. Also, the pandemic-induced setbacks for food exporting nations have heightened concerns about the reliance on imports for stability and food security in China. With the increasing demand for measures that allow for self-sufficiency and import diversification, the Chinese government has turned to gene editing for a breakthrough.

What is Gene Editing?

Simply put, gene editing is the altering of a plant’s genes to adjust or enhance its performance. Unlike its counterpart, gene modification, which introduces a foreign gene into a plant’s DNA, gene editing tweaks existing genes in plants to make genes more efficient.

The process involves the use of biological catalysts, such as “transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs), Zinc Finger Nucleases (ZFNs) and CRISPR/Cas systems” that can “be engineered to bind to any DNA sequence.” The main advantages of gene editing are affordability, precision and efficiency. With gene editing, plant breeders can achieve results comparable to traditional breeding methods but within a shorter period of time and “with greater precision than ever before.” In addition, gene editing can curb hunger and malnutrition by providing higher-yielding, nutritious crops that are resilient to pests, diseases and environmental changes, thus sustaining the agricultural economies of areas that rely on farming produce for both food security and income. In crop science, genome editing has shown the ability to create less sugary potatoes and “a soybean containing high levels of omega-3.”

China’s Gene Editing Guidelines

Although China has performed more extensive research on gene editing than any other country, none of the gene-altered crops have yet reached commercialization. However, the new guidelines may change that. The guidelines “stipulate that once gene-edited plants have completed pilot trials, a production certificate can be applied for, skipping the lengthy field trials required for the approval of a [genetically modified] plant.” This means that approval for a gene-edited plant could range from one to two years in comparison to about six years for genetically modified plants. The crop must “also pose no danger to the environment and China’s food security.” Researchers are confident that these new trial rules will significantly boost the “yields, taste and resilience” of crops, thereby strengthening food security in China.

Looking Ahead

In light of this, many researchers are actively working to research and develop a successful gene-edited crop. For example, Caixin Gao, a plant biologist and an employee of the Chinese Academy of Science’s Institute of Genetics and Development Biology, worked “on developing a strain of wheat that combats mildew since 2014.” Although Gao’s research team could remove the gene that “makes wheat prone to fungal growth,” the wheat’s post-editing growth faced stunting. However, since realizing that the issue stems from the inadequate repression of the sugar-producing gene, the researchers strongly believe that they have managed to isolate a high-yielding, fungal-resistant wheat strain. Therefore, this crop may be among the first to receive approval for commercialization. Overall, gene-edited crops show potential to enhance food security in China and across the world.

– Divine Adeniyi
Photo: Unsplash

,

Strengthening the Education System in Nigeria

Education System in Nigeria
The education system in Nigeria faces several barriers, however, organizations are working to strengthen these systems, recognizing that education is the pathway out of poverty. Geographical difficulties, gender inequality and circumstances of poverty impact students’ abilities to attend school.

Education in Nigeria

In Nigeria, primary education is “free and compulsory,” yet the primary school net enrollment rate stood at just 64% in 2010, according to the latest available data. In the northern region of Nigeria, net school attendance rates are particularly low at just 53%, according to UNICEF. UNICEF also highlights the gender disparities in school enrollment, with just 58% of girls enrolled in primary school in 2010. These disparities are greater in the north because there are more economic barriers and socio-cultural norms that discourage school attendance, especially that of females.

Secondary education is helpful in bettering the development of the country and securing higher-paying job opportunities for the population. Over the years, Nigeria has made strides in gross secondary school enrollment rates, going from nearly 32% in 2007 to 43% in 2018, which is a significant change although still low. If one analyzes further, gender disparities are still visible in secondary education with 42% of girls enrolled in 2018 in comparison to 44% of males.

Population Increase

The population in Nigeria has increased significantly over the years, standing at 206 million people and making Nigeria the most populated country on the African continent. This population growth, however, means there are not enough schools to adequately serve the entire population. Overcrowded classrooms in Nigeria are not uncommon — UNESCO recommends 30 students per teacher yet many classes contain more than 100 students. Overcrowded classrooms are difficult to manage and are not conducive to both learning and teaching.

