01 Mar
News

May 2013 Two weeks US/Pakistan: Disability Leadership Exchange Program – Eugene Oregon

Two weeks US/Pakistan: Disability Leadership Exchange Program – Eugene Oregon May 14 – 28, 2013

Khadim Hussain Chief Executive GRACE Association was invited by Mobility International USA to participate in a two weeks US/Pakistan: Disability Leadership Exchange Program to Eugene Oregon during May 14 – 28, 2013.

Mr. Hussain participated in the program with a dynamic group of men and women professionals with and without disabilities from throughout Pakistan. The delegation included twenty professionals working in fields related to policy and legislation, education, employment, health, disaster relief, emergency response, gender inclusion, advocacy, youth leadership and community development.

The program helped improve knowledge and building leadership skills to strengthen organizations working to empower people with disabilities in Pakistan. The opportunities provided were good to develop new ideas and plans to promote inclusion of people with disabilities in civil society and political leadership; and the program definitely promoted mutual understanding and respect between the people of the United States of America and Pakistan. Many American people had a different view before meeting the delegates but after discussion they learned that Pakistanis are same people as others and they have same understanding, respect for others. The delegates also learned about American Disability Act, and implementation of the act in letter and spirits that type of culture and commitment is yet invisible in Pakistan

During the 14-day program, the delegates had opportunities to experience of physical exercise at Gym, biking, enjoyed the visit to Oregon Coast. The delegates met with U.S. professionals with and without disabilities, including disability rights advocates, educators, community service providers, government officials and international development specialists. All of them were eager to share their expertise and experiences with the delegates. All program activities, workshops and site visits were interactive, practical, and “hands-on” with an opportunity for individual participation and group interaction.

Mr. Hussain appreciates the enthusiasm in the service of human beings especially for people with disabilities and professional expertise and commitments in their jobs.

01 Mar
News

May 2013 Improving learning and enrolment at Al-zahra Girls School Kwardu

GRACE Association Pakistan in collaborations with Australian High Commission Islamabad
Our project is teachers training, learning hall and latrine block construction and the old school building renovation

Government investments in health, education, infrastructure and economic development of disadvantaged communities in remote and rural areas have sharply decreased over the last years. Today, an increasing number of people live in severe poverty. These developments have inevitable negative implications on the most vulnerable and underprivileged groups of society such as women and children in rural areas.

The northern region of Pakistan has been particularly hit by the aforementioned consequences. Rural communities and particularly girls lack essential primary education. Thanks to the efforts of community-led schools, a small percentage of children receive primary education and have access to basic schooling facilities in some rural villages. Nevertheless, a quarter of children cannot complete their primary education and around 35 per cent of children do not attend school at all. Unfortunately, without proper educational and professional guidance, children do not receive the essential analytical tools that would help them realize their full potential in life. More importantly, lack of good quality primary education contributes to the cycle of poverty in Pakistan, which worsens the long-term problems of poverty and illiteracy. But, we at GRACE Association believe that the aforementioned problems can be tackled by helping community led primary schools.

GRACE Association Pakistan in collaborations with Australian High Commission Islamabad is helping the Al-Zahra Girls School to increase enrolment, retention and improve learning outcomes. The school has been established in 1992 as the first girl school when it was considered a sin by parents to send their girl to school. The school is running by the village community based organization, called WAFA in Kwardu Skardu.

Our project is constructing a learning hall, latrine block for the school. The existing old school building is renovated and teachers training conducted for Al-Zahra and neighboring school teachers.

This project will have long-term benefits for the whole community. The student will obtain an improved educational quality and physical environment. With the improvements and rehabilitation of the premises, drop-out rates will significantly be decrease as more parents will send their daughters to school, which will result in higher enrolment rates among girls. The provision of sanitary latrines and upgrading sanitary services and providing sanitary education will help minimizing the risk of infectious/disease among children and their families.

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