Schooling 2009 - 2010

The NGO Jeunes Actifs pour le Développement (JADE) set up a project to help with the schooling of children in 3 villages in Madagascar in 2009, namely Vatomandry, Ambodisaina and Ambodimanga II. The project was funded by private German donors and aimed to help families in rural areas finance their children's primary-level schooling, as well as to encourage children to persevere in their studies. The NGO's young members served as role models to follow, and the children could hope to continue benefiting from the project based on their merit and excellence.

The choice of target villages for the project was made taking into account both subjective and objective criteria. JADE's members come from these villages, which facilitates contact with local populations and authorities, and allows for a more accurate assessment of project implementation costs. In terms of geographic spread, the project reached different populations in distinct regions, all of which shared the rural nature of their way of life.

The project was carried out in 4 stages for each of the target villages. The first stage was a preliminary survey conducted among resource persons in each village and households, in order to identify possible beneficiary children. The final selection of beneficiaries was made in consultation with the mayor and the EPP headmaster according to certain criteria such as the family situation, the sex and age of the child, the child's enthusiasm, and the reasoned opinion of resource persons. The third stage consisted of officially paying the entirety of the school fees and supplies for the 2009-2010 school year for the selected students. Finally, a monitoring-evaluation will be carried out among the scholarship recipients and their teachers through surveys to track the children's progress within the school in terms of attendance and academic success. This stage is planned for the end of the school year.

VATOMANDRY September 04 to 05, 2009

In September 2009, the city of Vatomandry hosted a distribution session organized by the NGO JADE. Three members of the organization traveled there by bush taxi for the occasion. The distribution took place in a classroom of EPP Centre-ville, in the presence of the deputy CISCO2 chief of the city, the headmasters of the relevant EPPs, two secretaries, the parents of the scholarship students and the students themselves. This distribution session provided valuable help to these students and offered them additional chances of success in their education.

AMBODISAINA September 11, 2009

On September 11, 2009, the NGO JADE went to Ambodisaina to hand over supplies and annual school fees to students of the local EPP. The handover took place in a classroom of the school, in the presence of several figures such as the President of the fokontany and the Headmistress of the EPP. Ambodisaina is a rural municipality located less than 5 km from Tamatave, with 3,285 inhabitants who live mainly from agriculture and charcoal production. The school enrollment rate is 60%, but only 30% for girls.

AMBODIMANGA II October 17, 2009

The NGO JADE handed over supplies and annual school fees to the scholarship students of EPP Ambodimanga II, in the presence of the school headmaster, parents and students. Although located 10 km west of Fénérive-Est, in a remote and hard-to-reach region, the Ambodimanga II fokontany has a high school enrollment rate, with 90% of children enrolled and 95% of girls, thanks to the single EPP and the new CEG concentrated in the village. The 2,500 inhabitants of the fokontany live mainly from subsistence farming, such as rice and cassava.

The scholarship project enabled 30 disadvantaged children to continue their schooling successfully. The beneficiaries were selected based on their financial needs, due to various circumstances such as the death of a parent, parental separation, unemployment or insufficient income. The project also supported children with high academic potential, such as Meline, who wants to become a doctor, and Chania, who obtained an overall average of 18/20 the previous year. The scholarship recipients are evenly distributed between girls and boys, with an average age of 9.13 years. The project had a significant impact on the lives of these children and their families by giving them a chance to go to school and achieve their dreams.