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Showing posts from 2014

Today is International Rural Women's Day!

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ProLiteracy recognizes this day as an occasion to celebrate the advances rural women are making around the world. Rural women face many obstacles including access to education, human rights and domestic violence abuses, and minimal involvement in community decision or democratic participation. We celebrate this day and stand alongside rural women as they make changes in their communities and organize together to have a unified voice and bring awareness about the issues they face. ProLiteracy supports several programs around the world committed to helping rural women gain literacy skills. Those partner programs include: Asociación de Mujeres de Juntas Parroquiales Rurales del Ecuador (AMJUPRE) AMJUPRE is a grassroots nonprofit organization that has been working to promote the rights of indigenous women in Ecuador since 2003. Indigenous women living in rural areas are often the most marginalized within their communities and have limited access to jobs, education, or leadership

The Importance of Literacy in Health Crises!

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A mother and baby wait to be seen at the IHI clinic in Jahtondo, Liberia. Imani House International (IHI), ProLiteracy’s long-time partner in Liberia, has served women and their families since 1986 by providing access to health and education services in the midst of civil war, extreme poverty, and now during the health crisis that country is facing today with the Ebola virus. Liberian hospitals in several parts of the country lack the capacity to effectively deal with the spread of the deadly virus. Imani House International has a clinic situated about 12 miles from the capital city of Monrovia in the community of Jahtondo, and has provided medical care to people for many years in areas of maternal and child healthcare, educational talks on family planning, AIDS prevention, STDs, and sanitation. As trusted members of the Jahtondo community, the Imani House clinic staff has brought together locals and civic leaders to plan strong outreach approaches to educate the people in the

Women's Education Helps Avert Child Marriage

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Around 2.9 million girls are married by the age of 15 in sub-Saharan Africa and South and West Asia, equivalent to one in eight girls in each region, according to estimates in the 2013-14 EFA Global Monitoring Report . If present trends continue, 142 million girls will be married before their 18th birthday over the next decade. That’s an average of 14.2 million girls each year. These shocking statistics mean millions of girls are robbed of their childhood and denied an education. Studies show that education empowers women to overcome discrimination. Girls and women who are educated have greater awareness about their rights and have confidence to make decisions about their lives. Studies show that girls with higher levels of schooling are less likely to marry as children. In Mozambique, some 60 percent of girls with no education are married by 18, compared to 10 percent of girls with secondary schooling and less than one percent of girls with higher education. Educating adolescent

Democracy is a Kind of Miracle

Lynn Curtis, ProLiteracy’s international programs advisor, recently traveled to Quito, Ecuador as one of 100 international representatives invited to observe the state/provincial elections held February 23, 2014. The National Electoral Council invited individuals representing various governmental and non-governmental institutions to participate in the electoral process to ensure a transparent and fair election. Observers traveled to all 24 provinces in the country and monitored the voting process, ballot counting, and election results. Throughout his time in Ecuador, Curtis took notes about his experiences while observing the electoral process in Ecuador: “The training was a deep dive into all the mechanics of voting and democratic processes in Ecuador,” says Curtis. “With delegations from all over the world, it was quite an impressive gathering. The National Electoral Council worked really hard to make sure the electoral process was transparent, fair, and inclusive.” Curtis w

Mithila Painting

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Rani Jha, director of the Institute, says Mithila art represents not only the artists, but other women as well. "My paintings do not only concern the position of women in Bihar, but in all of India. I show that in one of my paintings, where I show a girl reaching up and wanting to touch the moon. In education, in the corporate sector, and in athletics the rainbow of hope has risen for these women and they see that with astonishment. Decade after decade women are changing and remodeling themselves. Women who have been educated have hope, but those two generations back are cursed and weep for their pathetic plight.” Mithila painting is an ancient art form in the Likhiya, literally meaning “writing,” style. The Mithila Art Institute, located in Madhubani, India, gives uneducated and non-literate women across the entire caste spectrum in India an incredible opportunity to use their talent and create magnificent pieces. Using only ink as their tool, these women believe they are wr