Future trees are in trouble.

Future trees are in trouble.

Children have same rights as human beings and also needs special care. Although every third person in Pakistan is calling himself vulnerable and ignorant but only one member of the country who  truly fulfilled the definition of vulnerable or ignorant  is child.  But if we see any child calling himself ignorant or vulnerable must tagged as rebellion.

 Children of Pakistan daily face many problems. Although one article is very short to cater all these problems but I’ll try to discuss some of these    issues which are related with innocent members of the beautiful country named Pakistan.  Every third child is being victim of child sexual abuse. This CSA is openly ignored in Pakistan and is stigmatized  shameful thing.  CSA is compromised of physical and  oral .  Physical form of CSA is known by everyone, in this child is physically abused, oral CSA in this child is torched through dirty words.   This is only issue of child and no class ethnic group is excluded from this.  Due to this, in household, local and national level there is no law or even no one talked about this issue. Even there is no official statistics that tell us how many children are victim of this CSA.  Only NGOs gave the data of CSA. According to Sahil  NGO  (2004) 1567 , 2005 (1719) (that is based on the newspapers published cases and cases that they cater). Then we see the low rate of enrolment of children at primary level with high dropout rate   According to UNICEF Primary school enrollment attendance (2005-2009) is 71 percent .The root cause of this, discriminatory school system; only high middle class and elite class children get the privilege of enjoying good schools. Those are according to their interest.   Also some children are studying in madrassas those  are not fuuly recognized by government .The result of this is can in some cases be in extremist children and be  used in suicidal bomb blast or other extremist attitude.

 Another disastrous problem is innocent children are kidnapped then  used  in begging, camel riding ,smuggling  and selling of their organs.  Many children are caught in the habit of addiction. Mostly baggers’ and hookers children are mostly in the addiction habit.  Also those children that have ran away from their houses are also in this habit.  According to UNICEF Infant mortality rate (2011) is 63.26.Also UNICEF reports (2004) approximately 40percent of total child population under the age of 5yrs suffered malnutrition. Pakistani children are caught in many diseases like diarrhea, leukemia, thalisemia and many diseases of bones etc.   That are because of dirty polluted water and shortage of appropriate vitamins, calcium and dirty environment e.g. open holes gaiters and lanterns.

According to national survey on child labor (Pakistan)(1996) 3.6 million children were engaged in child labor. Many poor parents who hardly meet their end so they send their children for labour market.   If some children have interest towards studying so they started studying as a part time. But this is rare.  Also these children are tortured by their owners resultantly they caught in many diseases; physical and psychological. Due to this torture they are addicted into the disease of HIV-AIDs.

Early child hood marriages are also common problem in Pakistan. According to UNICEF (2000-2009) child marriages was 24 percent.  But the ratios of child marriages are  high. Also younger girls are tie n knot with older men in the name of different stereotypes Rasams e.g. wani Koon baha ,Garit etc.

After the recent flood 2010 many children are displaced from their houses and parents. The final number of affected people was determined: 20 million people, among them ten million are children. Many of still don’t have basic facilities. Even if some children of them are studying but now they can’t continue their education because of financial problems.

