Our Goal
4 LIBRARIES
Through our fundraising, we want to build 4 libraries in Nepal, one of the most needy areas of Asia. We are partnering with Room to Read, who have already built 500 libraries and impacted the lives of 120,000 children. An average library consists of about 250 – 1,500 books suitable for children from three to sixteen. The libraries will be built in schools which have little more than a room and a few desks, much less books.
10 YEARS OF SCHOLARSHIPS
We will also fund 10 years worth of scholarships so that Nepalese girls can go to school in a place where few parents can afford tuition, even for primary school. According Harvard University, ‘Educating girls yields a higher rate of return than any other investment available in the developing world.’
- For every year a girl remains in secondary school, her wages increase 10-20%
- Infant mortality decreases 8% for each year a woman has been educated
- Educated women – not men - educate the next generation
NEPALESE BOOKS FOR NEPALESE KIDS
AND, for every Franc (70cents or so, 40pence) we raise over 10,000 CHF, we will be able to publish one book in Nepalese (Publishers in Nepal don't produce books for kids in the local language, since they aren't profitable - the parents can't afford them...). We're calling this the 'One Franc More' programme.
Why Nepal?
Nepal is among the poorest and least developed countries in the world with almost half of its population living below the poverty line. Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy, providing a livelihood for over 80% of the population and accounting for 40% of GDP. Illiteracy rates are often as high as 70% and in rural villages less than 50% of children have the opportunity to attend secondary school.
Not sure what it all means? We prepared a chart below to compare life in Nepal, with the life most of us are probably leading…. |
