World Schoolhouse Project - Dir, Pakistan

To initiate the project, young girls were recruited; communities were asked to help encourage their education. By March 2001, the first schools were open and running. The girls recite numbers and write the alphabet in community-donated spaces, like a rooftop or front room of the teacher's family home.

During the period of school establishment, the project team identified qualified female teachers for further training. The team also recognised Mathematics and English as areas needing improvement, recommending a subject-based class-wide training approach similar to the one already adopted by the government. A professional trainer developed a schedule and allotted 50 hours of training for each district.

The KK field team conducts school visits to gauge the progress of the girls enrolled in the schools. Weaknesses are identified and suggestions for further growth advanced.

Children, Education, Gender, Women, Economic Development.

In Pakistan, the literacy rate for women in rural areas can be as low as 17%. Most schools available to girls are co-ed, so many parents refuse to enroll their daughters. Therefore, many girls and women are illiterate. While fiercely supported by some community members, the idea of a school for girls met strong opposition by other villagers. Once the project was up and running, many teachers' families were not willing to let them attend training in venues like hotels that are considered inappropriate places for women to visit.

Launched in 1997, DIL is a voluntary non-profit organisation that has established 185 non-formal schools with an enrollment of approximately 8,000 children in South Asia.

KK's philosophy highlights partnership and community participation. For example, in some villages there was opposition from religious groups to the idea of girls' education. KK facilitated discussion between these groups and the community to address their concerns.

Fourteen schools were opened in Dir between June and August, 2002 - seven in June alone - bringing the total number of schools to 26. Seventeen more schools are expected to be launched.