GRACE Cares, in partnership with our local heroes, will provide educational opportunities to Project Hearts in Baitoa, Dominican Republic and the Munali Youth Empowerment Program (MYEP) in Lusaka Province, Zambia. In the Dominican Republic, Project Hearts will train women in basic health and medical knowledge in their Community Health Leadership (CHL) program; and in Zambia, MYEP will provide books and learning materials to children 0-9-years-old in their Mobile Book program.
Baitoa and Lusaka Province both need educational opportunities in key areas. In Baitoa, poor education, a lack of running water, and inaccessible medical care due to dangerous, unpaved roads, result in many residents suffering from easily preventable illnesses. Similarly, Lusaka Province lacks a reading culture and would benefit from greater access to books for small children. Also, many children currently live too far away from Mobile Book deliverers who need new bicycles to reach them.
Local heroes with Project Hearts and the Munali Youth Empowerment Program (MYEP) will empower their communities through educational opportunities. Project Hearts' Community Health Leadership (CHL) program educates 10-15 women twice a year in a six-month course covering basic community health topics and leadership skills. MYEP's Mobile Book program brings books for children ages 0-9 to borrow. This project will also provide the Mobile Book deliverers with bicycles so they can reach more children.
Having access to these important educational opportunities improves the lives of individuals and communities. For every woman who is trained in the CHL program at least 40 Baitoans benefit directly from their increased medical knowledge, preventing unnecessary illness and healing the sick. Similarly, the Mobile Book program will bring much-needed educational resources to 500 small children in Lusaka Province, improving their educational outcomes and even their future earning potential.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).