Education
Education, as a process of empowerment increases the capacity of the person to understand and acquire the knowledge necessary to improve their quality of life.
Over the years KIRF has provided sponsorships and scholarships to hundreds of children, especially girls, orphaned or from the very poor families for their education. Each child is chosen on merit and the sponsorship cost is worked out according to their age and family background. Sponsorship and scholarship costs vary from student to student and are between £5 and £20.
We at KIRF believe that access to education is a universal right. KIRF as a right based organization, works to advance this right to advocacy, raising awareness and capacity building. The actions include operations of non-formal schools, scholarships to the deserving students and strengthening of institutional capacity through gap filling. KIRF has worked with the education department of Azad-Kashmir and local communities in strengthening their infrastructure. Also it supports local initiatives to operate non-formal schools.
Non-formal Schools:
KIRF has also opened and run non-formal primary schools in the villages where children have no opportunity to attend schools because of the distance from their homes have been too great for children at the age of 5 or 6. Most of these villages are in areas with no road links and the nearest school would be at least 5km. Marked with difficult terrain and dissected with fast flowing streams make it impossible for small children to reach the school.
The children generally start their schooling at the age of 9 to 10, they stay at home and look after the animals or fetch water for their family consumption. This in turn wastes their best part of their school attending age. The KIRF team visit such schools and works closely with the village community towards establishing a non-formal school.
In most cases, the village community provides one or two rooms to serve as a school. A local girl is hired to teach the children of the village. Sometimes we have to build a school to accommodate the children. KIRF being a very cost effective NGO, runs non-formal schools with the cost of £50 per month. We would urge our donors to sponsor a non-formal school with the cost of £50 a month through direct debit.
Case Study of Muhammad Naseem Khan: Scholarship
My father Muhammad Hanif Khan used to work as daily wages, at that time the wages were 120 rupees per day for labour. At that time his monthly income was from 1500 to 2000 rupees.
We had to live from hand to mouth, because my father was the only source of earning and he had to support a large family. My elder brother who is married and he himself has a large family to support by daily wages. My father had died in 8th October 2005. After his death we entangled into hardships because we have no source of income yet. We are still facing financial crisis.
My Mother is a house wife and we all the children are getting education in different classes. After matriculation examination I was unable to continue my education because I was living in village about 21KM away from the Boys college Bagh and I was unable to afford the daily transport expanses for college.
From 2002 to onwards KIRF (UK) has been sponsoring me for education scholarship. This is the result of sponsorship by KIRF (UK) that I had passed FSC premedical by securing 611 out of 1100 marks and BSC by securing 669 out of 900 marks. Now I am the student of MSC (Zoology) in AJK University Muzaffarabad and I have passed the 1st semester with 65% Marks and studying in the last semester. I hope I shall get through the examination by achieving first division in this examination.
The whole of the regard goes to KIRF (UK) and its donors, who had sponsored my scholarship from entrance to MSC final semester. I shall never forget this act of kindness and sacrifice. After completion my education and becoming my earning hands I shall support one child on the behalf of KIRF (UK) because I knew very well the atrocities and hardships of a helpless and poor student. KIRF (UK) supported me at that time when I passed my matriculation examination, there was no one to boost me for securing my future. It was the KIRF(UK) who helped me and now I am in position to earn my living after MSC in respectable manners. I think my dreams are near to be fulfilled.
I appeal other students and the charities to strengthen KIRF (UK) after completion their educations so that this chain of Humanitarians help can be continued for the better future of the nation. This should be our mission for future.
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