Educated children have better access to economic opportunities, are less vulnerable to disease, and contribute more to their communities. And yet, more than 100 million children are not in school today. 70% of those without access to an education are girls.
The target of Goal Two is to ensure that all boys and girls complete a full course of primary schooling.
Making It Real
Episcopal Relief and Development is one of the organizations that are working toward universal primary education. For example, ERD is expanding education for preschool children at the Mary Sikaneta Demonstration Pre-School in Kitwe, Zambia. The school is located in a community with very high AIDS rates, and as a result, many of the students have lost one or both parents. The program addresses the education and health of orphans -- by providing medical treatment, free immunizations, and nutritionally balanced meals.
ERD also works with the children's caregivers, providing extra food and the skills training they need to increase their income. As well as changing the lives of these families, this ensures that basic needs such as food, shelter, school fees and uniforms will be provided for the children in the future.
Abel Bwalya lost his mother to malaria in 1999 -- and his father not long afterwards. He moved to Kitwe to live with his aunt, Mrs. Justina Mpange. In 2002, Mr. Mpange died, leaving Mrs. Mpange as the sole caretaker for Abel and four other orphaned children. She struggles to meet the family needs by selling vegetables and charcoal.
Now enrolled at Mary Sikaneta, Abel is receiving medical care, school meals, and food supplements for his family.
What You Can Do: ACT.
Create a bulletin board about children of the world who are unable to attend school (for example, child soldiers, children orphaned by AIDS, and displaced children). Place the bulletin board in a high-traffic area of your church and update it often. Find resources and images for your bulletin board in newspapers, online, and in the links below.
Ask your company to support an essay contest -- with the importance of primary education as the topic. Open the contest to students at a local public school. Or, advertise the essay contest (and your company) online by submitting it to a scholarship database such as FastWeb.
For Further Consideration
Go on to Goal 3 >>