Lack of Equipment and Teacher Shortages

Because there is a general shortage of school resources, facilities and equipment, many schools must share laboratories and equipment. This serves as a barrier to learning because learning depends on the accessibility of the laboratory or equipment. Because there is also a shortage of teachers in the secondary education system in Nigeria (less than 50% of the required number of teachers), teachers cannot give students individualized attention because there are so many students in a classroom.

One of the main problems that threaten the education system in Nigeria is “ineffective monitoring of the implementation of educational policy.” In addition, there are disparities in resources allocated to government schools versus public schools, the latter often enduring fewer resources and equipment.

Nigeria Partnership for Education Project (NIPEP)

Beginning in 2015 with a budget of $100 million, the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) has helped train and improve the quality of teachers in five Nigerian states through the Nigeria Partnership for Education Project (NIPEP). The overall aim of the project was to keep children in school, with a particular focus on girls, and increase the quality of education, even in religious schools.

Each school decides how to use the grants from the advice of the school management committees because schools know their unique needs. Overall, the GPE support in Nigeria has benefited more than 46,000 schools through learning environment improvements. The GPE assistance also allowed for the training of more than 132,000 educators and scholarships for more than 417,000 girls to purchase school attire and supplies.

The program came to a close in 2020 but the GPE continues to help Nigeria to alleviate the effects of the COVID-19  pandemic. At the peak of the pandemic in June 2020, the “GPE approved a $15 million COVID-19 emergency grant to support the country’s response to the pandemic in 16 states.” In August 2020, the GPE gave Nigeria a grant of $20 million to support the Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states, “focusing on girls and internally displaced children, as well as host and marginalized communities who are suffering from lack of access to education.”

Looking Ahead

Education provides skills that increase job opportunities and earnings while helping to protect people from socio-economic vulnerabilities. A more equitable expansion of education would reduce inequality and lift the impoverished from the bottom rung of the ladder. Therefore, improving the education system in Nigeria would help improve inequality and poverty rates in the country.

– Ander Moreno
Photo: Flickr

, ,

Benefits of Girls’ Education In Niger

Girls’ Education In Niger
Niger, a country of 25 million people located in landlocked West Africa, is amid a wide-scale education crisis. Extreme poverty, unsafe schools, low-quality education, border conflicts, risk of sexual harassment and conservative gender norms significantly impact girls’ education in Niger. However, investing in the improvement of Nigerien girls’ education could improve the economy, create safer societies, increase women’s literacy rates, reduce child marriage and minimize conflicts, among many more benefits.

Nigerien Education Crisis

Niger currently lies at the bottom of the Girls’ Opportunity Index and is one of the most difficult countries for a girl to receive a full 12 years of education. Girls often have to travel long distances to get to school and face a significant risk of sexual harassment along the way. Another barrier to girls’ education in Niger is strict gender norms, including expectations that women solely participate in childcare, cooking and obtaining water from wells. Only 14% of women are literate in comparison to 42% of men. Improved girls’ education in Niger could have prominent social and economic impacts.

Benefits of Girls’ Education in Niger

  1. Women Gain More Economic Power: Nigerien women who have had an education have more control over their economic decisions. Experts determine that education for women can lead to a 0.3% increase in a country’s GDP. Additionally, with only one extra year of education, women’s earnings can increase by 20%. Women also have more power to make decisions on farms if they have higher education levels. Niger’s economy is primarily centered around agriculture, so this power to make agriculture-related decisions is advantageous for women individually as well as the country’s economy as a whole.
  2. Lower Rates of Child Marriage: About 75% of girls in Niger marry by the time they reach 15 years old and 45% of girls become pregnant by the age of 18. Girls who receive an education are less likely to enter into child marriage and become pregnant through force. Education gives young girls more opportunities while establishing independence and self-sufficiency in addition to providing knowledge to make informed decisions.
  3. Health Improvements: A child is 50% more likely to live past 5 years old if the child’s mother obtained a higher education. Additionally, the child has twice the potential of attending school themselves and a 50% higher chance of receiving vaccinations. Educated mothers also have more potential of having a say over when they will have children and how many children they will have. This demonstrates how girls’ education can contribute to the general improvement of people’s health and the well-being of the future generation.

