DIL Fundraiser on April
30
Developments in Literacy (DIL), a non-profit
organization whose focus is to promote literacy in the rural,
under-developed regions of Pakistan, will be holding a benefit
dinner on Sunday, April 30, 2006 at the Doubletree Hotel
in San Jose, CA. Money raised from the fundraiser, which
will also include a fashion show by one of Pakistan's premier
designers, Hassan Shehryar, will go towards building new
schools in earthquake-ravaged areas of Pakistan as well
as funding and supporting existing projects.
In the aftermath of the devastating earthquake that struck
northern Pakistan, India and Afghanistan on October 8, 2005
(which left over 83,000 dead, over 3 million homeless and
destroyed 8,000 schools in Pakistan alone), DIL will also
focus on addressing the needs of the thousands of displaced
children who are living in tent cities and waiting for their
lives to return to normal. DIL is targeting the opening
of six schools in 2006 in Mansehra, in the North West Frontier
Province, in addition to its ongoing work in other areas
of Pakistan.
The earthquake took the lives of more than 20,000 children,
and those who survived endure tremendous mental and physical
distress. Many are showing signs of trauma and others will
eventually suffer from it. DIL, in conjunction with local
NGOs, plans to design a program that will also include psychological
support for the students. DIL is committed to bringing some
normalcy to the children's fractured lives by returning
them to the familiar environment of a school. “ …
a warm, welcoming school environment is playing an important
role in helping the students recover from the extreme trauma
and deep loss they have suffered, ” says Fiza Shah
of DIL.
About DIL: Developments in Literacy was launched in February
1997 in Southern California. Its main purpose is to work
for the eradication of illiteracy in the remote and neglected
areas of Pakistan by establishing non-formal schools for
underprivileged children. So far DIL has established over
200 primary and secondary girls schools in Pakistan's four
provinces. DIL works by partnering with Pakistan based non-profits
to create a system of effective education, credible monitoring
and complete financial transparency in some of the most
disadvantaged rural areas.
One year of basic education for one child costs just $50,
and it takes at least five years, in monetary terms $250,
to make one child literate. A school can be sponsored for
$1250 a year; however the cost for sponsoring a school in
earthquake-affected areas will be considerably higher as
a larger constituency will be served and there will be nine
classrooms per school versus one or two as is the norm.
Additional information on DIL, including current projects
and financials, can be found on the website at www.dil.org.
For further inquiries please contact Sara Abbasi -- 650-323-6080.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
