BRINGING CHILDREN TOGETHER

Twenty five students (aged 9 to 12) from Ebenen School of Languages in Torrejon de Ardoz, Spain, and the children from one of Asha-Kiran’s Day Care Centers for Migrant Children in Pune, India, came together for a videoconference on March 27.

Victor Natalías, who works at A-K Spain, went over to the school to tell parents, students and teachers about the projects that Asha-Kiran carries out with disadvantaged children in India.

The children asked each other questions about what their life was like here and there, sang songs, read poems, acted out short plays, danced... a rewarding and exciting experience that all the children and teachers truly enjoyed. It was wonderful to see the children’s faces and their shiny, eager eyes on both sides of the screen.

Both Ebenen’s and Asha-Kiran’s kids ended up with huge smiles on their faces, saying they would like to talk again, share more things and be friends... Two small worlds that met for the first time to find out that they were both the same.

Silvia Benítez Redrejo - Volunteer with Asha-Kiran

MORE THAN MONEY IN THE BANK

“If we want to eliminate poverty, we need to connect all the people to the financial system”, said Modi, Prime Minister of India. His goal, that all families -urban as well as rural- have access to financial services, is being reached quickly. In just a few months, about 103 million savings accounts have been opened within the framework of this initiative.

Economically disadvantaged sectors can now open an account without depositing a single rupee and access services such credit card accounts to apply for loans, insurance and pensions, in addition to performing regular banking operations. The government will deposit funds from cash benefits programs in their accounts, such as student scholarships. As an incentive, those who open an account under this program get free accident and life insurance.

The goal is for citizens to change the habit of keeping their savings ‘under the mattress’ and deposit them in banks instead. Analysts who support the project say that people with limited financial means often rely on loan sharks who often charge up to five times more interest than banks. They also stress that banking will ensure that the money allocated to them by the government doesn’t get ’lost’ on the way. However, critics point out that the previous government launched a similar campaign in 2011, which failed because most people didn’t use the accounts and the banks lost interest.

Many new users don’t know what banks or accounts are for, but the Modi government will ensure that financial education is given and that his program will focus on families, not villages. He adds that every village will have a bank no farther than five miles away, and accounts will be accessed from cell phones. This large-scale initiative may benefit social groups who are severely financially disadvantaged, and whose access to banking is much lower than the world average.

Source: elpais.com

CHILDREN, ART AND ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS

The leading regional newspaper ‘Sakal’ launched a drawing competition for all the schools of Pune, but since Narmadabai School could not participate, Asha-Kiran stepped in so that the community children would also be included.

The theme was Clean Pune - Green Pune. A total of 147 girls from 6th, 7th and 8th grade came up with their own ideas on how to portray the theme on paper with the pencils, crayons or water colors that we provided. There will be four prizes which will be given to the winners in an upcoming ceremony.

READING IN TEA STALLS

In India, an interesting initiative in India is aiming to promote reading habits among underprivileged children. Called Cutting Tea Tales, it was launched on the occasion of International Literacy Day and consists in turning tea stalls and provision stores into reading joints.

As per a recent report by UNESCO’s Education for All (EFA), India has the largest illiterate population. “We want to bring about a change in the situation by making books available to children so that their future looks a bit different”, says Mr. Banerjee, Managing Trustee of Akshara Foundation. Cutting Tea Tales is one small step towards making this happen.

“We didn’t expect such a great response from everyone,” says Banerjee. The aim to get underprivileged children closer to books is further expanded through a story-telling session. “Kids are asked to pick a small piece of paper from a bowl with the name of a book written on it, which they are asked to narrate. It enhances their confidence and reading skills as they enjoy the attention they get while they are reading it out loud” he adds. The initiative will expand to other areas of the country after its successful pilot.

Since family members play an important role in furthering reading habits, a session for adults is also organized where they tell their favorite childhood memories. “It is very unusual for slum children to develop an interest in reading just from what they read in school. The colorful illustrations and interesting stories we provide keep them engaged,” Banerjee adds. ”It is amazing to see how a small push can lead to a big impact. It is hoped that many more tea stalls will join the Cutting Tea Tales initiative.”

Source: thebetterindia.com

2nd AWARD TO LEADERSHIP AND EXCELLENCE FOR ASHA-KIRAN

Miss Deepa Ruparel, Executive Director of Asha-Kiran in India, received the NGO LEADERSHIP AND EXCELLENCE AWARD on behalf of Asha-Kiran in a ceremony organized by ABP News Global CSR Excellence and Leadership Awards which took place in Mumbai on 17 February 2015.

This award has been given to us due to our exemplary work in the field of Social Development through education and the improvement of living conditions for children from disadvantaged social strata, through our efforts to ensure the right of children to education and the right to childhood.

Deepa said "This is a recognition of the dedication and commitment of Asha-Kiran's team to provide a better quality of life through education to the underpriviledged, and in particular, to the families of migrant workers from remote regions of my country".

THANK YOU FOR WALKING BY OUR SIDE.

SANITARY NAPKINS AND JOBS HAND IN HAND

“The days of the period were very hard before sanitary napkins”, says Revathi, a young woman from a small town. When she started menstruating, she was very scared because she didn’t know what was happening to her and her mother dodged her questions. The same thing happens to countless young women in India, where it is taboo to speak openly about menstruation, even in homes and schools. Traditionally, women mustn’t go to public places when they are menstruating, so many prefer to stay home and almost one third of school-age girls refrain from going to school.

In India, only 12% of the women use sanitary napkins regularly, partly due to their high price and partly out of ignorance. Most use pieces of cloth, like Revathi. For her, things changed when she started working in a factory of low-price napkins that opened in her village. Now she sells them door to door and talks to women about their feminine hygiene. Revathi says this makes it easier for women to buy them, because in stores the salesclerk is usually a male and this puts women in tough spot.

Because of their price, cheap napkins are changing the lives of women who previously didn’t leave their house to avoid staining their clothes, while also being a source of jobs for them. This has been possible thanks to a man, Arunachalam Muruganantham, a former welder who developed an almost obsessive interest in sanitary-napkin making. Neither his wife nor his neighbors understood how a man could devote his time to thinking about such an issue.

However, his efforts paid off. After years of study and experiments, he created machine that was very simple and easy to use. To date, he has sold a thousand units in India, often in exchange for animals or other goods, and has begun to market it in 18 other countries, mainly Asia and Africa. He claims that over 15,000 jobs for women in India have been created thanks to his machines.

Arunachalam is convinced that for social and economic development of India and other countries to be more equitable, it is necessary to give women equal opportunities and easier access to the labor market. “The key to equality starts with menstrual hygiene. Girls should feel safe when they go to school so they won’t drop out and can continue developing their potential. Worldwide, they are struggling and want to excel. The problem is that they don’t have the same opportunities”, he says.

Source: elpais.com

GOOD HABITS

Recently, Asha-Kiran and ImpART organized a huge cleanliness drive in the community. ImpART aims at imparting education to children who belong to less privileged part of our society through widely varied sessions ranging from origami to organizing clean and green drives in neighborhoods.

Ten volunteers and 28 children participated in this Clean Drive. All of the children had a turn cleaning lanes in the slum after the volunteers made them understand the meaning of the terms biodegradable and non-biodegradable. The cleanliness team spread awareness among the slum dwellers about how to live in a hygienic environment and they were requested to do continue doing the same every day.