Help Bolivian Youth Access Higher Education

Need

In Bolivia, six of every ten youths work in the informal sector in low-skilled, often unsafe, jobs due to a lack of professional or technical skills. Although Bolivia has a Public Higher Education System, few young people are able to access the public universities as the spaces are limited and poor families often find it impossible to afford the transportation costs, books and school materials needed by the student.

Long term impact

This project will give young Bolivians a better chance to escape from poverty, improve their quality of life and that of their future families, and go on to make a positive contribution to society. Having a university degree or a vocational education enables our students to get jobs with better salaries so they can help themselves and their families escape the vicious cycle of poverty.

About the Organization

The mission of the Fundacion Helping Hands-La Paz (Bolivia) is to open up educational opportunities for marginalized and vulnerable Bolivian youth of scarce economic resources so that they may complete a programme of studies to become technicians or university graduates. Education is the focus of the Fundacion Helping Hands -La Paz (Bolivia), and we hope to broaden the horizons of our young people by providing new experiences and activities. Helping Hands works with several orphanages, social projects and international organizations to give these young people the opportunity to educate themselves and become more productive and responsible citizens. In particular we work with girls who, traditionally, have been marginalized as far as upper education is concerned. Our project began in an informal way in 2004 to give support to the 48 boys who had to leave the state boys' home at the age of 18 and they had not yet finished high school. We provided rent support, school materials, moral support and help with documentation so that the boys could finish high school. The project grew to include studies in technical schools and universities when the boys had finished high school and in 2006 we expanded to include girls from the many social projects in La Paz and El Alto. In 2014 our project was formalized with the creation of the Fundacion Helping Hands - La Paz (Bolivia) and we now support 100 students from the ages of 15 to 25 of which 65% were girls in 2017. The Fundacion Helping Hands-La Paz (Bolivia) also provides medical and dental care for the students to insure their permanency in their programmes of study. There is no universal health care in Bolivia, and the costs of health care can be devastating for those lacking economic resources. Students are required to attend monthly meetings where we provide talks on many themes of interest to young people in order to provide a more integral personal development. We invite speakers in the areas of education in reproductive health, the environment, values, general health, living without violence, and written expression. We organize outings to museums and other cultural activities. We feel that in order for an underdeveloped country to progress it must provide education for all of its citizens. Education is one of the keys to eradicating poverty.

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