Educating for the future, one child at a time
In the Solomon Islands, Salesian missionaries are working hard to address the causes, and consequences, of poverty.
Inadequate access to education—especially among destitute families living and working in the garbage dumps of Ranadi—means that far too many children grow up without the knowledge and skills they need to build brighter futures. As many as 25 percent of the country’s youth have never attended primary school. Unsurprisingly, adult literacy hovers around a mere 35 percent. The resulting cycle of generational poverty is vicious, and its negative effects on families are profound.
Together, we can help them break this cycle of poverty for good.
Our missionaries at the Don Bosco Technical Institute in Honiara recently launched a holistic educational program specifically for families who pick trash for a living. Here, children ages 4-13 can learn to read, write and do math; while older youth and adults can participate in vocational training that will help them secure long-term employment. Parents can also learn how to grow vegetables to sell at the local market—which provides a more reliable and sustainable source of income. When they personally witness the real value of sending their children to school instead of work, parents become willing participants in changing the course of their families’ lives.
Will you join us in this remarkable work?
With a population of fewer than 700,000 people, every effort our missionaries make to improve educational access and financial opportunities can help transform the country’s future. Right now, more than 200 children attend the new St. John Bosco primary school in the Western province of Gizo. And, at the Don Bosco Rural Training Center in Tetere Bay, an additional 200 young people are learning the skills needed for in-demand jobs.
