Keeping Families Together Programme

Of the 168.9 million people in Bangladesh, about 20% live below poverty line. The impoverished populations of Bangladesh are extremely vulnerable to changing weather conditions, living on the low-lying delta region. Regular flooding and storm-force winds threaten people, livestock, crops and livelihoods – conditions which have increased in frequency and severity with climate change.

Literacy rates are low and education difficult to access for the communities we work amongst. The majority of people here eke out a grinding existence as day labourers, fishermen, landless farmers, tricycle pullers, boatmen and small traders.

What are the challenges?

These impoverished communities have a low appreciation of the importance of education. With 50% of girls married by the time they’re 18 – and 15% before they’re 16 – this is a community driven by survival.

Malnutrition, poor health, poor sanitation, a lack of safe, clean drinking water and few accessible healthcare facilities are all challenges families struggle to overcome.

This pressure results in some families giving their children to children’s homes, not because they are orphans or homeless, but because their families can’t afford to care for them or give them an education. These are so-called ‘economic orphans’.

How is Global Care tackling poverty in Bangladesh?

Our partners in Horintana have run Home of Love with our support for many years, taking in orphans, abandoned children and economic orphans. We’re now helping our partners develop non-residential options for marginalised children who are at risk of becoming economic orphans – and so the Keeping Families Together Programme was created. If you sponsor a child in this programme, your monthly donation will pay a child’s school fees, pay for school essentials as required, like stationery and uniform, and support the child’s health and welfare needs as appropriate.

Four-year-old *Mary lost most of her toes when she was burned in an accident when she was younger. One of her older sisters was also hurt.

It’s hard for her dad, a rickshaw puller, to meet the basic needs of his family let alone his daughters’ additional needs. The family often only ate one meal a day, and the oldest daughter was on the verge of dropping out of school. Then our partners met the family.

Mary became one of the first children in a trial programme enabling children to stay with their families and be supported in their community. Now the family receive monthly food parcels and Mary’s school needs are met. The extra support for Mary also means the family can focus their limited resources on their other children – now all three sisters are in school and likely to stay there.

How can I help fight poverty in Bangladesh?

We’re looking for new sponsors to support the needs of Mary and children like her, to prevent them becoming ‘economic orphans’, and keeping families together while helping children thrive. We know that supporting children to stay with their families gives the best possible outcomes. It’s better for their wellbeing and for their education – all of which adds up to better opportunities for their future. Could you sponsor a child like Mary and see how the right support helps a child to thrive?