This informal chat between Eric Schneider of YL and Venkat Reddy of M. Venkatarangaiya Foundation (India) was recorded during a lunch break of the UNESCO World Conference on Education for Sustainable Development in Bonn, Germany in April 2009. It is one of the most amazing, large scale success stories we have come across. In particular because it addresses a critical and difficult topic : millions of children still bound in modern forms of slavery despite many nice words and declarations. MVF's work is something to share and support!
Part 1 : About MVF's practical approach and successes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrdHwlVTnN4 (9min07)
Part 2 : More, and about the number of liberated children! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9sOZr4OqCw (5min06)
Part 3 : Venkat Reddy shares a special memory from his fifteen years with the organisation - the story of Prasad, a boy he has met a several stages of his life. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPw5qY0U4Cg (8min54)
Here is a collection of central facts taken from M.V. Foundation's website http://mvfindia.in.
Spoiler warning:
*For your enjoyment, you should first watch the video, before reading the following*
CHILD RIGHTS
Based on the non-negotiable principle that ‘no child works and every child attends full time formal school as a matter of right’, MVF has been working towards abolition of child labour in all its forms and mainstreaming them into formal schools, for over a decade now. From its humble beginning in three villages in 1991, it has now spread its philosophy far and wide.
Currently MVF is implementing the program directly in the Ranga Reddy, Nalgonda, Kurnool and Adilabad districts in Andhra Pradesh covering over 2500 villages and in the city of Hyderabad. MVF also provides technical support to various governments, NGOs and the MVF resource persons have worked in Assam, Bihar, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu. MVF has provided technical support to NGOs and Governments in Nepal, Central America, and Africa. Its presence is among some of the most backward areas in terms of HDI and in all these areas MVF monitors around 500,000 children on a daily basis.
Earlier, MV Foundation worked in Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Mahbubnagar, Chittoor, Kadapa, East Godavari, Visakhapatnam, Anantapur, and Warangal districts of Andhra Pradesh as a direct implementing agency. It now continues to keep in touch with the program through the Child Rights Protection Forums and offers technical support to them.
Way back in the early nineties, MVF pioneered the concept of the Residential Bridge Course (RBC) camps to prove to the community, parents and the children that poverty is not the only cause for child labour and to disprove the myth that older children cannot study. The RBC concept, the pedagogy, the methodology and the curriculum have been adopted by many NGOs and Indian Government policies.
It has also initiated programmes related to right to health and nutrition of children below 6 yrs of age, rights of adolescent girls and right to safe motherhood.
The Non-Negotiables:
- All Children must attend full-time formal-day schools.
- Any child out of school is a child labourer.
- All labour is hazardous,and harms the overall growth and development of the child.
- There must be total abolition of child labour.
- Any justification perpetuating the existence of child labour must be condemned.
Quick facts:
- 600,000 child labour mobilised out of work and into fulltime, formal, government day schools.
- 50,000 child labourers have been put through Bridge Course Camps and 30,000 Education Activists mobilized to liberate children.
- 80,000 youth volunteers and members of CRPF protect child rights.
- 25,000 adolescent girls in schools and 8000 child marriages stopped.
- 1500 Gram Panchayats are child labour free.
- 1500 Gram Panchayats review child rights through the health and education subcommittees.
- 50,000 children mainstreamed to formal schools through RBCs.
- 25,000 bonded labour released and sent to schools.
NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
It was during M.VFoundation’s work for child rights that the idea of work in Nartural Resource Management arose. It was noticed that the nutrition levels of children in the Non-Formal Education (NFE) centres was very low and hence eco clubs were set up to spread the message of environment and health.
Currently M.V.Foundation’s Natural Resource Management Programme (NRM) is operational in 105 villages spread over 5 mandals of Yacharam, Manchal, Ibrahimpatnam, Hayathnagar, Keesara and Shameerpet mandals. The long term goal of M.V.Foundation’s NRM Programme is towards protection of sustainable management of natural resources through empowerment of women to improve quality of lives & secure livelihoods, food, fodder, energy and health care.
Activities address:
> Energy Security
> Environment Education
> Watershed
> Empowerment & Collective Action
> Fodder Security & Food Security
> Forestry & Tree Farming
What distinguishes MVF’s programme from other programmes is the solidarity of the women’s groups which is based on transparency, honesty & self-reliance.
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