Poverty

The Cause:

Poverty and Education

The Facts:

• Young people in Burkina Faso are struggling to read and write: the literacy rate among 15-24 year olds is 47% for boys and 33% for girls. That means that less than half the country's youth know how to read and write!
• Most Burkinabe children are in school, but not all of them: 83% of boys and 74% of girls at primary school age in Burkina Faso attend school.
• But that number drops when it comes time to go to high school: only 23% of boys and 17% of girls go to secondary school in Burkina Faso.
• More than half of Burkina Faso's population (57%) lives below the international poverty line of US$1.25 per day. (Source: http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/burkinafaso_statistics.html)

The Project:

More than 6,000 youth in Burkina Faso are enrolled in job training that prepares them to work in the mining industry. Once their training is over, they work with Plan to put their skills to the test in new jobs and businesses.

The cause:

Girls' Rights and Poverty

The facts:

• 34% of Tanzanians live below the poverty line.
• An average person in Tanzania earns US$390 per year.
• 60% of women in Tanzania live in absolute poverty and lack the necessary food, clothing, and shelter for themselves and their families.
• In Tanzania, only about 6 percent of the population has access to the banking or financial sector, which restricts poor people, especially women to get involved in meaningful economic activities and save up to fight against economic vulnerability and risks.

The project:

Without education, girls and boys in Tanzania are sentenced to poverty. But when Plan provides specific training in a job or trade, combined with support to start a small business, this life sentence is transformed into a meaningful career.

Project Gift of Hope item(s): 

The cause:

Education, Poverty and Girls' Rights

The facts:

• Sierra Leone's literacy rate is the lowest in the world: 80% of women are illiterate.
• 67% of school-aged children are out of school. The majority of these are girls, who are expected to work in the fields or enter into early marriage.
• Women and girls in Sierra Leone have fewer economic opportunities, lower status, less power, and experience severe discrimination compared to men and boys.

The project:

To tackle poverty in Sierra Leone, Plan combined education and small business support, tailored specifically for women and youth.

The details:

Poverty and lack of education are closely linked, with each being both a cause and effect of the other. In this project Plan worked with communities to tackle both at the same time.

Project Gift of Hope item(s): 

The cause:

Poverty

The facts:

• Almost 10% of people in Peru

Project Gift of Hope item(s): 

The cause:

Education and Poverty

The facts:

More than half of the population of Africa is under 25 years of age, and many youth, particularly girls, have not been able to complete even six years of primary education.

• Senegal: 54% of girls and 59% of boys between the age of 15 and 19 could be considered economically active.
• Niger: 62% of girls and 82% of boys between the age of 15 and 19 could be considered economically active.
• Sierra Leone: 31% of girls and 50% of boys between the age of 15 and 19 could be considered economically active.

In sub-Saharan Africa only 28% of girls and 32% of boys are enrolled in secondary education.

Project Gift of Hope item(s): 

The cause:

Poverty

The facts:

• Honduras is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere.
• 55% of working age people in Honduras are unemployed.
• One third of the population lives below the poverty line of US$2 a day.
• In rural areas, over 60% of families live in extreme poverty (below US$1 a day).

The project:

Meeting Honduran

The cause:

Education and poverty

The facts:

• One quarter of children in Ghana aren't enrolled in school.
• 40% of children don't live to see their primary school graduation.
• 30% of Ghana's population lives below the poverty line.
• In the project region, less than 30% of people can read and write.

The project:

Breaking the cycle of poverty starts with education. Plan provides access to quality education and economic security so that children, youth and families in Ghana get the knowledge, skills, job opportunities and financial resources needed to break the intergenerational cycle of poverty.

The details:

Plan started this project in the classroom, building five primary schools. Libraries and latrines were also in the plan to ensure a healthy learning environment. But Plan didn

Project Gift of Hope item(s):