Intervida reminds us that 90% of indigenous panamanians live in poverty
Madrid (07/08/2008). It is estimated that there are currently more than 370 million indigenous people in the world, divided into at least 5,000 different groups. These populations are seriously affected by poverty and live in conditions of extreme vulnerability, despite the fact that many of them live in countries with a high human development index. An example of this is Panama, where 10% of the population is indigenous and a near 90% of them live in extreme poverty, which translates to a poverty index 6 times that of the rest of the country’s citizens. These gaps are also visible among children. For example, indigenous children between 0 and 12 years old are twice as likely to live in abject poverty than non-indigenous children, according to the United Nations.
The most numerous group is the Ngöbe Buglé, which accounts for 59% of the entire indigenous population and who live in the region of the same name. According to the latest National Human Development Report by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the Ngöbe Buglé region reports the lowest human development index in the country. It is in this region, and in the Kankintú area in particular, that INTERVIDA has been working for the last three years, supporting an educational project for 1,200 indigenous students and 67 teachers run by the NGO Haren Alde of the Augustinian Recollects.
This indigenous region also reports the lowest literacy levels in the country, with 44% of the population being illiterate; this is accompanied by the fact that the average schooling for the population over 15 years old is on 2.8 years. One of the problems faced by the community is the lack of educational installations – especially in areas of difficult access – and the lack of school materials. In addition, school performance is adversely affected by the student’s state of malnourishment, which in Ngöbe Buglé and in the Kankintú area, affects 71% of children between 6 and 9 years old.
The project ‘Supporting education for the Ngöbe of Kankintú’ aims to facilitate 1,200 indigenous students with access to a proper education and diet. After three years of effort, INTERVIDA’s collaboration on this project ended in November, having achieved the expansion and remodeling of the San Agustín school of Kankintú, and having provided food to the students daily.
The school now have three new pavilions which house 15 classrooms, four multi-purpose halls, one teacher’s area and three more for administrative tasks, as well as new bathroom, kitchen and dining hall facilities. At the same time, the library has been stocked with school and didactic materials for use by students and teachers; a book was also written in the Ngöbere language on the indigenous world vision, and this is already being incorporated into the class work.
Another important part of the project as been the construction of sports and recreation facilities, such as playgrounds, fields and courts for use in various activities, and a soccer field.
To be able to complete this project, 93 youths from the area were trained in carpentry and construction, which enabled them to acquire a skill and earn a living.
About INTERVIDA
FUNDACIÓN INTERVIDA is a nonpartisan, nondenominational and independent development NGO in special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Its objective is to contribute to sustainable human development towards improving the living conditions of the most disadvantaged communities. Currently, INTERVIDA is active in several countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia, offering its support to nearly five million people.
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