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Why Invest in Girls' Education?
Educating a girl increases the quality of life for an entire community:
- An extra year of education can reduce regional infant mortality by 5-10%.
- Girls who stay in school for seven or more years marry four years later and have
two fewer children.
- One extra year of education beyond the average boosts her eventual wages by 10-20%.
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Why Invest in Women?
Aid programs provide women opportunities to better their health, education, and wellbeing--but the impact extends to the world around her, creating a better life for her family and building a strong community.
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Welcome!
Iqra Fund would like to thank each of our board members for volunteering their time and energy to implement successful programs.
We would especially like to welcome our newest board members, Tim Forbes and Deidre Combs!
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Regions of Focus
Iqra Fund works in the remote tribal regions of Zawiya Ahansal in Morocco and the northern Karakorum Mountains in Pakistan.
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2012 Iqra Fund
Program Details
In the Baltistan
region of Pakistan
Iqra Fund will:
Work towards reaching 100% enrollment for girls in Hushe Village's 1,000 residents and surrounding tribal areas of 12,000 residents.
Increase graduation rates for students, especially girls, from primary, middle, and high schools for a region of over 12,000 residents.
Increase the quality of education in the region's schools through teacher trainings, library development, preschool education, and
scholarships for girls.
Improve the school environment with school supplies and furniture, clean latrines, and quality teachers.
Work to reduce infant and maternal mortality through mother and daughter workshops and through the empowerment and education of local traditional midwives.
In the remote Berber tribal regions of Morocco,
Iqra Fund will:
Work in partnership with the Atlas Cultural Foundation to increase the quality of education--especially that of girls--with scholarships, tutoring programs, and local leadership capacity building.
Lead community health awareness days with local traditional midwives, women heads of household, and regional leadership to
reduce infant and
maternal mortality for 15,000 Berbers.
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A Letter from our Director
In February, I returned from a winter trip to Hushe Village, Pakistan, with heartwarming updates from schoolchildren, teachers, and parents about their deep desire to improve the access to a quality education in their region, especially for girls. "A girl's education is the most valuable inheritance a father can give his daughter," explained Ghulam Hussain, the President of the local community-based organization Iqra Fund partners with.
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Mohammad Ali keeps his granddaughter warm
in Hushe Village. Only 20% of the girls from Hushe attend primary school, and few have
gone on to high school. "My granddaughter may be a doctor some day!" he exclaims.
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"For a man, if he is educated, it is only for him. If one girl gets an education she gives that education to the whole family." A girl's education is the most effective way to improve community health, economic conditions, and overall human rights--and that is the mission of Iqra Fund. Through our newsletters, we will share with you stories from the communities we serve in the most remote regions of the Atlas and Karakorum Mountains in Morocco and Pakistan.
Thank you for your continued support! 
Genevieve Chabot |
Spring in Morocco, A Time for New Beginnings
As the snow begins to melt in the remote mountain villages of Pakistan and Morocco where Iqra Fund works, families prepare for transition into spring and summer. Mud and stone homes open up to more hospitable weather, and villagers prepare the fields
 for planting corn, wheat, and potatoes. Women and children spend days at the river washing blankets and clothes.
And children are preparing for their final exams. With the local public school offering only half-day 1st-6th grade classes, Iqra Fund has launched an after-school tutoring program in the Zawiya Ahansal tribal communities of Morocco. In partnership with the Atlas Cultural Foundation, local community associations, and the Ministry of Education. Implementing the tutoring program is an integral step towards improving student test scores and attendance rates and increasing graduation rates from primary school--especially for girls.
In addition, Iqra Fund is working closely with community leaders and families in Zawiya Ahansal to select ten girls to
 receive scholarships for high school starting this summer. Because going to high school means traveling outside the village for the first time for many girls, the scholarship program also provides girls and their families with pre-scholarship workshops and additional support as they transition to living in dorms.
Kaltoum, a young woman who will be helping with the mother and daughter workshops this spring, expresses excitement for the girls who will be able to continue their education past primary school. "I had to leave school in 4th grade because the cost was too much for my family. If I were able to continue going to school, I would not have to work every day in the fields or at home. Now I will marry soon."
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| Morocco Facts & Figures
Population: About 32 million.
Size: Slightly larger than California.
Female literacy rate is estimated to be lower than 10%.
Over 90% of women give birth at home in Zawiya Ahansal.
Maternal mortality in Zawiya Ahansal is estimated at 1:19.
Infant mortality in Zawiya Ahansal is estimated to be more than 15%.
*Iqra Fund works in remote regions where census data is unavailable. We have a well-developed and locally empowering data collection process for our monitoring and evaluation program. The data we collect will help better define tribal and regional literacy rates, school attendance rates, and infant and maternal mortality rates.
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 Iqra translates to "read" from Arabic.
Iqra Fund operates in remote villages in Pakistan and Morocco, providing opportunities for women and children to improve their quality of life through education. Contact Info Iqra Fund 317 West Lamme Street Bozeman, MT 59715 Genevieve Chabot, Ed.D. Co-Founder and Executive Director |
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