"Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed."
Psalm 82:3
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"Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed." Psalm 82:3 |
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Education is essential for the social, cultural, political and economic advancement of any society. However, for the Karen and Karenni people, living either as refugees in Thailand or IDPs in Burma, education has several immediate and important effects. Most importantly, school serves as a stabilising and safe environment for the children, who are constantly confronted with the inconsistencies, threats and hardships of war, and provides them with hope and opportunities for the future.
A strong education system, supported by other organisations, has been set in place in the refugee camps along the Thai-Burma border. According to UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees), 95% of school-aged, eligible children living in the refugee camps are enrolled in school. Thus, within the camps, Partners' work is instead focused on supporting orphanages and hostels.
However, an education is much less attainable for children in the war-torn Karen and Karenni States of Burma. In these areas, rampant poverty has made it difficult for people to financially support teachers and schools, as they have traditionally done so. Also, few organisations provide cross-border aid to reach areas where the most significant need still exists.
Therefore, in November 2005, Partners, KTWG (Karen Teachers Working Group), and KED (Karen Education Department) founded KSEAG (Karen State Education Assistance Group) to ensure education assistance reaches all Karen State schools equally, and is distributed in a systematic manner. KSEAG pools and coordinates funds, provided by member organisations, which are then divided and distributed by KED to schools in every district of Karen State. KSEAG is a non-exclusive organisation and, in an effort to provide equal and sufficient support for all Karen schools, invites all organisations working individually in Karen State to join together.
KSEAG's support is divided into three areas: teacher subsidies, school & student materials and sports equipment. In 2007-2008 KSEAG supported 2,825 teachers in Karen State by providing 1,500 Baht (approximately £22.50) to help meet their basic needs and remain full-time educators. Our goal is to provide each teacher with 4,000 Baht (approximately £60) per year. Similarly, nearly 60,000 students are significantly influenced by Partners through our work with KSEAG. Each child received 8 notebooks, 5 pencils, 5 pens and 2 erasers for the 2008-2009 school years. We were also able to provide 4 boxes of chalk, 1 pack of A4 paper, carbon paper, a pair of scissors, 10 blue pens, 10 red pens, a stapler and staples to every Karen State teacher, as well as football, volley ball, takraw ball, skipping rope and air pump to every Karen State school. This was all made possible because of greater collaboration amongst existing supporters of Karen State schools as well as our ability to find new donors interested in supporting KSEAG activities.
Finally, Partners' Karenni IDP Education program supports 143 teachers in District 2 of Karenni State by providing teacher subsidies similar to the KSEAG program. However, a Free Burma Rangers team is used to distribute funds, as this area is not otherwise accessible. Partners, along with village parents, are the main financial supporters of Karenni IDP teachers.
Article 28 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child recognises that education is one of the basic rights of a child and should be made available for every child in any situation. Partners is working to achieve this goal for the Karen and Karenni children. Please visit our donate page to learn how you can help us continue to provide quality and consistent education for IDP children.
Source:
"Refugee Education Indicators, 2003", UNHCR Geneva, 29 June 2004
KSEAG Fact Sheet
How to help
Contact us
Good Life Club
UNICEF
Stop Child Soldiers Coalition
International Rescue Committee
HRW Children's site
The information and views expressed on external sites are not necessarily those of Partners.
The Importance of Early Childhood Care and Development in the Refugee Context (48 KB)
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