ISC

Dr. Zulie Nakhooda, Managing Trustee - India Sponsorship Committee

On inception of the organisation

India Sponsorship Committee started with the focus on education. With sponsorship committee, our effort was to promote education of children in underprivileged section.

Children of underprivileged section were not sent to school for various reasons. Sponsorship means to find a donor who could meet educational requirements of children. This programme was pioneered in India in 1967.

How did you get involved with the program ?

I completed my MSW in US after a Ph. D from Bombay University. On my way back from US, I was visiting an organisation called International Union for Child Welfare at Geneva. They offered me a chance to introduce child sponsorship programme in India through their member organisations in Canada, France, U.K., etc. These countries were developed countries and wanted to help for education of underprivileged children.

So we started this programme with poor children in slums and streets. Giving money alone does not educate a child. We developed integrated approach. We conducted training programmes for social workers. Identifying children's needs for those who had no homes or families. We started Balgram - a home for orphan and destitute children.

About our Projects

Balgram is our main programme for children in need of a home. We founded Antar Bharati Balgram in 1976 with the aim of providing homeless childrren with a loving home, an education and all the opportunities that come with it. Balgram is situated in beautiful hills of Lonavala. The main objective of Balgram is to provide education through residential care for destitute and orphan children. This promotes their social, emotional and intellectual development leading to self-reliance. There are 8 sadans (homes) and each having 10 to 12 children. Balgram maintains S.O.S Children's village pattern of residence where about 10 children live in one home under the loving care of a housemother, along with food and shelter. Administrator of the Project is like a father figure to all. This kind of family environment helps children grow. S.O.S. Children's Village is an Austrian concept and we translated it into Balgram (Children's village).

We started this programme with just 5 children but today we have 100 children, with ages ranging from 3 to 18. We can proudly say that over 500 children have passed through our Balgram and have been rehabilitated according to their abilities.

In order to give education to these children, we started a school, which is now 20 years old. Our school teaches children up to Std. X and after that those who are interested in further studies are sent to government schools near by. We teach our children in Marathi along with Hindi and English. Children from surrounding villages also come to this school. We also have vocational training centre for those who are not interested in studies and have dropped out of school. Vocational training centre trains them in crafts such as welding and wiring. Around 23 girls are married. Some have become nurses, teachers etc. We promote education from vulnerable sections through residential and community based non-residential programmes with ultimate objective of rehabilitation through a purposeful education.

Second is a Pune project. It focuses on two main issues, Education and Gender sensitivity. The programme has been expanded up to cover 12 slums in Yervada area. The objective of the programme is to mainstream and retain working children from the project area in to formal school. And also to strengthen the process of empowering adolescent girls socially and economically. We educate brick making children, empower women by awareness programs. We have 200 children in regular schools. Even illiterate parents feel the difference and have higher aspirations for children. This strategy has been successful.

Third project Bal Asha Ghar was started for children in distress with special reference to the children of commercial sex workers. The main object of this programme is to provide good health care and good academic education, for development of the personality of the children. Children of commercial sex workers have stigma attached and their school going experience is not so happy. So they drop out. Mothers feel that their children should study. We have carried out an experiment, we have taken 50 kids out from there and have put them in to a rural setting. There we are sending them to school. Some children have outstanding performance. Four children from there have been recommended for merit examination and they all have passed. They are in touch with their natural mothers. Mothers visit them during vacations.

Fourth programme is a School Based Educational Support project at Sion (Mumbai). This programme was started in 1995 in collaboration with Sadhna Education Society. The main objective of the project is to promote education by preventing dropouts of children from school. Under the project 233 children are sponsored from marginal group surviving on daily wages. These students are provided educational aids like uniform, raincoats, footwear, bags and stationary. Support classes and supplementary nutrition and counselling for parents are provided in needy cases to prevent the children from dropping out of school.

Are you doing anything on advocacy front ?

Under Pune project, we have been involved in advocacy activities. We have been very active in the Child Right forum in Pune and at the National level along with Actions for Rights of the Child (A.R.C).

We are also actively participating in CACL's planning, organizing and implementing of the National Event on Girl Child Labour. We are also working with Save the Children on the charter of child rights.

How do you monitor and evaluate your programmes ?

We have qualified personnel heading each Project - the Project Co-ordinator who manages the project and supervises staff. As Managing Trustee, I visit the Projects periodically and report to the trustees. We get external evaluation done. Once Nirmala Niketan did evaluation for us.

Our donors have their own evaluation and monitoring system. Before they fund us for the next phase of the programme, they want to know the impact of the programme. It's only when they are happy with the programmes they continue with the grant.

What are your future plans ?

We want to make our school at Lonavala a model school and make it English Medium.

Teaching English to children is priority because it is essential for rnhancing their job opportunities. Giving these children better future is our aim.

What are your views on NGO credibility ?

There are some NGOs that are genuine. Most of the NGOs we have worked with, have been good NGOs. To enhance the credibility, Audit and accounts should be clear.

It is not just reporting requirement, but transparency to donors, leads to trust in the organisation. This trust brings in more resources.

Your views on NGO Governance

NGOs should be honest and sincere. Any thing that helps beneficiaries has to be the top priority. NGOs should use their resources judiciously.

We have financial constraint these days due to diminishing interest rates and income. There has to be transparency at all levels.