World Literacy of Canada - Program 2007-2011

Results achieved as of the end of the project (March 2012) include: Over 9 920 women graduated from at least one of the literacy courses offered by the program in India and Nepal. Over 1 700 of these women trained to be tailors and another 226 trained to be beauticians. In India 25 000 children and youth benefited from a mobile library that distributed 215 000 books to 71 schools and non-government organizations in 12 slum communities. Since 2007 close to 400 women’s savings groups have been formed to provide access to microcredit loans. These groups have awarded a total of 400 scholarships to boys and girls to date. The program also delivered health results: (i) 2 400 men and women got prescription eyeglasses; (ii) 500 patients received emergency or intensive medical treatment; (iii) 300 cataract surgeries were performed; (iv) 2 400 adolescent girls participated in peer-to-peer health awareness workshops; (v) 11 000 children received fruits and nutritional supplements through their schools; and (vi) 250 health education classes were held on malaria tuberculosis HIV/AIDS pregnancy breast feeding and preventable diseases.