Global Literacy Matters

Today's story comes to us from one of our partners in China, Association for the Rural Development of Yilong County (ARDY) “We never starved, but it was always a struggle to make ends meet,” said Yurong Xu as she reflected on her life, staring off into the mountains lined with rice paddies and corn fields that surround her home. In 1998, Yurong Xu’s life very much reflected that of a typical poor Chinese family in rural China. Living in the small village of Zhouhe, she farmed the household plot while caring for both her two boys and her elderly father-in-law. Her husband, Mr. Zhao, had left years before in order to search for work in the cities to support the family. With only a small plot of land, the household largely depended on the small remittances sent back from Mr. Zhao. That year, the Association for the Rural Development of Yilong County (ARDY) came to her village to discuss its literacy and micro-credit programs at a village meeting. Hearing ARDY staff discuss its simple ...

The following story comes from one of our partners in Ecuador. Sofia’s story is one of our highlights from the financial literacy classes we are supporting in Latin America. Sofia has always loved sewing, but never imagined how important her skills would be until her husband decided to abandon the family. The only way to feed her two children was to start a business. She had no experience or education, and her husband had told her she was worthless. In spite of her fears, she knew she had to move forward. She considered her sewing skills and looked at the local market. She noticed that vendors in the market stalls were doing a good business selling bed sheets, but few were selling sheets with patterns aimed at children. She thought of an idea that would use her skills. She started very small and put in long hard hours on a borrowed sewing machine. She bought some fabric with patterns her children liked, such as Superman and Sponge Bob. People soon started buying her sheets. Sofia put h...

Mr. Kisubika is a father of eight children and is a member of Kiddawalime Development Association (KDA). This year, he received a grant to plant banana trees. Prior to attending literacy and small business classes, he often struggled to earn an income and provide for his family. Today, he has grown several banana trees and now has a regular income from the sale of bananas and banana tissues. He has also contributed toward creating a seed fund to provide small loans for other families and KDA participants. Mr. Kisubika said, “I often had fights at home with my wife as a result of not providing enough income to take our children to school, but today with the income from our Matooke banana garden all those bad days are no more.”

Literacy Highlights in 2011 Dear Readers, 2011 has certainly been an exciting year as we worked to advance literacy both here in the United States and around the world! As we count down the days to the New Year, we would like to highlight some of our favorite stories about how literacy has empowered adult learners and their families. Please join us every day over the next 15 days as we share a new story celebrating the power of literacy in transforming lives and communities during 2011! The following story comes from one of our partners in Egypt, Coptic Organization for Services and Training (COST). "My name is Teresa Abdo Amin. After investing in basic education, I found no job waiting for me at Al Azhary village. I was told there aren’t enough jobs for men, much less a woman! COST offered a first aid course that was very good; the participants were friendly and welcomed me. We had many lessons. We began using ProLiteracy’s manual, "Good Health Begins at Home." ...

Literacy Highlights in 2011 Dear Readers, 2011 has certainly been an exciting year as we worked to advance literacy both here in the United States and around the world! As we count down the days to the New Year, we would like to highlight some of our favorite stories about how literacy has empowered adult learners and their families. Please join us every day over the next 13 days as we share a new story celebrating the power of literacy in transforming lives and communities during 2011! The following story comes from our partner in Kenya: “My name is Ann Wanjiku, I am 30 years old and am a single mother. My life has changed completely because of enrolling in Kenya Adult Learner Association’s (KALA) literacy and micro enterprise programs, without which it would have been difficult for me to raise my two children alone. My story began when I came to Nairobi six years ago to look for employment as a domestic help after my both my parents died, leaving me an orphan. Luckily, I found ...

Dear Readers, 2011 has certainly been an exciting year as we worked to advance literacy both here in the United States and around the world! As we count down the days to the New Year, we would like to highlight some of our favorite stories about how literacy has empowered adult learners and their families. Please join us every day over the next 14 days as we share a new story celebrating the power of literacy in transforming lives and communities during 2011! Today’s story is from one of our partner programs in Pakistan: Adult Basic Education Society (ABES), with whom ProLiteracy has been partnering for more than seven years. ABES provides literacy classes for adult learners in semi-urban districts in Islamabad. As participants improve their literacy skills, they join skill-training vocational programs and are provided resources to start income generation projects. The story below is an example of how ABES is helping empower women in Pakistan. Nazia is one of the many lives that AB...