Sri Lanka

ChildFund works to promote child-centered education in several ways: training master teachers who can educate their colleagues, encouraging classroom participation and feedback from students, and testing different education methods. As a result, more children are able to read, write and do math, and many report being happier in school. Child protection is also a key part of our work with school-aged children and adults who spend time with them. Trained community mobilizers learn how to recognize abuse and what to do when they see it. Local partner organizations’ staff members are spreading this information to family members, village leaders and others who care for children. We also are working with national government officials and other nongovernmental organizations to develop a plan to curb corporal punishment in Sri Lanka.

As they get ready to leave school, Sri Lankan youth face significant challenges, including high unemployment rates and alcohol and drug abuse. We help young adults prepare for the job market by teaching them marketable skills in growing fields like hospitality, agriculture, horticulture and fisheries, and we assist youth clubs with small grants to start their own businesses. ChildFund also encourages youth to be involved in their communities; many clubs are working on small improvement projects like cleaning up playgrounds and bus stops, as well as discussing solutions to substance abuse. We also support a digital storytelling program that gives young people the chance to learn videography, photography and audio recording. In the end, they have a platform for self-expression and cross-cultural communication.