Improvements in Girls Education

President of Niger Mohamed Bazoum has made girls’ education a primary focus of his mandate so that the country can reap the abundant benefits of girls’ education in Niger. President Bazoum recognizes that education is critical for the future of Niger and plans to focus on developing the education sector for the well-being of the nation’s young girls. He has committed to increasing Niger’s education budget to 22% by 2024. He has also promised to establish more schools and school dormitories so that fewer girls need to embark on risky journeys to get to their schools. Lastly, Bazoum has implemented a ‘zero straw-hut schools’ initiative, which will facilitate the building of better quality school infrastructure to improve the teaching environment.

Improving girls’ education will provide economic, social and health advantages, which will enhance the quality of life in Niger. The benefits of girls’ education in Niger stand to serve not just women but the entire population and should undergo implementation imminently.

– Isabella Elmasry
Photo: Flickr

, , ,

COVID-19’s Impact on Puerto Rico

COVID-19’s Impact on Puerto RicoAs public schools in Puerto Rico switched to remote online learning during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, 56% of students could not attend online classes due to a lack of home internet connection. The education department reported that around 13,000 students received a failing grade in all their 2020-21 semester classes. The department blamed the failing grades on COVID-19’s impact on Puerto Rico. On November 18, 2021, the U.S. Department of Education approved a $3 billion plan to support the operations of public schools around the island and expand student opportunities amid the pandemic.

After Hurricane Maria hit the island in 2017, a debilitated public school system closed off around 250 schools due to a lack of government funding to reconstruct the school’s facilities. The federal oversight board cut resources for the public education system that President Obama decreed in 2012 to cut down the national debt. This left professors with a decreased annual salary of $1,750.

Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Public Education System

COVID-19’s impact on Puerto Rico led to decreased student attendance to online classes because of a lack of access to online learning services due to increases in layoffs around the island as the lockdown forced businesses to close. According to an NBC report, many parents gave their cellphones to their children to log into the online classes. However, the format of the modules requires students to utilize computers, which leaves many students without access.

Secretary of Education Eligio Hernandez released a statement in February 2020 stating that students would pass to the next grade even if their grades did not fall under the minimum standard to complete the year. Many professors stated that the measure caused students to struggle in the current academic year as the students did not receive enough preparation to step into a higher grade.

According to an NPR article, professors took it upon themselves to clean up schools and buy the necessary materials for their classes due to government inaction. The professors said they had to pay for outside costs such as paint and decorations, which created a strain on their personal budgets.

After 2017, public school cafeterias played a crucial role in feeding 70% of students around the island. After the onset of the pandemic, the government closed down all public cafeterias due to health concerns. Then, after a lawsuit by mothers and nonprofit organizations, the government reopened cafeterias in May 2020.

Professors’ Respond to Program Cutbacks

Professors around the island have turned to social media to address the current systemic problems in the education system, seeking reform from Governor Pedro Pierluisi. On February 9, 2022, professors around the island hit the streets to protest the lack of resources for the public education system as the board continues to cut down funds.

Citizens have joined in on the mass protest spurred on by several professors around the island to ensure the government provides better resources to the schools in Puerto Rico. The governor responded with a public statement calling for the protests to stop and a new bill to increase teachers’ yearly salaries to $2,700.

The Federation of Professors on the island created a committee in conjunction with the government to negotiate better conditions within the public school system in accordance with professors. The committee is also looking to create a sustainable model for the retirement of public school professors who currently retire at 63.

The committee is set to meet within the first week of March 2022 to continue working on a proposal to implement measures to decrease COVID-19’s impact on Puerto Rico as the government looks to increase resources for public schools around the island.

The Future of the Public School System

Governor Pierluisi announced that professors would receive a monthly increase of $1,000 in their salaries starting in July 2021. Professors have returned to their posts looking to continue providing the necessary resources for students to catch up after several interruptions to the semester.

