Population Council Research that makes a difference

The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Population Council Support the Expansion of the Ishraq Program for Out-of-School Girls in Rural Upper Egypt

CAIRO, EGYPT (29 June 2009) — The Population Council, through a grant from the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Cairo, is supporting the introduction of Ishraq to 30 additional villages in Fayoum, Sohag, and Qena. Ishraq is a program that provides out-of-school adolescent girls in rural Upper Egypt with a package of services to prepare them for better life options. It aims to promote a healthy and active transition to adulthood for vulnerable adolescent girls, and to prepare them to make informed, positive decisions about life issues of schooling, marriage, and livelihoods. Ishraq is implemented in close collaboration with the National Council for Youth and in partnership with nongovernmental organizations based in Cairo and the governorates.*

Over the next three years, the Population Council and its partners aim to provide out-of-school girls between the ages of 12 and 15 in the 30 villages in Fayoum, Sohag, and Qena governorates with training in life skills as well as basic and financial literacy. Ishraq will also offer the girls an opportunity to learn and practice sports and receive nutritious meals. The National Council for Youth provides safe spaces at its youth centers in the villages, designating girls-only hours four times each week for the girls in the program. A major goal of the project is to support the National Council for Youth in reinforcing its capacity to fully adopt Ishraq and incorporating the elements of the program within the National Council for Youth’s activities. Ishraq also mobilizes the community and helps create an environment that enables social change by engaging parents, brothers, and community leaders.

The expansion of Ishraq builds on the success of the program during three earlier pilot phases that began in 2001. Those pilots demonstrated that the program has a positive impact on the well-being of the girls who participated in terms of their knowledge and attitudes regarding their lives. More than 90 percent of the girls who finished the program successfully passed the official literacy exam of the General Authority for Adult Education. Among them, 60 percent then entered the formal education system. Moreover, participating girls were eight times more likely to denounce female circumcision compared to nonparticipating girls. This positive impact confirms the Population Council’s research findings that investing in adolescent girls is a key development and social justice strategy that would help Egypt achieve its development goals. The program will include a monitoring and evaluation system that will measure its impact and provide evidence and recommendations on successful approaches for expansion.

Further information on Ishraq is available on the project page.

* Ishraq partners include Save the Children, Teaming for Development, Caritas, and Egyptian Food Bank, in addition to six community-based organizations.

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About the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Cairo is supporting this program as part of its commitment and contribution to realizing the Millennium Development Goals, particularly MDG 3. The Netherlands has committed itself, both nationally and internationally, to improving the position of women and girls and to striving for greater equality between men and women. International treaties and agreements on women and children’s rights constitute the framework for Dutch policy in this area.

About the Population Council
The Population Council confronts critical health and development issues—from stopping the spread of HIV to improving reproductive health and ensuring that young people lead full and productive lives. Through biomedical, social science, and public health research in 50 countries, we work with our partners to deliver solutions that lead to more effective policies, programs, and technologies that improve lives around the world. Established in 1952 and headquartered in New York, the Council is a nongovernmental, nonprofit organization governed by an international board of trustees.

For further information, please contact:
The Population Council, West Asia and North Africa Office
59 Misr-Helwan Agriculture Road, Maadi, Cairo, Egypt, 11431
Tel: +20 22 525 5965/7/8 Fax: +20 22 525 5962
E-mail: asalem@popcouncil.org; Web site: http://www.popcouncil.org

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