A Stone to sharp blades

The name of ECCD School is “
Gardener of flower”, located in Pyin Ka Toe Chaung village and under the Kan Gyi Dauk Township. KMSS organization is implementing DREAM program in the village with the partnership of Stromme foundation.

Since “Gardener of flower” provided by DREAM project opened at 4^th February 2016, the children were confortable to learn and enjoined the school because of new building. So did parents.  But at that time school didn’t have playground and enough facilities for learning. Committee was tired of supporting to build playground quickly because they were doing for teacher salary even small amount. Teachers also scarified their precious time to the children with strong commitments even they got inadequate amount paid. During the initial stage of ECCD School, they all were straggling to precede the future (Dream to become true).  

               Coming along the day, months and a year later and now this ECCD School are becoming perfection stage because ECCD committee tried with great commitment to the school. “By now school has new playground and raise the rate of salary for the teacher but still need to increase the rate, and hope that they can do gradually,” said by U Zaw Hla Tun, ECCD committee’s head. One the other hand school parents’ concern on their children sending to school is becoming higher because of parental awareness training given by teachers from social welfare department.

Daw Wai Wai Aung

Nant Wai Wai Aung said, “her chid, Aung Ye Lin is quite different before school and now because his behavior are polite, wiliness to going to school is amazingly unbelievable high, he tell her mom everything learnt from school and initiate paying vow to his parents before he sleep so she fully satisfies to send her son to ECCD school.”  That’s why she spreads god news about ECCD to her neighbors and encourages some of the parents to send their children to school.

Based on this progress; villagers, committee members and dream program arranged for one of the school teachers out of three who didn’t fully gain training and get certificate for Social Welfare Department, so by now this teacher is attending TOT training for a month.

Zaw Hla Tun

U Zaw Hla Tun said, “Weekly treating nutrition activity is regularly being done at school for children growth and moreover for the sustainable and well function school they will engage with government department to have register and receive teacher salary too.”

 `` The children’s has many improvement and they grow very faster and faster, we don’t need to say twice and they ask many questions and they never afraid to ask what they would like to know, said by Zaw Hla Tun base on her daughter.  At the same time, as a committee we planned to build the fence on next year and still trying by the conducting the income generating activities.

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Bighter Light for better life

Bighter Light for better life

Ah Nauk Su Village is locted under the lower part of the Thabaung Tsp in Ayeyarwady Region and yearly flood effected vilage. This region people rely on agriculture, some small seasonal plantation and small fishery. Only one time per year paddy plantation is available. The common problem of people in this region is lack of job opportunities especially for daily wages workers and small farmers. For regular income, they have to depend on the big farmers’ hire. Because of less income, vulnerable families are uncertain for food security and secure settlement when they are shock of natural disaster. Therefore, KMSS-Pathein is implementing the DREAM project in those areas with the partnership of Stromme Foundation in which one of the activities is empowering families to enhance livelihood income and dear dream of their future.

 46 years old woman, Daw Tin Tin Ngwe is living in Ah Nauk Su village with her husband and two children. She had been suffering the pressure of highest interest rate for many years. Because of the bad system of oppressing vulnerable people with huge interest, she had to give 1100000Ks for 100000Ks until losing her house and land. At that time her husband and she had to work even at night to release from debt. Despite of being tried hard, he couldn’t release from it. Her husband was depressed and drunk for many years. On the other hand, she worried for her children future even she has nothing left for the school enrollment of her children. She said, “In the morning even cold in winter, it was hot in her heart.” Therefore, she sold her two dogs and used them for the school enrollment. She got angry and cried out to her money lender to extend the payment period. She had nothing and already given 11 times of actual borrowed money and she released, but not officially. After later, her husband became stable reducing drinking and they work hard together and owned a small house and new land again. After that her husband work outside and she grew seasonal fruits for their family.

At the starting of the project during the mass community meeting, she went to meeting as a duty, she didn’t listen carefully and she knew nothing about project. Few months later, she went to the meeting again without purpose and decided to join the project for just one hope of receiving help to improve her family. After that because of the effort of the community facilitator with closely facilitation and trainings provided, she was motivated to think of her future. According to her saying, now she can reflect herself and think of other fairly as well as she value time and appreciate the trainings and meetings. She becomes to think of her family future well especially for their children. She is motivated to try systematically for the development of her family and she expends her income generation activities by planning. During the previous years she dared not do more income generation activities because of failure and investment with high interest rate. She said, “Now she grows three times instead of one plantation without having too much worry on debt because of the empowerment of project and understanding of the value of time.” Besides, she is dreaming to have a secure house to persist yearly flood effect, otherwise with enough money to move a secure and standard place. Therefore, she planned to expend income generation activities not only seasonal plantation but also start up truck (it is being used in the farm to curry paddy especially in the villages). In her family development plan for children, she is saving to buy a boat to go to drive for the children to school. By now she is always dreaming to develop their family away from debt cycle and insecure life situation.

