Saving the youth in rural Pacitan
The joyful faces of children glow as they count each small coin and drop it into their bamboo “piggy” banks. They beam with pride knowing that each click in the wooden box is helping to ensure that they will be able to attend at least one more year of school. So many children are not as lucky.
Plan along with these children, their parents and teachers, the community leaders and a local bank (Bank Perkreditan Rakyat (BPR)) had earlier looked at the rather complex issue of high numbers of school drop-outs in Pacitan.
While “We do not have enough money to pay for our child’s education” was thought to be the root cause of the problem, a more detailed analysis provided a different insight. The families just had other priorities for their meager income.
Education savings program
Keeping this in mind, Plan in collaboration with the BPR, the Parent/Teachers Association and the children’s groups designed an Education Savings Program which they felt would address the issue of school drop-outs in a holistic and self-sustaining manner.
Plan’s role:
- open an account at the local bank (BPR) for each child with an initial deposit
- facilitate and support groups of adults and children to manage their money in order to fund the children's education
- raise the awareness of the community on the rights of children to an education
Local Bank's role:
- provide bamboo money boxes
- visit the villages monthly and collect savings deposits
Teachers’/Schools’ role:
- monitor the savings withdrawal
Parents/Children’s role:
A means to an end….
The prime objective of this program is that the child receives a formal education while learning to manage small sums of money.
The parents approach managing all their resources together and prioritize their money for the long-term benefit of all family members (especially the children).
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