Oct 12, 2012 | Female Empowerment, Health, m2m
Did you know that approximately 900 babies are born with HIV every day? 2012 Kravis Prize recipient mothers2mothers has established treatment clinics across sub-Saharan Africa to provide women access to the medical support they need to put an end to this epidemic. On the Huffington Post’s Global Motherhood blog, mothers2mothers Co-founder and International Director Robin Smalley describes the complexity of the issue and the organization’s efforts to eradicate the problem. Smalley explains how in these poverty stricken areas, ambitious women get married and start families at a young age because of the high price of education. During a routine visit to a mothers2mothers clinic, 16-year old Nomvula received a positive HIV test. “Shattered, Nomvula thought her life was over, and her baby’s finished before it had even begun. Yet, in that same clinic, medical intervention – including free, lifesaving antiretroviral drugs – was readily available. But she didn’t know that and no one was there to tell her on that fateful day.” Overwhelmed by shame and consumed by fear, Nomvula never returned to the clinic, securing the fate for her child. Like so many others, she wasn’t given the emotional support she needed to understand the treatable nature of her condition. Smalley describes that at mothers2mothers, “We educate, employ and empower mothers living with HIV, who work as Mentor Mothers in health centers, bolstering their capacity and providing lifesaving information and one-on-one support to pregnant women living with HIV… we employ our Mentor Mothers because it helps them gain economic security for themselves and their children. Thus, they also become respected role models in their community, defying HIV-related stigma... read more
Oct 5, 2012 | Community Development, Education, Pratham
Since its inception in 1994, 2010 Kravis Prize winner Pratham, the largest non-governmental organization working to arm India with quality education, has opened doors for millions of underprivileged children. Their immeasurable impact has been met with overwhelming support across the country, with $1.5 million in donations last year. The San Francisco Bay Area Gala kicked off Pratham’s event trail last month raising over $400,000. Pratham first orchestrated a system that provided pre-school education to children in the slums of Mumbai, but the organization’s scope has evolved remarkably as Madhav Chavan, president and CEO of Pratham shares: “Now, we not only focus on primary school education in the slums, but also provide vocational and aid-based training, so that students can apply their education in the real world.” The evening included a teleconference that allowed children from Pratham Pune to showcase their accomplishments and share their aspirations with the audience. Swarna Khedekar, a teacher at Pratham, expressed her pride in the program and her profound gratitude for their supporters: “Our library and English education programs have grown in popularity. We have reached over 127,000 children this year through our library program…until now, we had only heard of our donors in the USA. It’s a great opportunity to be able to meet them and thank them in person.” To learn more about the inspiring work of Pratham, visit our page. “PRATHAM SF Bay Area Gala Raises 400K for Nonprofit” [India West, September 27,... read more
Sep 28, 2012 | BRAC, Education, Fazle Abed, Poverty Reduction, Sustainable Development
Isn’t it remarkable how one individual can transform an entire country? Kravis Prize winner Sir Fazle Hasan Abed can most definitely be credited for Bangladesh’s tremendous progress over the last 40 years as the founder of the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC), the largest nongovernmental development organization in the world. The Asia Foundation’s Alma Freeman — blogger for In Asia, a weekly insight and analysis from the foundation — had the privilege of sitting down with the 2007 Kravis Prize winner to discuss the changes he has witnessed in Bangladesh and his goals for the future. “The most dramatic change has been women’s role in society. Women’s literacy rate used to be almost 30 percent less than men, now it’s almost equal. It has been wonderful to see so many children being educated…I can see that BRAC has changed people’s lives dramatically, particularly for those children who have had the advantage of education.” Based on the prediction that Bangladesh will become a middle-income country by 2021, Abed remarks: “If a country attains middle-income status, and 10 percent of the population is still under extreme poverty, if they can’t feed themselves and their children, then it doesn’t mean much to me… Bangladesh has done well, but that doesn’t mean that we have attained all of the things that we still want to do with our country.” To learn more about the inspiring work of Sir Fazle Abed and BRAC, go to our page. “In Conversation with BRAC’s Sir Fazle Hassan Abed”[The Asia Foundation, September 19,... read more
Sep 21, 2012 | Female Empowerment, Landesa, Roy Prosterman
In his fight to end global poverty, inaugural Kravis Prize winner Roy Prosterman has made a difference in over 105 million families. Through his founding of Landesa, Prosterman has linked land rights to economic prosperity, determined to arm the world’s poorest communities with rights to their most valuable resource. At the crux of these families are women, which led to the establishment of the Landesa Center for Women’s Land Rights (LCWLR). In a post on Reuters’ TrustLaw blog, Lian Carl shared his experience working with LCWLR over the past year, with chilling observations of life for women in sub-Saharan Africa. “How can property own property?” was the question continually posed to Carl and his colleagues. Carl discussed how the unequal status of women in the region is crippling to the community as a whole as it has proven to affect a number of developing needs. “Investing in women brings [our] impact to the household level where more of the investment will be made in children, which we know over the long run will improve the economic output of a country. By focusing on women’s land rights, we can significantly reduce poverty.” It is accounts like Carl’s that illustrate the struggle of global poverty, and it is his passion and dedication that drive Landesa’s success. “The Word on Women- A Year’s Reflection on Women’s Land Rights” [TrustLaw, September 17,... read more
Sep 14, 2012 | Education, Entrepreneurship, INJAZ Al-Arab
2012 Kravis Prize winner Soraya Salti’s INJAZ Al-Arab aims to inspire and cultivate entrepreneurial aspirations in a new generation of Arab youth. In doing so, the organization has implemented many different initiatives to train and equip young students with the skills they need. For example, in 2009, INJAZ-UAE partnered with HSBC Bank Middle East to pilot the Junior Achievement More than Money program in the United Arab Emirates. Through the program, HSBC staff teaches young students about earning, sharing, saving and conscientious spending of money as well as about businesses they can start or jobs they can consider for their future. Sheikh Khaled Bin Zayed Al-Nehayan, vice chairman of INJAZ Al-Arab and chairman of INJAZ-UAE, discussed the program: “It will have a positive impact on [youth’s] behavior as future professionals and conscious consumers. It can also help students apply their mathematical teachings to everyday life, resulting in more comprehensive and practical learning experience.” To find out more about Soraya Salti and INJAZ-Al Arab’s great work, go to our page. “HSBC and Injaz-UAE ‘More than Money’ teach financial skills to 6th and 7th graders” [AMEinfo, May, 14,... read more
