About the Cause
Dubai Cares’ programs are designed to reduce, if not remove, the greatest obstacles that prevent children and young people in developing countries from attaining quality education. With each intervention, Dubai Cares evaluates the need for assistance across two key areas:
Access to Education which allows Dubai Cares to improve children’s health and learning environment, increase education enrollment and attainment, increase access to education, reduce absenteeism, increase gender parity and increase promotion rates.
Quality of Education which enables early learning, enhances educational attainment and school progression, improves literacy and numeracy skills among children, enables teachers to access teacher training resulting in better learning outcomes, reduce dropout rates and increase primary school attainment.
Dubai Cares is a long-term advocate of safeguarding children and young people’s right to education and is currently playing a global advocacy role in spreading the knowledge about the importance of providing education to the unprivileged children.
We also champion education through research - There is an overwhelming lack of evidence as to what works to promote children’s learning in crisis-affected contexts. Research plays a pivotal role in tackling this issue.
My Story
About Makululu Early Childhood Education Centre (MECEC). Makululu Early Childhood Education Centre (MECEC) is situated in Makululu compound believed to be one of the largest unplanned settlements in Southern Africa. The settlement was established in 1950s by the Broken hill mines designated to be a farm block for retired workers. The compound which was legalised in 1990 comprises five wards namely Zambezi, Chililalila, Moomba, Makululu and David Rumshu with the population estimated to be around 45,182. The compound is about 4.5 kilometers from Kabwe Central Business Area on the Western side of Kabwe along Lusaka road off Great North Road. Characteristics of Makululu Compound 1 Inadequate Educational Facilities Makululu has only three primary schools which cannot cater for the number of existing child population. Due to lack of early childhood education facilities, the children in this community do not receive early childhood educational services as anticipated. As a result, many children start school very late due to inadequate school places in the existing schools. Thus, posing a big challenge to handle these children because by the time they are in school they would have overgrown and adopted bad behaviour which teachers might fail to correct. Others drop out of school because they feel they have overgrown and tend to lose interest in school and would rather engage in street vending or street kidding. 2 High Illiteracy Levels About 85% of people in Makululu compound are illiterate, this entails they are unable to read and write. Which in the process hinders development because people lack capacity to initiate or participate in developmental projects and even venture into self-help projects. Therefore, the need to introduce more adult literacy classes. We believe that improved literacy levels especially among women results in improved self-esteem which gives them the ability to participate in socio-economic development. Rationale for Fundraising Looking at the number of schools in this area against the total population the Local Authority thought to help in a small way and established Makululu Early Childhood Education Centre (MECEC) which opened to the public on the 20th of February, 2019. The response has been overwhelming such that currently the Center has over 50 children. The Local Authority has put in place a policy to accommodate every child even those children whose parents cannot afford to make a monthly contribution of 1 AED. The idea is to give these children the best educational foundation they need for an improved future and life. However, due to high poverty levels, Children at Makululu Early Childhood Education Centre (MECEC) report to school without wearing uniforms, no parked food for breakfast and launch the situation which has resulted in absenteeism among children. The Local Authority is also financially constrained to develop the Center to required standards of having facilities like: Merrygo Round; Swings; Slides; Squared Climbers; Skipping Loops; Hola Loops; inadequate chairs and tables etc. Therefore, make a Donation and take advantage of this incredible opportunity to lend your support. It’s a great way to contribute to our cause, and every little bit counts towards paving the path for a better tomorrow. Our strength is amplified with collective action, and you can help make a difference with J-TAP SERVICES ZAMBIA right now! The support we receive is a huge driver of the good work we do in addressing some of society’s most challenging problems. Join our community in making a lasting impact. “Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see” Mark Twain