The new plan by the U.S. Department of Education should help fund the infrastructure of the public school system to return to pre-hurricane standards. Local officials will work alongside the department to determine how to use the money to fund the different areas of the public education system.

– Nuria Diaz
Photo: Flickr

, ,

Addressing Inequality in Indonesia

Inequality in Indonesia
Over the past 20 years, the disparity between wealthy Indonesians and the rest of the population in Indonesia has increased exponentially. Special Staff of the Vice President of Indonesia, Bambang Widianto said at a 2021 guest lecture that Indonesia is the fourth most unequal country globally. According to Oxfam, “the four richest men in Indonesia have more wealth than the combined total of the [most impoverished] 100 million people.” This increase in inequality in Indonesia undermines the fight against poverty while slowing the nation’s economic growth.

How Inequality Affects Citizens

Inequality in Indonesia affects the nation’s inhabitants in many ways. Some groups including women face harsher impacts of inequality. Poverty impacts women disproportionately as does low wages and job insecurity. In terms of Indonesia’s Gini coefficient, “a measure of national consumption inequality,” the country notes an increase from 31.1 in 1999 to 38.2 in 2019. This means “income distribution has become much more unequal.” The Asian financial crisis brought impacts mostly affecting the wealthiest, however, “since 2003, Indonesia’s richest 20% have enjoyed much higher growth in incomes and consumption,” thus contributing to inequality in Indonesia. According to the Asian Development Bank (ADB), almost 10% of the nation lived below the national poverty line in 2020.

5 Facts About Inequality in Indonesia

  1. Geographic Disparities. Indonesia has a complex geographical setting as it comprises about 7,500 islands and more than 43% of the population lives in rural areas. In these areas, access to basic infrastructure and services, such as electricity or decent roads for transportation is rare. In addition, large corporations control some territories and their business activities contribute to increasing inequality by benefiting mostly the wealthy.
  2. Education Inequalities. The Indonesian education sector suffers from underfunding and there are many barriers to equal access, such as poverty. This is notable in secondary education where net secondary school enrollment rates stood at 78.7% in 2018 while the primary school net enrollment rate was 93% in the same year. Without a complete education, impoverished Indonesians cannot access higher-paying, skilled jobs to break cycles of poverty. In addition, children from wealthier families have the benefits of a high-quality private school education while others attend average schools with lower-quality education standards. Impoverished children are more likely to drop out of school because education in Indonesia is only free until Grade 9. These inequalities are notable within the job market: “High-salary, formal jobs for highly qualified workers on the one hand and informal, low-wage jobs requiring low skills on the other.” The Jakarta Post said that “unequal access to skills and rising wages for the skilled has increased wage inequality.”
  3. Economic Growth Inequalities. According to a 2016 article by The Jakarta Post based on World Bank findings, just 20% of Indonesians reaped the benefits of the country’s economic growth over the past decade. This means that the economic growth did not benefit 80% of the nation, equating to 205 million people.
  4. Children Face the Impacts of Inequality. Due to poverty stemming from inequality, inadequate nutrition means that 37% of Indonesian children endured stunting in 2016. Stunting impairs mental and cognitive development, increasing children’s struggles in attaining an education, which limits their skills and thus limits their chances of securing higher-paying jobs.
  5. The Family Hope Program (PKH). This program provides “conditional social assistance” to impoverished families in Indonesia. It began its operations in 2007 as an initiative of the Ministry of Social Affairs. The program’s assistance improves access to “basic social services in health, education, food and nutrition, care, assistance and other social protection.” In 2019, the Indonesian government provided 10 million households with conditional cash transfers worth $2.21 billion. The program allocated each household “a base benefit” of Rp 550,000 (Indonesian rupiah) with additional benefits “such as an additional Rp 2 million per annum” for every secondary school student in the household. In 2020, a study shows that the PKH program improved by 53% the school re-enrollment rates of unenrolled or drop-out students aged seven to 15 years old from beneficiary families. PKH also decreased by 48% “the number of children engaged in wage work.” In relation to health outcomes, “toddlers of recipient families are now 23% less likely to suffer from stunting.”