There are also many issues that impact on the personality of children. One of the major issues those can be seen in the problems is the rivalry instincts that children inherit from their forefathers.  Like in the Northern areas, Baluchistan, FATA. In these areas children are taught to take revenge from enemies so the instinct of revenge destroys their personality. Also some lost their lives in suicidal bomb blast. Another issue is identity crises that divide children into split personality. For example relationship with real and step parents. Conflicts   and dominating attitude in joint and extended family system. Pakistani parents who live abroad but when their children attain the age of maturity they comeback their homeland then their parents treat them as  parents in Pakistan, quite different from the  attitude abroad.  Pakistani children are daily abused by the hands of their parents and teachers. Those   trying to restrict their thoughts and freedom.  Because of this children loss their self esteem, confidence, and become  restless, split personality. Internet is putting   fuel .Pakistan is a signatory of the UN convention of Childs rights. This convention was taken into force 2 September 1990. This convention is composed of 54 articles. After became the signatory of this, Pakistan according to these articles, should provide respect, dignity to child. should give appropriate environment according to their age. That is appropriate for their development should give legal protection. Moreover in first article the age of 18 should  consider  a child.  Also they are free in their views etc. But after viewing the problems and some statistics it is proved that most vulnerable member of Pakistan is child. Despite the fact of   signatory , government of Pakistan failed to fulfill these articles. Also failed to pass a bill solely for childs  protection. Every time try to add all problems in special education  bill. But thanks to local, national and international NGOs who desperately working for the protection of children. They have created  awareness through  animating video and books of CSA for child protection . also mobilizing masses about the child issues,   newspaper through child edition different editors are trying to solve childs issues and also highlight different problems of children. Media is also seemed not be very much successful in solving child problems. Work of NGOs in solving children problems of Pakistan as hats off for their good work.  But the solution of problems cant be solved solely by NGOs only, government should take initiative for the improvement of future trees. Should pass proper bill for child protection (CSA, violence at work place etc) should trained law implementing agencies like police towards this (how you treat them).  Should provide part time classes for working children and with less working hours. Should provide free books and 500 rupees stipendper month,  and law implementing agencies to implement laws strictly. Should provide discrimination free education system .  Should ban those sites that are harmful for children. Children are innocent creature of the God that is passing through the period of physical changes. In this period they need our extra and careful care. We will hope best but after best struggle towards their development.

Mexico Microfinance Projects

Micro is small and finance is money. The causal definition of microfinance is small business. This concept was basically introduced for poor people in 1971 by Dr. Muhammad yunus(Bangladesh). Talking about Micro-Finance projects; popular one are saving credit Act and launching of US $150 million program the Mexican government launched compain to alleviate poverty and increase income-generating program for poor.

The Savings and Credit Sector Strengthening Program, BANSEFI

The Savings and Credit Sector Strengthening Program, implemented by the National Savings and Financial Services Bank (BANSEFI), is building the capacity of more than 400 “Popular savings and credit institutions” (or EACPs by their Spanish acronym) to meet new legal and regulatory standards and offer safer, more efficient financial services. EACPs target almost 3 million users who are generally among the poor and lower-income groups and have no access to commercial banking sector 25 percent of the population in the Mexico fall in this range. BANSEFI is developing an information system to link EACPs (those that elect to participate) to its network federations and confederations, the banking supervisor, and BANSEFI itself. This will offer retail services. BANSEFI also focus on the development of a voluntary internet-based network of savings and credit institutions called “L@Red de la Gente,” or “the People’s Network.” L@Red links BANSEFI’s 551 branches to more than 180 offices of 19 participating institutions, and creates an expansive network of more than 730 branches. Approximately 750,000 savings accounts have been opened as a new way to transfer government subsidies through L@Red de la Gente. As of December 2003, for example, 78 percent of the 633,974 people who received transfers through L@Red from Oportunidades had savings accounts with positive balances in branches of L@Red. the network also channeled more than US $53.6 million in remittance payments, sent from abroad to friends and family members. L@Red de la Gente offers accounts that link different savings and investment products.

Reaching the Rural Marginal Areas, SAGARPA; From the same strategy existing EACPs` secretariat of agriculture ,Livestock ,Rural Development ,Fisheries, and Nutrition (SAGRAPA) is now working in 13 states to set up a new savings and credit institutions. SAGARPA aims to bridge the gaps in knowledge, understanding, and interaction between these financial service providers and the communities of poor and mostly indigenous people living in the areas they serve. A survey of Mexico’s marginal rural areas in 2000 showed that just 2.5 percent of households had access to credit from a financial institution, and less than 6 percent used formal financial savings instruments. They generally pay high transaction costs and commissions to receive remittance payments.To combat these trends, SAGARPA began to implement the Rural Microfinance Technical Assistance Project (or PATMIR in Spanish) in 2001 to expand the network of EACPs into Mexico’s poor and isolated rural communities. The program has now expanded to three more regions of the country and is expected to sustainably integrate more than 80,000 people from Mexico’s poorest, most marginalized groups into the financial system before its completion in 2007. Program focuses on cultivating awareness, trust, and commitment—between the new members. PATMIR helps the EACPs to incorporate new ways; they can hire multi-lingual staff to promote their services and introduce personal digital assistants and mobile banking to make savings more convenient and attractive. In 2003, more than 4.2 million families received transfers through one federal safety net program alone, and US$13.2 billion in remittances flowed into the country from Mexicans living and working abroad.

