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David Beckham’s 7 Fund Protects Vulnerable Children

7 FundDavid Beckham is a father, former professional soccer player, a United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) ambassador and a philanthropist. While Beckham played for the Manchester United Football Club he was also supporting UNICEF. In 2005, Beckham was appointed as the new ambassador for UNICEF. The former soccer player is supporting and advocating for the well-being of children globally. In 2015, to commemorate 10 years of supporting UNICEF, UNICEF and Beckham partnered to start the 7 Fund.

The 7 Fund

The 7 Fund aims to empower vulnerable children in nations across the world, including Indonesia, Nepal, Uganda and El Salvador, by addressing issues such as “bullying, violence, child marriage and missed education.” Within the initial three years of its establishment, the 7 Fund had already made a significant difference in children’s lives.

Child Marriage in Nepal

According to the 7 Fund, “Nepal has one of the highest rates of child marriage in Asia.” Girls who marry young often drop out of school, leaving them uneducated and unable to break cycles of poverty. The 7 Fund tackles child marriage in Nepal by ensuring that girls receive the support needed to stay in school or return to school to fulfill their full potential. In addition to helping “build life skills” for both boys and girls, the organization also supports the provision of mental health services for these children. Importantly, the 7 Fund educates parents and communities at large on the detrimental impacts of child marriage in order to reduce its prevalence.

The Story of Rashida Khatun

On its website, the 7 Fund showcases the inspiring story of Rashida Khatun, a 14-year-old girl in Nepal. Child marriage is common in Khatun’s community. Despite her yearning to receive an education, she could not due to her family’s impoverished circumstances. Her parents prioritized the education of her three brothers while she and her sisters had to shoulder household chores. Her four older sisters were “married as teenagers” and she was next in line.

Khatun’s world changed when she joined a “UNICEF-supported non-formal education program for girls” in her area, with permission from her father. The nine-month-long Girls’ Access to Education (GATE) program focused on empowering “out-of-school adolescent girls by giving them basic numeracy and literacy lessons and useful life skills.” Khatun told UNICEF Nepal that when she initially started the classes, she was not aware “that children had rights, or that child marriage was a violation of those rights or that it was actually illegal.”

Through the GATE program, Khatun was educated about the dangers of child marriage and decided against it. Khatun and a GATE class facilitator eventually managed to convince her parents to cancel her marriage, allowing her to continue to pursue an education that would one day help her rise out of poverty. The story of Khatun is an illustration of the importance of 7 Fund efforts to address child marriage in Nepal. Roughly 10,000 Nepali girls are now part of “a return to school” program.

Tackling Malnutrition in Papua New Guinea

In Papua New Guinea, one out of 13 children dies before reaching the age of 5, mostly due to malnutrition. The 7 Fund looks to reduce child malnutrition in Papua New Guinea through lifesaving programs. In a 2015 press release by UNICEF, Beckham says, “I feel very proud to be in Papua New Guinea to see for the first time how the money raised is helping to keep children healthy and safe, by providing life-saving therapeutic food for children suffering from malnutrition.”

Addressing Bullying in Indonesia

The 7 Fund acknowledges that the effects of bullying can stay with an individual for life. With one in five Indonesian children between 13 and 15 experiencing bullying, the issue is important to address as bullying diminishes self-esteem and negatively impacts mental health. The 7 Fund is supporting anti-bullying initiatives in Indonesian schools, focusing on “training teachers and helping schools put safeguarding plans in place, helping to reduce rates of school dropout and child marriage and creating a safer school environment to enable children to thrive.” Due to these efforts, incidences of bullying have reduced by almost a third.

Prioritizing Girls’ Education in Uganda

Within Uganda, nearly 60% of the girls are unable to go to secondary school due to violence in school and pressure to stay home to help manage the household. To ensure girls stay in or return to school, the 7 Fund is supporting “teacher training and creating protection systems to track and report violence.” The Fund is also focusing on educating parents and communities on the lifelong benefits of girls’ education for both the girls and their families.

Beckham’s 7 Fund is a prime example of using a celebrity platform to make a difference. Overall, the 7 Fund protects and empowers children with the knowledge and tools to rise out of poverty.

– Carolina Reyes 
Photo: Flickr

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The El Salvador Economic Crisis

El Salvador Economic Crisis
El Salvador is a small country in Central America that has been experiencing an economic crisis for several years. The root of the El Salvador economic crisis is the persistent levels of gang violence and extreme levels of poverty. In the face of the country’s instability, some have made attempts to aid the fight against violence and poverty.

Perpetual Violence

During the 1980s, El Salvador was in the heart of a civil war; once the nation prevailed, the government and the people set out to become a democracy. The country received praise for its smooth transition into democracy, however, in recent years the levels of gang violence have begun to rise. The issue has persisted for about 15 years where there has been minimal acknowledgment, thus feeding political silence and a lack of reform.

The perpetual violence in El Salvador is a predominant problem. The nation currently holds the title for the highest rates of murder and violence against children under the age of 19. The National Crisis Group (NCG) believes that a proper response to this issue includes “specific police and justice reforms, as well as a legal framework for rehabilitating former gang members.” Many believe that such steps essential towards the pacification of violence, which will ultimately improve El Salvador’s economic crisis.

Gang Activity

The severe incline in gang violence has directly impacted the El Salvador economic crisis. Estimates determined that nearly 40 percent of the population lives in poverty because of various factors involved with gang violence. The nation’s government has spent a massive amount of money to relocate individuals to communities across the United States in an attempt to curb violence. However, extreme poverty initiated gang violence in El Salvador. Extreme poverty fuels high levels of violence because of the lack of a sustainable educational system, therefore resulting in students eventually ending up on the streets. Gang members’ recruitment of young individuals to support violent activities with a promise of financial stability preserves this cycle.

The 7 Fund

In the face of the El Salvador economic crisis, former professional soccer player David Beckham started a fund to diminish the El Salvador economic crisis. Beckham started the project, known as the 7 Fund, which aims to provide various support to those in need, specifically in Indonesia, Nepal, Uganda and El Salvador.

Launching the project with UNICEF, Beckham focuses on the prevalent violence throughout El Salvador. The former soccer star hopes the “children can grow up free from fear and realize their potential.” One way the 7 Fund tackles this goal is through a hotline for children who are in danger or experience violence. 7 Fund also provides resources for teachers in the form of training programs to develop the skills needed to support the at-risk children. Further, the project has implemented various committees to improve the El Salvador economic crisis by keeping schools safe. Specifically, students, teachers, parents and even authorities provide a space for children to play sports, which allows the students to feel comfortable and safe.

El Salvador has certainly seen better days, but it is likely the nation will see a positive culture again. With David Beckham and UNICEF’s work, the economy has already begun improving. While poverty rates and gang violence are still high, child violence rates have gone down. Through initiatives such as 7 Fund, the El Salvador economic crisis can improve with time.

– Sarah Mobarak
Photo: Flickr