Secondary school sponsorship, an extension of the Chazon Africa education program aims to increase access to education for vulnerable young students from Molo Nakuru, Kenya, for them to positively change their own lives, their families’ lives,
Over the holidays, students from our program are required to participate in a one-day meeting program that includes guidance and counseling, self-esteem, and motivational sessions, we also follow up on their academic progress by setting goals and targets that they should achieve in their exams. With this, we can make sure that they perform academically and that their social life back home is healthy.
The program creates clear pathways beyond primary school by supporting the students’ progress and bridging the transition of our students from primary to secondary. Since its inception with the collaboration of our partners, the program has been growing every year. This year adds up to 70 beneficiaries who have gone through the program.
Every year the Chazon Africa secondary sponsorship program targets students who have been in the Chazon children’s center and have completed and passed well in their class 8(final grade) to attend secondary school.
This ensures that our efforts are 100% fulfilled, enabling them to contribute meaningfully to their families, and society and ultimately to break out of the cycle of poverty.
What is the cycle of poverty?
The United Nations states there is no consensus on a universal definition of poverty that can be applied to all countries. Poverty can mean a shortage of financial resources and possessions, or it can mean the lack of access to essential services, such as healthcare, education, and safe environments.
Whatever your definition may be, we know that poverty and disadvantage can limit the opportunities for millions of children in vulnerable communities. And while aid in the form of food, water, and shelter can provide much-needed support, access to education is one of the most effective ways to break the cycle of poverty.
Education and poverty are inextricably linked. Families living in vulnerable communities often need their children to stop attending school and begin work to supplement the household income. As a result, children don’t learn important literacy and numeracy skills and are limited to unskilled, low-paying jobs. With limited opportunities to earn better incomes, the cycle of poverty continues.
How does education reduce poverty?
Education is a powerful tool. Equipping children with knowledge and skills gives them greater access to opportunity, and the chance to end the cycle of disadvantage. Here are just a few of the ways education helps reduce poverty in vulnerable communities.
1. Improving gender equality
When young women and girls have access to education, their futures are brighter. Not only do they learn useful numeracy and literacy skills, but they are also more likely to:
- have children as an adult: 59% fewer girls below the age of 17 would become pregnant if all girls had secondary education;
- earn a higher income: every extra year of primary school boosts girls’ eventual wages by up to 20%
- save lives: a child born to a mother who can read is 50% more likely to survive past the age of five
- and have a greater chance of ending the cycle of poverty. Most women invest 90% of their income into providing food, clothing, and education for their children and community.
- Increases individual income The Global Partnership for Education says that an educated individual’s income increases by 10% for each year of schooling. For every dollar invested in an additional year of education, a person’s earnings increase by at least $2.50 in low to middle-income countries and up to $5 in lower-income countries.
3. Literacy improves health
Education has been linked to improving standards of health around the world. Increased literacy skills enable women to read and access important and useful information during and after pregnancy, which can reduce the rates of prenatal and maternal mortality, and improve children’s health.
Access to information also means children and families have a better understanding of the importance of clean water and sanitation practices, which helps to reduce waterborne disease and the costs of medical care.
How can you help children access an education?
Chazon Africa offers a variety of ways for you to donate and help children in vulnerable communities access education.
You can help by donating a scholarship or by sponsoring a child in a developing community to help ensure that they have opportunities for a brighter future.
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