Implementation Process. In 1999, the Secretariat of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP), the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV), the Central Bank of Mexico (BANXICO), and the National Savings Bank (PAHNAL) initiated a process of consultation with legislators, sector institutions, and the World Bank on the development of a new legal and regulatory framework for popular savings and credit institutions. In rural parts of the country, where the government had recently put forward major initiatives  by better integrating markets and targeting capitalization programs, especially at poorer groups in the rural sector.

The Scope of the Initiative; The US$150 million program, which BANSEFI initiated in 2002 in coordination with other public sector agencies. The Rural Microfinance Technical Assistance Project, or PATMIR, provides training in basic principles of household finance and participation in financial institutions for groups and individuals in marginal rural Communities.

Implementing BANSEFI and Progress to Date; A census of institutions was initiated in September of 2001 to determine more precisely the number and size of entities operating in the sector, their locations, and affiliations with other such organizations, if any. This information was used to help gauge the extent—and cost—of the program of technical assistance needed to strengthen the intermediaries. BANSEFI has recruited international organizations specialized in providing technical assistance to savings and credit institutions and their sector organizations began in 2001. Action plans have now been formalized for 381 institutions’, of a total of 400 that are expected to participate in the program. The organizational basis of the commercially- oriented network has already been formed with the establishment of “L@Red de la Gente” (“The People’s Network”), a voluntary internet-based alliance of popular savings and credit institutions and BANSEFI. L@Red has already linked BANSEFI’s 554 branches.

Implementing SAGARPA and Progress to Date; As of January 2004, PATMIR had so far strengthened and increased the outreach capacity of 41 savings and credit institutions and their branches and providing more than 10,000 clients with access to financial services from new branches or institutions, and improving the financial institutions upon which nearly 24,000 people rely.  The program now has operations in three more  regions of the country and is expected to sustainably integrate more than 80,000 people from Mexico`s poorest, most marginalized groups into the financial system before it finishes in 2007.PATMIR works extensively with individuals and groups in these rural. PATMIR helps the EACPs incorporate new ways of attracting and responding to marginalized clients by hiring multi-lingual staff to promote their services and introducing personal digital assistants and mobile banking to make savings more convenient and attractive.

Benefits for Institutions and clients ; Efficiency gains will accrue to the EACPs from staff training, upgrading internal controls, and building credit appraisal and risk management capacity, and through the services provided by BANSEFI and network organizations. The alliance BANSEFI has created with sector institutions through L@Red de la Gente (which currently includes more than 730 participating branch locations) is expected to include more 3,000 points of service by 2008. As of December 31, 2003,L@Red de la Gente had distributed payments from federal health, nutrition, education, and agricultural production programs to more than 1.5 million beneficiaries, and the number is expected to grow to 3.3 million by the end of 2004.By receiving transfer payments through L@Red, poor beneficiaries are introduced to financial institutions and encouraged to participate as members or clients

Sum up of all of above, Mexican micro-credit program BANSEFI and SAGRAPA`s(2001) main focus is not only to bring the poor in financial system but also teaching them how to better manage the cash resources they already have. From the BANSEFI and SAGARPA programs we concluded the following facts; Government intervention can effectively increase access to financial services for low income households and businesses by getting the regulatory framework right, building the institutional capacity of financial institutions, and subsidizing the deployment of modern technology to increase the efficiency of service providers. Packaging the development of adequate regulations and supervision, institution capacity building, and technological infrastructure is more likely to yield sustainable results. Outreach expansion efforts among the poor in marginalized rural areas have much better long-term impact.