By shifa' rasmiun | Program Coordinator
Sama* is a 11-year-old girl from a remote village in the Baqubah district of Diyala Governorate. She lives with her parents, grandparents, four sisters, and one brother. Her family relies on agriculture and often migrates to remote areas for manual labor. As a result, Ananya has not been enrolled in school.
During a field survey in the area, Shifa, the field coordinator for Seeds of Goodness, visited Sama's home and found her at home. Her parents were busy farming, while Sama stayed behind to care for her younger siblings and help with the housework.
When Shifa later met her parents, he spoke to them. They said, "It's better if you help around the house while we work in the fields." Despite several conversations, they were unwilling to change their minds.
Shifa then visited the local village school to discuss Ananya's situation with the teacher. Shifa and the teacher decided to visit Sama's home to speak to her father. He again refused.
The next day, Shifa met with the area's mukhtar and explained Ananya's situation. He asked him to accompany him to Sama's home and speak with the family. During the visit, Shifa shared examples of the difference education makes. He also shared his personal story—how education has empowered him to work and support others. This time, the message got through. Ananya's parents finally agreed to send her to school.
Shifa then helped them prepare all the necessary documents. Because Sama didn't have a "school" card, he accompanied her parents to the hospital to obtain her birth certificate. He then accompanied them to the civil registration center to issue her card.
After all the documents were prepared, Sama was finally enrolled in the first grade of the village's public school. Now, Sama goes to school every day with her friends, smiling and excited to learn. Seeing this, her parents were happy and grateful. They expressed their sincere thanks to the field coordinator, Shifa, and the primary school teacher for helping them understand the importance of education.
*Name changed to protect the minor.
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
