Dosti Education:

Why Education Matters

The United Nations has identified two critical goals for ending poverty in developing countries:

• Education for all school-age children, and
• Gender equity.

Literacy for girls and women. Education, particularly for girls, can have an immediate effect on the health and well-being of communities and families. For every year of schooling a mother receives, the mortality rate of her children drops by 10 percent.

According to the World Bank, 100 million primary-school-age children are out of school and more than 60 percent are girls. In Pakistan alone, 10 million school-age children are not enrolled. Among those who do attend, the average length of study is less than three years, with girls averaging less than two years. UNESCO reports that the literacy rate for women in some areas of Pakistan is as low as 10 percent.

Child labor. More than 3 million children in Pakistan are working full time. According to the International Labor Organization, more than 1 million of these “economically active” children are actually bonded into slavery, compelled to assemble sporting goods, carpets, bricks, and surgical instruments. Child slaves are also “exported” to other countries as camel jockeys (boys) or sold into prostitution (primarily girls). Countless children are begging on the streets for money, food, and goods to supplement their families’ meager incomes.

Community support. As one of only 12 non-governmental organizations (UNESCO) working on education in Pakistan, Dosti understands that overcoming obstacles to school attendance requires deep community involvement. Dosti teams work closely with community officials and leaders to build support for childhood education, to encourage enrollment of girls, and to reduce economic hardships for families who rely on child labor. For many villages the Dosti schools become the center and focal point of economic development.