Pakistan

Self-help for Christians in need

Poor Pakistani Christian schoolchildren with dreams for the future

Supporting schooling for a child from a poor family can help realize the dream of education

By Henrik Ertner Rasmussen

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When I was recently in Pakistan, I met with children from poor Christian families in villages in northern Punjab.

Pilot, flight attendant, bank manager?

The schoolchildren I met were mostly from 5th and 8th grade. When they finish these two school years, they have to sit a special exam organized by the state for school children all over the country. The other school years end with the schools' own annual exams. The children I met all have to go to a school home almost an hour's drive from where they live, otherwise they cannot progress in the school system. They are very much looking forward to getting support from some of our donors who would like to give them a scholarship that can lead them towards the goals of their dreams. Some of the dreams they shared with me were to become a teacher, doctor, nurse, bank manager, flight attendant - and then there was one girl who dreamed of becoming a pilot. Her favorite subjects are also physics and mathematics, so of course I encouraged her to become really good at that. It's an essential prerequisite for being trained as a pilot. It was of course funny that we could sit and say: "Here we have a pilot and a flight attendant, all we need is the plane! - Well, we'll have to talk to the bank manager about a loan for that!"

Education after school

It is important to our partner organization that the children are, as far as possible, followed through with their scholarships all the way to their final exams at school. Based on the school's knowledge of the children and their abilities, it will then be decided which education will best suit the students. The most likely outcome is that they will be able to take a technical education; but who knows? One of the students we supported when we started the school sponsorship program actually became a head nurse at one of the best hospitals in Lahore, and another became a police officer.