The Path Going Forward

There is a desire on the part of the Indonesian government to reduce inequality in Indonesia. President Jokowi’s administration made addressing inequality a priority during 2017. To further reduce inequality in Indonesia, a 2017 report by Oxfam indicates that “a living wage for all workers” is important as is ” increasing spending on public services” and raising the tax obligations of wealthy individuals and companies. With a commitment to reducing inequality in Indonesia, nationwide poverty can simultaneously reduce.

– Ander Moreno
Photo: Flickr

,

Updates on SDG 4 in Mexico

Updates on SDG 4 in Mexico
In 2015, the United Nations established 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) designed to achieve a more sustainable future for the world. SDG 4 calls for countries to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.” Poverty is an issue with many roots, a lack of education standing as one of them. A good education offers opportunities that can address social and economic disparity associated with poverty. For this reason, the inclusion of educational considerations in poverty relief policy is crucial. Updates on SDG 4 in Mexico provide insight into the nation’s educational arena amid COVID-19.

Updates on SDG 4 in Mexico

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, updates on SDG 4 in Mexico showed positive gains in education through programs aimed at developing the skills of teachers, enhancing the quality of education and investing in physical school infrastructure. Now, as education systems are opening up more from pandemic shutdowns, it is apparent that the health crisis threatens to roll back years of gains.

Survey data has revealed that, of the 738,394 Mexican students who dropped out in the 2019-2020 academic year, more than 58% attributed their decision to the pandemic. Another 41% dropped out because of a need for employment and a lack of finances. Many students who remained enrolled reported receiving limited feedback on academic tasks and a general “lack of support from teachers” due to the constraining circumstances.

Presently, updates on SDG 4 in Mexico are less than optimistic given these developments. It is clear that Mexico must deal with these challenges otherwise a large number of students could fall behind academically and miss out on the increasing number of economic opportunities becoming available. The Global Partnership for Education (GPE) has stressed the importance of education in achieving all of the SDGs and particularly notes that education is the ultimate pathway to ending global poverty. According to the GPE, 171 million global citizens could rise out of extreme poverty if all students had “basic reading skills,” showing the importance of literacy and education in the fight against poverty.

4  Policy Options to Improve Education

In maintaining their commitment toward SDG 4, Mexican policymakers are currently assessing four possible policy options to improve education in the post-COVID-19 recovery period.

  1. Improve Data Collection. The amount of information on rates of enrollment and dropouts as well as the effect of the pandemic on education is inadequate. The need for accurate and up-to-date data is essential in understanding how communities, teachers, parents and students are supporting each other coming out of the national shutdown to produce policy that will best complement these strategies. Otherwise, leaders could misspend or waste resources on ineffective measures.
  2. Implement Learning Recovery Initiatives. Data suggests the academic performance of a significant portion of students dropped as a result of COVID-19 disruptions. This has revealed the need to bridge performance gaps between students lest they fall behind. In crafting learning recovery policies, policymakers are considering interventions such as extended school times, “diversification of instructional materials” and calls for greater parental involvement to address educational gaps.
  3. Emphasize Lifelong Learning. Lifelong learning is a major component of SDG 4 and a possible solution to address backslides in education. This can involve the promotion of learning in multiple contexts, such as schools, museums and workplaces, that motivate people of all ages to improve their knowledge and skills. Additionally, encouraging flexible learning pathways for drop-out students to reengage with formal education can improve their outcomes. Investments in lifelong learning will certainly positively influence any updates on SDG 4 in the future.
  4. Increase Education Funding. In Mexico, salaries make up close to 98% of educational spending. This makes it difficult to allocate additional resources toward new education recovery programs. Without new funding, Mexico risks experiencing further backslides in academic outcomes, therefore, increased funding is more crucial than ever.

