ARCHIVED MEDIA RELEASE
PA/22/2004 6 September 2004
Australian Assistance to Oxfam Trust Projects in Delhi and Jharkhand
The Australian High Commissioner, Ms Penny Wensley AO, today presented Oxfam Trust’s project manager, Ms Madhushree Bannerjee, with a cheque of Rs 293,150 to fund a project which aims to improve access to education for tribal and dalit girls in Hazaribagh District, Jharkand.
Ms Wensley said, “Improved access to education is crucial for India’s long term growth and development. This project’s focus on tribal and dalit girls is necessary as the enrolment and literacy rates for girls from these communities is much lower than the national average.”
The funds will be utilised by Oxfam trust to run a bridging school to assist the girls move into the formal education system. Many of the girls have not had the opportunity to receive schooling in the past.
The High Commissioner presented the cheque during a visit to “Shiksha: Ek Asha” (Education: A Hope), a non-formal education centre in Madanpur Khaddar JJ Colony. The Australian High Commission has provided Rs 295,933 to Oxfam Trust, which runs this project.
Oxfam Trust is working with families who have been relocated from slums in the suburbs of Delhi to the resettlement colony. The children’s education was disrupted by the move, and Oxfam Trust’s goal is for the children to receive formal education once a government primary school is built in the area.
The funding is part of the Direct Aid Program (DAP) managed by the Australian High Commission in New Delhi. The DAP funds grassroots development programs in a range of areas, including education, health, income generation and the environment.
For additional details, please contact Ms Clare Duffield, Second Secretary, Australian High Commission, on telephone 51494319, or Ms Madhushree Banerjee,Program Manager, Oxfam, on tel. 9810360435.