Posted

Over 8,000 beneficiaries set to be supported by The Human Safety Net and its NGO partner activities in India

United Way Mumbai has expanded its programme geographically and Pratham is engaging and empowering parents

United Way Mumbai 
The Human Safety Net and partner United Way Mumbai have grown their project in India, taking on an additional 24 childcare centres that will benefit over 3,000 beneficiaries in the coming years. The activities in the centres are ready to begin in March, now that infrastructure works have been started. 
 
Many families returned to rural areas in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, making it difficult for them to be reached. Adopting more centres in different regions means that vulnerable families can be better reached and empowered.  
 
In India, these types of rural childcare centres are called Anganwadis and have been critical to the government’s Integrated Child Development Services. Begun in 1975, they have been used to combat child hunger and malnutrition, amongst other things. 
 
The project was originally begun in 2019, and focuses on school readiness for children, Anganwadi infrastructure and training for its workers as well as community mobilization.
 
This expansion of the project has taken the initiative into the states of in Jharkhand & Telangana, which are in the east and south of India. Until then, The Human Safety Net and United Way have worked with 23 Anganwadi centres across Maharashtra in the Panvel & Karjat regions. 
 
Pratham 
Pratham Education Foundation is implementing a parent engagement programme, targeted at over 2,000 parents. With the help of The Human Safety Net, this programme is designed to empower parents, especially mothers, to play a more active role in their children’s development and their developmental outcomes through influencing the household environment.  
 
The programme will focus on parenting courses and financial literacy. There will be weekly summer activities with children and light orientation sessions with parents once a week. Additionally, extra support will be offered in the form of home visits and distribution of worksheets to parents. 
 
Activities will be carried out digitally where needed as the effects of COVID-19 are still felt globally. 
 
An initial community survey has been conducted to discover who the target beneficiaries are and where they live. 
 
Pratham Education Foundation is determined to leave no child behind when it comes to education. They help close the gap in leaning outcomes and school status across India by working with local communities to basic reading and arithmetic skills.