$10,001 to $25,000

Deaf and hearing impaired children in the developing world are greatly disadvantaged.  The cost and maintenance of hearing aids is so high that most families cannot afford them, and must instead rely on an intermittent supply of donated devices and short-term ‘fitting teams’ from abroad.

Batik is an ancient cloth dyeing technique which has been practiced in South-East Asia for many centuries.  The traditional handicraft tells a long history of acculturation as intricate patterns reflect an array of cultural influences from surrounding regions.

Poverty and HIV/AIDs in Zambia is causing an epidemic of abandoned, neglected or orphaned children as family means are stretched beyond breaking point. Parents and extended relatives simply cannot afford to feed, clothe and educate the younger generation so many turn to orphanages as a last resort.

In South Africa, early childhood education programs are poorly funded by a government already inundated with developmental mandates.  Many of the system’s teachers were taught under the apartheid regime and did not receive a quality education themselves.  Without best practice systems in place and limited opportunities for knowledge sharing, the motivation and morale of teachers within disadvantaged communities is low and leads to high absenteeism.

Upon a backdrop of domestic violence, unemployment, gang crime and an endemic black-market of illicit substances, armed conflict has been tearing Colombia apart for some decades.  Sadly, many families have been caught up in the crossfire and it is not only adults who have taken up arms.

The large number of Burundian men killed by the HIV/AIDs epidemic or conflict, has created many poor and fragile households headed by women or minors who have little income to spare.  In order for the country to rebuild and provide a future for the next generation, these widows and orphans require adequate housing, healthcare, education and vocational training.

As humanitarian crises have lifted in Sri Lanka, national development has shifted its focus toward building a strong economic core in the private sector and diversifying rural livelihoods.  Demographic transition that has accompanied the drive toward middle-income country status now poses some challenges regarding aged dependency.

Cyclone Winston was the strongest recorded cyclone to have ever hit the Fijian archipelago.  It caused wide scale loss of homes, infrastructure and crops as 12m high waves battered the coastline and winds gusting at 325km/hour swept the land bare.

As 15% of Pacific Islanders (1 million people) live with a disability, it is impossible for universal education and poverty reduction targets to be met without their inclusion.  In most of these countries, few people with disabilities attend school as children and even fewer can find stable employment as adults.  Not only are disabilities highly stigmatised, but affordable service provision is hard to come by.

In the remote foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro, access to healthcare is extremely limited and specialised disability services are virtually non-existent.  An estimated 3 million Tanzanians have a disability, of which far too many are consequently excluded from mainstream schooling and employment. 

Many Mongolian women are suffering in silence as domestic violence sweeps the nation in endemic proportions.  National statistics reveal that as many as one in three have been victims of such abuse at least once in their life.

In some Cambodian communities, the importance of education is not fully realised.  Children follow their parents into the status quos of rice farming, building or begging that have been the only vocational options for generations gone by.

In Timor-Leste, many families are too poor to invest in their child’s education.  The combined cost of books, stationary, uniform, transport and school fees are prohibitive yet education is key to many of the nation’s development needs.  By upskilling the next generation with the opportunity to go to school or university, the path is laid for a brighter future of youth engagement and employability.

In Papua New Guinea, poor planning has resulted in rapid and uncontrolled expansion of primary schools which is exceeding the supply of qualified teachers.  Consequently, many remote schools have been operating with lessons taught by untrained teachers and volunteers, some of which have not completed primary school themselves.  Literacy competencies are low, and teaching equipment is minimal.