Active Citizens - partnering for stronger communities

A life-time’s learning can sometimes be condensed into a sentence or two. The ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu did just that when he uttered words to the effect: “Give a man a fish; feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish; feed him for a lifetime".

This line of thinking is just as relevant today as it was many centuries ago. Helping someone by providing them with money or food or shelter – although commendable – is not a long-term solution. By providing someone in need with the means to earn a living not only enables them to provide for themselves but it also has a positive effect on their morale and self-esteem.

Green Town is a residential area of Lahore with a high rate of unemployment and a low education rate. The residents of Green Town by and large live in poverty, and putting food on the table regularly is a struggle for most.

Shumaila Naaz is a professor in the Management Sciences department of the Superior University in Lahore. Shumaila teaches a course on community development which includes an end-of-semester project that students need to complete to pass the course.

To help her students gain a better understanding of how their efforts – no matter how small – to make their communities a better place to live can have far reaching effects, Shumaila organised an Active Citizens training workshop with the help of Chanan Development Association (CDA) – an Active Citizens partner.

After they were done with the training, a group of her students came up with a formal plan to help women in Green Town earn a living and provide for their families. Their proposal? To raise money to fund the purchase of sewing machines for the women of Green Town.

The women selected by the group fall into certain categories: women who are widowed; women who are divorced; and women whose spouses live with disability.

The proposed project also had a personal significance for one of the members who has lived in Green Town for more than 11 years but has never lost hope for better days for his community.

The students were able to raise Rs. 75,000 by reaching out to donors with the help of a well thought-out project proposal and an effective communications campaign which included the distribution of pamphlets, and a door-to-door campaign. With these funds they purchased 17 sewing machines.

To ensure that the sewing machines would not be resold the group members attached a condition with their distribution: the women who would receive the machines would pay a fee of Rs. 250 to the group each month. In this way the recipients would gain ownership of the sewing machines and through the fees collected the group would be able to finance more sewing machines for other deserving candidates. In short a win-win situation.

A distribution ceremony for the machines was arranged by the group at a local high school of Green Town. A large number of the residents attended the event and praised the Active Citizens for coming up with this clever yet simple plan to strengthen a community that gave its members the tools to be more self-reliant. 

Back to life

Back to Life is a Social Action Project started by young Active Citizens from Lahore. And they could not have chosen a more apt title for the project. This group of young individuals chose to work in an area that is often overlooked by others: young children suffering from various stages of cancer. It takes a certain amount of empathy to think about and feel for ill children – tucked away in some ward of a hospital, out of sight, but not out of reach.

The young people who decided to work with these children are mostly students or young professionals. But they decided to take time out from their busy schedules and break their normal routines because they felt that children are important…and unoriginal as it may sound, the truth is that children are the future – suffering from a terminal disease or not.

The Children’s Hospital in Lahore has an entire wing dedicated to an oncology ward which is divided into sections corresponding roughly to the ages of the children that it houses. The group of young people wanted to cheer up these children and replace their boredom with fun and educational activities – what one group member, Usman refers to as ‘Edutainment’ – a combination of education and entertainment; and so they decided to tailor their activities according to the ages of the children.

For the younger children the group plays cartoons and animated films that are projected on the walls of their ward. According to another group member the children wait all week for the weekend when they get to watch cartoons, and laugh, applaud, and cheer together. For these children the group members were able to secure colouring books and colouring pencils free of cost from different NGOs as well.

The older, more mature children proved to be more of a challenge for the group, but they were able to capture their attention through regular visits. The group members not only tutor the kids in material that other children their age learn in school, but do it in such a fun and engaging manner that a bond has formed between them.

The connections that these young Active Citizens and hospitalized children have formed also has a down side: the group members have to accept the fact that the children they are working with are being treated for different forms of cancer – which is a potentially fatal disease. According to one member of the group sometimes they come to the hospital only to find out that a child has passed away; this can be a jarring lesson in the facts of life for the sick and healthy alike. But what keeps them going is the knowledge that for however short a time they have succeeded in bringing joy and laughter in the life of a child.

Old papers, new votes, and a ragged school

The Gulberg Rangers (G-Rangers) has six active members and is headed by Zunaria Earl West. The British Council’s Active Citizens training enabled them to initiate three Social Action Projects (SAPs) which focus on the poverty stricken areas of Lahore. They started three SAPs: Ragged School, Voting Awareness and Raddi (paper) Collection and Rehabilitation.

The Ragged School focuses on primary education teaching; beginner’s English, Urdu and Mathematics are taught to children who cannot afford to go to school. The children are also taught ethical and moral behaviour as well as civic lessons such as how to cross the road safely, not to litter, etc.

Voting Awareness aims is to educate individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds about the importance of exercising one’s right to vote for the candidate of their choice. Volunteers and members visit neighbourhoods and contact 200 – 300 homes a month. They encourage citizens to use their votes wisely and not to “sell” them for money.

The Raddi Collection and Rehabilitation project was conceived with the help of Formation Awareness and Community Empowerment Society (FACES) to increase the sustainability of their SAPs. The G- Rangers go door-to-door collecting cardboard and newspapers to sell. In this way they help the community dispose of unneeded material in an appropriate way and generate funding for their other Social Action Projects.

Three sisters, one goal

Advised by the NGO FACES to attend an Active Citizens training in 2010, three sisters, Rabia, Shazia, and Aseya Mola realised that they could give back to the community through the gift of teaching. Two of the sisters, Rabia and Shazia set up the Emmanuel Silai (sewing) Centre for needy women. The courses taught at the centre cover darning, sewing, embroidery, and design.

The motivation behind the sewing centre was that by providing vocational training to young girls and women, they can be taught the necessary skills to earn an independent living. The sisters believe that being skilled in a certain area enables individuals to face trying times with confidence and hope.

Since the women being trained at the sewing centre can barely afford one meal a day, buying items such as sewing machines, cloth, and supplies like thread and needles is inconceivable. Currently 17 women and girls attend the training. A portion of the income from a boutique Rabia and Shazia run is used to finance the sewing centre.

Aseya Mola is also doing her bit to give back to her community. As the only sister who is educated, she is running a free education centre for illiterate and poor women. According to Aseya, the reason behind starting an educational institution for women is that many places exist where young boys and men can seek an education, but such institutions are virtually non-existent for older women.

Says Aseya: “Many children in our community are uneducated who spend their time playing and running errands for others. Education is very important for such young children as it helps mould their personalities and is a beneficial asset for their bright futures. We want to serve the community by equipping the children with education”.
Presently 100 students are enrolled in the school with an approximate breakdown of 50 young girls and 50 women. The students are taught English, Urdu, Mathematics, Home Economics, and religious studies. Aseya goes on to say: “we are hoping our endeavours will bring a desirable change in our communities soon and more children will be inclined towards receiving education”.

Running free vocational and educational centres are challenging tasks, but Shazia, Rabia and Aseya have managed to get by without any external funding or volunteers to help them. As a result of their efforts they have gained acclaim and trust within their community.