A YEAR IN
N PAKISTA 09 SUMMARY REPORT
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GOOD REASONS why Plan works in Pakistan
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• Less than a third of births take place with skilled help during delivery Brahmaputra • Nearly half of young women between the ages of 15 and 24 are illiterate NEPA L
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• Improving the quality of schools andBURchildren’s education MA
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• Protecting the rights of women and children and helping vari children to take part in decision-making
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Health checks as part of a Community Learning project.
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• Protecting the health of children and young people
• Generating opportunities for the poorest families to increase their household incomes
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The final status of Jammu and Kashmir has not been agreed upon by the parties.
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The boundaries of Jammu and Kashmir shown on this map do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by Plan International.
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• Supporting education for children affected by the Kashmir earthquake of 2005 which killed 80,000 people
Members of a children’s health forum. SR I L A NK A
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PAKISTAN FACTS Capital: Islamabad Population: 160 million Language: English (official) and Urdu Climate: Pakistan has four seasons: a cool, dry winter from December through February; a hot, dry spring from March through May; the summer rainy season, or southwest monsoon period, from June through September; and the retreating monsoon period
of October and November. The onset and duration of these seasons vary somewhat according to location. Rainfall can vary radically from year to year, and successive patterns of flooding and drought are also not uncommon. Economy: In recent years the structure of the Pakistani economy has changed from a mainly agricultural base to a strong service base. Agriculture now only
accounts for roughly 20% of the GDP, while the service sector accounts for 53% of the GDP. Significant foreign investments have been made in several areas including telecommunications, real estate and energy. Other important industries include textiles (almost 60 % of total GDP), food processing, chemicals manufacture, and the iron and steel industries. Pakistan’s exports in 2008 amounted to $20.62 billion ($US) Pakistan is a rapidly
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developing country. However, the economic crisis of 2008 led Pakistan to seek more than $100 billion in aid in order to avoid possible bankruptcy.
“Plan’s work has proven that positive development can be achieved by poor children, families and their communities” – Haider Yaqub, Plan’s Country Director
A YEAR IN
PAKISTAN 09 SUMMARY REPORT
FOCUS ON: STRENGTHENING LIVELIHOODS Families in Pakistan’s poorest communities are keen to find ways of improving their finances so they can provide a better life for their children. Plan’s livelihood programme aims to help them. Our micro-finance initiative enables the poorest people to save or take out loans for small business activities. We offer training to enable entrepreneurs to set up or expand business ventures and skills training for young people. We also support agricultural and livestock training for farmers, and teach villagers how to increase their food production..
A HEAD FOR BUSINESS IN VEHARI
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f you want a decent haircut in Vehari, eastern Pakistan, then pay a visit to Abdul, a young barber who’s taken over the family business and is making a name for himself in his village. A small business begun through assistance from Plan Pakistan.
The Bigger Picture
Plan is working with children, families and whole communities to address the problems that Pakistan faces. This report can only tell a small part of that story. As a further insight, last year we also: • Supported the construction or upgrading of 310 toilets, to protect children from disease • Enabled women to increase their status by supporting literacy centres where they learn to read and do maths • Offered young people the chance to learn skills and earn an income by enrolling in courses like welding and tailoring • Completed the final year of a three-year birth registration programme, giving one and a half million children across Pakistan a birth certificate, a recognised identity and rights in law Your support as a sponsor is crucial to achieving these positive results. So on behalf of the communities, partner organisations, and most of all the children we work with – thank you!
“Clients are willing to pay slightly more – 20 rupees – for the kind of service you would normally find only in the capital” To learn more about Plan’s work in Pakistan visit plan.org.au/ourwork/asia/pakistan
Produced for Pakistan by the Australian National Office.
At Abdul’s salon, you can have your hair trimmed in all the latest styles. He can also dye it, and gives the closest of shaves. Business is booming for Abdul. He makes around 15,000 rupees (about £120) a month, and regularly puts aside 3,000 rupees in savings. It’s a far cry from the days when his father used to sit at the side of the road with a chair and a mirror, waiting to offer a haircut or shave to passers by. Like many barbers in Vehari’s poorest villages, Abdul’s father worked to a system known locally as Sapi. Under this arrangement, the village barber is called to clients’ homes and provides his services not for cash but in return for food when the farmers harvest their crops. Abdul’s family may have had enough to eat, but in every other respect they were desperately poor. They had almost no money for other essentials such as school uniforms or medicines when they were ill. Business skills Seeing how his father struggled to earn an income for the family Abdul knew exactly what needed to be done. With training, he could expand the business and charge a fee for his services. But he didn’t have the resources or the skills to put his ideas into action. That is, until he learned about the Enterprise Activist Programme. This is a joint initiative involving Plan, local partner organisations and the communities where we work. It is designed to teach people the skills they need to set up or expand small businesses.
“Seeing how his father struggled to earn an income for the family Abdul knew exactly what needed to be done. But he didn’t have the resources or the skills to put his ideas into action”
Like all Plan’s work to strengthen household finances, the project aims to give people in Pakistan’s poorest communities the chance to increase their family income and improve their children’s quality of life. With confidence and knowhow, they can make their businesses work for them. The programme also supports young people like Abdul who have the motivation to contribute to the family funds but almost no opportunity to train or find employment. Abdul took a short course in business development, where he covered all aspects of running an enterprise, from calculating costs to determining profit margins. As part of the programme he also gained valuable hands-on experience in a barber’s shop in Islamabad, honing his hairdressing skills and learning about customer relations. Training in action Back in his village, Abdul wasted no time in putting his new expertise to the test. He persuaded his father to rent a small shop in the village and opened up his salon. From the moment the salon welcomed its first customer, there’s been no looking back. Clients are willing to pay slightly more – 20 rupees – for the kind of service you would normally find only in the capital. Abdul has found ways to boost his profits further by buying items for the salon from the wholesale market and diversifying his business to offer hot baths. He has generated so much interest that he now employs his younger brother. With Plan’s support, Abdul’s determination and hard work have given his family security and the prospect of a better future. But if you ask Abdul what he values most, he’ll say it’s not just the business or the profit but the confidence he’s gained – a quality he intends to pass on to his children. Some names have been changed for child protection and privacy purposes.
plan.org.au