Looking Ahead

The aforementioned policies incorporate the efforts of many stakeholders in all levels of society to address education shortfalls. While Mexico may have lost some progress toward SDG 4, the nation is now facing a significant policy window through which it can reaffirm its commitment to education. This is in the utmost interest of the future generation who carry expectations to further address economic disparity and poverty in the developing nation. With a strong commitment to improving education, the nation can expect to see positive updates on SDG 4 in Mexico in the future.

– Gonzalo Rodriguez
Photo: Flickr

, , ,

Reducing Child Poverty in Indonesia

Child Poverty in Indonesia
Young children between the ages of 0 and 14 made up almost 26% of the population in Indonesia in 2020. Moreover, according to UNICEF, about 2.1 million children endure child poverty in Indonesia in 2021. Taking a closer at the country’s circumstances of child poverty provides insight into the severity of the situation.

5 Facts About Child Poverty in Indonesia

  1. Secondary Education Completion Lags Behind. In Indonesia, the net primary school enrollment rate stood at 93% in 2018, however, in that same year, the net secondary school enrollment rate stood at 78%. The reason for this disparity stems from the fact that Indonesia offers free education only up until grade 9, meaning, the next three years of secondary education that follow are not free. This serves as a barrier to secondary school completion as many impoverished families cannot afford the costs. Additionally, some families suffer from such severe poverty that they require their children to work to add to the household income instead of going to school. Many parents also pull their daughters out of school to shoulder the burden of household responsibilities because they do not see girls’ education as valuable in comparison to boys’ education. In addition, in impoverished communities, child marriage is prevalent. Many families resort to taking their daughters out of school and pushing them into a child marriage to ease the economic burden on the family.
  2. Child Labor is Rife in Indonesia. In 2020, the number of child laborers in Indonesia equated to 1.17 million, with many working in agriculture. The prevalence of child labor stems from circumstances of poverty as well as a lack of access to education. Indonesia pledged to eradicate child labor by 2022, and although it has not fully achieved this goal, it has made significant progress. Between 2009 and 2018, Indonesia reduced the number of child laborers from 4 million to 2.9 million by improving access to quality education to prevent children from dropping out of school and engaging in labor. The nation also has a commitment to informing parents about the importance of children’s education.
  3. Child Marriage is Prevalent. Child marriage is more common in impoverished/rural communities. According to UNICEF, Indonesian girls from families “with the lowest levels of expenditure” are nearly “five times more likely” to enter a marriage or union before the age of 18. In addition, girls from rural Indonesia “are three times more likely to marry before age 18” in comparison to urban Indonesian girls. Over a span of 10 years, child marriage rates in Indonesia reduced by 3.5%, although this rate is still far from the goal of 8.74% for 2024. UNICEF also states that one in nine Indonesian girls enter into marriage before the age of 18, which equates to 375 girls marrying each day.
  4. Poverty Impacts Future Earnings. According to a study that the Asian Development Bank Institute published in September 2019, Indonesian children who grow up in circumstances of poverty are likely to earn less in their adulthood. The study says, “Our instrumental variables estimation shows that a child who lived in [an impoverished] family when aged between 8 and 17 years old suffers an 87% earnings penalty relative to a child who did not grow up in [an impoverished] family.”
  5. Save the Children Addresses Child Poverty in Indonesia. The global children’s organization has provided assistance to Indonesia’s impoverished children for more than 30 years. Save the Children has also provided emergency assistance for almost all of Indonesia’s natural disasters. When a severe earthquake and tsunami hit Sulawesi Island in Indonesia, Save the Children supplied water, shelter, hygiene supplies and healthcare to children and families. Emergency responders provided assistance to more than 70,000 affected children. Child sponsorship programs beginning in 2014 ensure children learn the knowledge and skills necessary for success and ensure the overall health and nutrition of children. All in all, Save the Children has provided more than 23,000 “[Indonesian] children with a healthy start in life” and “protected 45,079 children from harm” while supporting more than 11,000 families in meeting their children’s basic needs.