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Dream comes true

May Yi Kone is under Khat Ti Ya village tract in Thabaung Township in Ayeyarwady Region. The main livelihood of the village is agriculture. The job opportunities for the landless are farming work, fishing and carpenter as daily wages worker.  There are livestock raising (chicken, duck and cow) in the village for family consuming and side income purpose. For the youth who cannot finish education have lack opportunities to engage well paid job. Especially youth migrated to the cities and boarder areas of the countries to earn more money, but they are not secure and no certain future because of lack of skill. On the other hand, youth still remained in the village engage culturally farming, and laboring to big farmers, and small fishery as daily wages worker even though they have dreams to become in future. Because of no investment to implement their dreams, they just leave them and do as usual with no hope.

Therefore, KMSS-Pathein is implementing the DREAM project in those areas with the partnership of Stromme Foundation in which one of the objectives is creating jobs opportunities for the youth by providing training needed.

Ma Thal Phyu is one of the youths who gained the sewing training provided by DREAM program in 2016. She said, “I was very interested in sewing since she dropped out the middle school because of her family livelihood situation.” In spite of being have had such dream she left it behind her reality and stick to regular jobs as a day labor for family’s income. She mentioned other youth from poor families are also still losing their future likewise her.

Even she can ask sew machine from her aunt to learn and practice during the free time of her aunt, being no sewing machine to practice is the obstacle challenging her to shop dreaming to learn.. By the time being gone to lose her dream, she could turn to dream it again because of the good news about sewing training which was a bridge connecting gabs between her future and reality. At that time she was very pleased and happy to join the training and she did it well. That’s why she said, “It was a bridge to cross spiky road to move forwards.”

Now she could make her dream bigger than before to become professional, so she practices the skills gained from training as much as she can and learns continuously it form her aunt. Due to unable to buy clothing materials, when she practices it at home, she joins the pieces of clothes from her aunt and makes the some shirt, pans and other clothes. Because of the big dream she needs additional higher training, so she said, “If she can have an opportunities to attend advance level training, it will be effectively to support her dream.” On the other hand, she plans to attend advance level training with her own effort by years later

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Unity comes, Issues run

        Seik Gyi village is located in the remote and flood effected area of Thabaung Township in the Ayeyarwady Region. The main livelihood of the people is agriculture and small gardening activities. Due to flood prone area, only one time per year crop plantation is available. The big issue happening in this area is lack of job opportunities for daily wages workers and small farmers because they have to wait for the time of hiring from big farmers for labor.  Irregular job and less income threaten vulnerable families’ future as well as inadequate food problem and insecure settlement issues are occurring in raining season yearly. Therefore, KMSS-Pathein is implementing the DREAM project in those areas with the partnership of Stromme Foundation in which one of the activities is empowering collective activities.

Linn Hlet Kyel Sin Group

1.Ma Khine Lay Wai (24 yrs. Landless)

2.Daw Ngwe Ngwe Khine (34 yrs. 2 acres)

3.Daw Then Then Sink (57 yrs. 4 acres)

4.Daw Khin Shwe (50 yrs. Landless)

5.Daw Aye Aye Lwin (30 yrs. Landless)

               According to representative of Lin Hlet Kyel Sin Group, Ma Khine Lay Wai and 4 members, they had to approach big farmers for borrowing money with high interest (8% or 10 %) when they wanted to start up small cultivating activities of farming and seasonal plantation. Therefore, they couldn’t make much money for their own profit because borrowing money returned back with high interests. They were usually in debt cycle even they tried hard. Yearly those situations forced them not to dream for their future for many years. On the other hands, they could not focus on not only their future but also their children education because of yearly debt cycle.

Working in the farm

 Due to DREAM program, these 5 women gather together for helping each other. Group income generating activities are implemented also according to their Group development plan. Consequently small groups are assessable to have the trainings, so their groups become more solid with systematic management structure and getting more funding from their group saving and collective income generation activities. Ma Khine Lay Wai said, “They are able to save more money against labor cost and high interest rate”, because they practice exchanging labors and they can easily have money form their group with 3% interest rate (for Group fund). According to Daw Shwe Khin, “because of the high interest rate, unsuccessful plantation and emergency health problem, she lived just for worry of returning money back in debt cycle before they become group. Now she feels secure against high interest rate and debt because she is not alone anymore.” At the same time Daw Ngwe Ngwe Khine expressed that she dare to dream for their future because her planned activities for her family are achieved even she didn’t think for success.

Group Monthly  meeting and discussion

They all are satisfied with their group’s unity and activities, so they often repeat “our group, our group, our group” when they talk to others. They become to implement any related activities of helping each other as well as community. One of the precious activities for themselves is always keeping for any member at least 50000Ks and continuously increasing as much as they can in hand for the use of any emergency without interest. Besides, they consider the situation of their village during the flood

time. Consequently, they initiative the weekly saving rice system (keeping a hold of rice from the pot every time before they cook) with all existing the groups in the village for the solving of food insecurity issues of vulnerable households in flood time. Each of them is motivated to flourish their families by helping each other as well as for their community with full of energy.

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Map of Pathein Dioceses

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