Women’s Leaders of Tomorrow Project
Oxfam in Pakistan
In Pakistan, girls are often prevented from attending school as much as boys. Common causes that prevent girls from attending school include poverty, social norms, and early marriage. To address the factors keeping girls out of school, Oxfam in Pakistan has implemented the project Women Leaders of Tomorrow. Women Leaders of Tomorrow (WLT) supports girls in improving their intellectual and leadership abilities through sponsorship and capacity enhancement activities. The project is envisaged to tap into the potential of girls studying in schools where Oxfam America has invested previously. The project aims to build a strong and diverse network of aspiring young students to become leaders across a range of different schools and communities.
Women Leaders of Tomorrow is a 3 year project. During its tenure, it has provided scholarships to 70 girls, health & hygiene awareness, established a youth parliament and improved leadership skills of young girls to advocate on fiscal accountability for young girls enrolled in public schools. During this phase, retention and transition of students topost-primary and post-secondary levels drastically increased. Oxfam in Pakistan, in collaboration with the local chamber of commerce, organized a children’s literature festival for the first time ever in District Multan where more than 10,000 students participated. As a result,70 girls, parents, school councils, and other community members have acquired a better understanding of the value of girls education in their families. Girls at the age of puberty are no longer afraid of menstrual management while attending school.
Transferring skills by establishing livelihood labs has reaped unprecedented outcomes, such as increased enrolment and retention, and unconventional approaches to engaging young girls to acquire hands-on experience on skills for their future development. The Women Leaders of Tomorrow project has improved the state of education for girls by offeringanincentive-based approach and improving leadership to demand for their rights.
Minahil: Scholarship recipient from Women Leaders of Tomorrow
For Minahil, a sixth grader at the Government Girls Elementary School Qasimbela, Multan, every day brought with it the fear that today might be her last day in school. The eldest among three siblings, Minahil lives with her mother and stepfather in Qasimbela, a poor industrial suburb of Multan. Minahil says that her stepfather, a worker at a textile mill, often implored her mother to take Minahil out of school. The fact that she had been a high achiever throughout her student life was not relevant. “My stepfather has never liked me. He doesn’t think education is worth spending on, so whenever he is stressed about money, he tells my mother to take me out of school,” she says.
Her mother had been forced to drop out from school in the seventh grade and wanted Minahil to complete her education. But being financially dependent on her husband meant she could not support her daughter’s education alone. “I love school and have always been good at studies. Getting good marks makes me feel accomplished,” says Minahil.
“If I had to quit school I would have shattered to pieces and carried a sense of regret. I would have missed my friends, my teacher and the lessons,” she says. For her, the scholarship from Oxfam came as a sigh of relief. “I had just passed grade 5 when I found out about the scholarship. I was filled with hope and started working hard for the test. When I was finally selected, I was overjoyed,” she says.
Today, Minahil is among the 70 girls from Pakistan who are receiving scholarships under the Women Leaders of Tomorrow project funded by Oxfam America and implemented in Multan, Punjab, by local partner Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi (ITA). The funds she receives from her scholarship also allows her to attend afterschool classes for Math. “I used to struggle with Math and now I am getting even better marks,” she says. She feels much more confident and recently won an English debate competition. “I used to be very shy but now I can talk to anyone. My passion for studies has also grown,” she says.
Minahil dreams of becoming a doctor. “When I go to Nishtar hospital, I see so many sick people who cannot afford treatment. I want to treat the poor and needy. She says her stepfather can no longer object to her education. “Now my mother tells him Minahil is paying for her own education through her hard work and no one can stop her from going to school”.