In September 2015, 193 world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development. If these goals are completed, it will mean an end to extreme poverty, inequality, and climate change by 2030. (www.globalgoals.org)
70 million children across the world are not able to go to school
103 million youth worldwide lack basic literacy skills, and more than 60 per cent of them are women
Why: Education is the foundation for mutual understanding, tolerance, opportunity, economic growth and justice.
What we do: Build, renovate and equip schools, build dormitories, improve textbook-to-student ratio, train teachers, provide regulated student scholarships.
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” – Nelson Mandela
Children born into poverty are almost twice as likely to die before the age of five as those from wealthier families
Why: Access to healthcare allows people to consistently go to school and work, and enables them to live a productive life.
What we do: Build, renovate, and equip healthcare centres; train healthcare workers; and provide surgery and rehab services for disabled children.
“He who has health, has hope; and he who has hope, has everything.” – Thomas Carlyle
663 million people go to bed without a clean glass of water
Why: Access to clean water improves health and prevents illness. 50% of hospital beds around the world are occupied by people with water-borne illnesses decreasing productivity.
What we do: Drill wells and construct water distribution systems, install rain harvesting and irrigation systems. We train people in maintaining the systems and in preventing water contamination.
“When the well is dry, we know the worth of water.” – Benjamin Franklin
Globally, one in nine people in the world today (795 million) are undernourished
Poor nutrition causes nearly half (45 per cent) of deaths in children under five – 3.1 million children each year
Why: Hunger limits the ability to learn and work and increases health risks.
What we do: Grow gardens and crops for school meals and community sustenance, train agriculture workers, provide the inputs needed for individual farmers to increase production.
“Hunger is not an issue of charity. It is an issue of justice.” – Jacques Diouf
Nearly 2.2 billion people live below the US$2 poverty line and that poverty eradication is only possible through stable and well-paid jobs
103 million youth worldwide lack basic literacy skills, and more than 60 per cent of them are women
Why: Income generation is vital to sustainability and quality of life; Peace and Prosperity go hand in hand.
What we do: Provide micro-loans for people to expand or start businesses, provide training in areas of operating a business, and invest in a wage subsidy program for recent graduates to get permanent employment.
“Economic growth doesn’t mean anything if it leaves people out.” – Jack Kemp