Looking Ahead

Although the situation of child poverty in Indonesia is improving, disparities remain. Geographical differences lead to inequalities between different regions, which directly affects the country’s children. The fact that the nation comprises 17,000 islands spanning about 3,200 miles makes it very difficult to assist all population groups. Regarding the nation’s economic development, since 2016, Indonesia maintained annual GDP growth of around 5% until the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With ongoing efforts to reduce child poverty in Indonesia, impoverished Indonesian children can look to a brighter future.

– Ander Moreno
Photo: Flickr

, ,

The Madrasati Initiative Expands Education in Jordan

The Madrasati Initiative
Education is integral to the eradication of poverty. Once people have access to a good education, they are capable of pursuing opportunities that can lift them out of poverty and improve their communities. As such, numerous nonprofits and global organizations are working to provide academic opportunities in less developed countries. The Madrasati Initiative, or the “My School” Initiative, is one of these organizations. Its mission is “to improve the physical and educational environment of Jordan’s most neglected public schools.” Since its creation in 2008, the organization has worked to provide better opportunities and education for children in Jordan, especially those living in poverty.

Public Education in Jordan

While schools in Jordan enjoy “nearly universal primary enrollment and gender parity,” schools still suffer from underdevelopment. As a consequence, students underperform in schools and many students struggle to continue their education once they fall behind.

For example, every student across 338 public schools in Jordan failed the public secondary school examination in 2015. These schools mainly fall within impoverished, rural areas and these statistics indicate “an urgent developmental and humanitarian need” to reform the education system and create new avenues for success.

New factors, such as a significant influx of young refugees and the school shutdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic, exacerbate issues that the public education system faces. As the pressure mounts, schools need better resources and more assistance.

The Madrasati Initiative

Queen Rania Al Abdullah, the queen consort of Jordan, launched the Madrasati Initiative to support education in Jordan back in 2008. The nonprofit organization initially centered on the needs of 500 public schools by operating new programs and partnering with numerous other nonprofits, including the Queen Rania Foundation.

The Madrasati Initiative encompasses several programs. These programs renovate schools, promote social cohesion among refugee students and create additional learning environments, including student clubs and music courses, among other goals.

Madrasati’s Accomplishments

The Madrasati Initiative made significant accomplishments over the years. Since its beginning in 2008, Madrasati served well over the initial 500 public schools, moving on to assist 830 underperforming schools throughout Jordan. In total, Madrasati has reached roughly “360,000 students, 17,500 teachers and 800 volunteers.”

As hundreds of thousands of refugees trickle into Jordan, the Madrasati Initiative creates new avenues for refugee children to advance their career prospects. Madrasati worked under the PROSPECTS program, a global partnership that the Dutch government leads, to address poverty and education issues that refugees face. On May 29, 2021, the Madrasati Initiative, the Ministry of Education and the International Labor Organization hosted an event in Amman, Jordan, to provide career guidance services for 3,000 learners, including Jordanian and Syrian refugees. The event is just one of Madrasati’s many efforts to best uplift refugee children.

Beyond its local impact, the Madrasati Initiative also fosters open dialogues about education in Jordan with students and teachers. For example, on July 4, 2021, Madrasati and other partnering organizations and governments mobilized hundreds of students and teachers in Jordan to support academic activities focusing on “promoting youth’s engagement, leadership and active contribution to advance gender equality and the role of women, particularly young women, in peace and security” in Jordan.

Addressing Ongoing Concerns

In addition to these recent accomplishments, the organization, along with its parent institution, the Queen Rania Foundation, adapted to continue its work under new parameters during the COVID-19 pandemic. For a start, the Queen Rania Foundation’s website features educational resources ranging from simple parent guides to “toolkits” that summarize education research on effecting teaching strategies.

In 2020, the Madrasati Initiative also integrated the Jordanian curriculum into online learning services like Noorspace and Kolibri as students switch to remote learning. This allowed more than 4,000 Jordanian and refugee students to continue their education through online classes.

Through the combined support of teachers, international organizations and the Jordanian government, the Madrasati Initiative can continue its efforts to improve education standards in communities and schools with the greatest need. Though education in Jordan may not be perfect, the Madrasati Initiative continues to give students an invaluable opportunity to look toward their futures.

– Lauren Sung
Photo: Flickr