There is a growing tendency amongst the Maltese to throw money at every cause and charity they can think of.  Generosity and solidarity are, of course, a good thing.  But when they are used over and over again, by fiscal means only, it becomes a bit lazy and may actually delay needed help.  The scheme to compensate families who improve their child’s school attendance, by giving them money, is a case in point.

The Commissioner for Children, Helen D’Amato, questioned the validity of this scheme, in so much as it does not ensure that the extra income provided to the families is actually linked to the attendance, since the issue itself of absenteeism may be due to other more serious problems, not solved by baiting.  Naturally, since the families fall within a needy threshold, some aid is welcomed.  But it is possible that such contributions actually marginalise the children further, because it can discriminate and even make life harder for the child, who, despite willingness, fails to go to school.

A present and real way of dealing with this issue, so that the children benefit from receiving education, is offered by a Maltese NGO called Drama Outreach Project  or its more familiar name – DO Cambodia and DO Malta.  At Drama Outreach (DO) Project they reach out to underprivileged communities through their developmental drama programme.

Their first project kicked off in 2013 in Cambodia where they worked with two local organisations –the Sacrifice Families and Orphanage Development Association (SFODA) and Le Restaurant des Enfants (LRDE), the victory kitchen for street children - to deliver a  dynamic tailor-made course, drawing on the acclaimed HELEN O’GRADY ACADEMY  curriculum.

Through the efforts and framework of the Volunteer for Children and Development Organisation (VCDO) they were able to implement their programme in these institutions.  The intention is not to turn the children into doctors or lawyers but to expose them to a basic schooling to learn to read and write, at the very least and offer a point of reference in their life.

Cambodia faces a poverty situation for children on a national scale, due to its history under Pol Pot.  The children are left with little alternative than to beg or scavenge for some income, or they risk their life at the traffic lights to sell flowers or other similar goods.  Some children will not go home until they manage to sell all they have in hand and home is a shack or a spot under a bridge. 

During their first trip to Cambodia, the NGO realised that one of the most effective and sustainable ways of supporting the children is through sponsorship. Sponsorships are a continual support system for those children of LRDE and SFODA where a yearly fee is paid to cover their basic needs such as food, clothing and medical checks. Sponsorships also make up for the considerable shortfall in state funding. In this way sponsors - or godparents are they affectionately called -  allow these children to continue having a means to encourage parents to send children to school and in turn supply them with rice and other materials to relieve the financial burden.  Financial aid for structural projects at SFODA, the orphanage, have also helped enormously to improve the living environment.

To date, and as a direct result of the hard work and dedication of DO Project, close to 120 children are in school, giving them the chance of a better and more secure future.  In situations where a child is not attending school, DO is informed and a sustainable solution, together with the parents and consultation of sponsors is found.  Other times, the pressures on the child to work remain, so attending school in the morning is not effective.  In this case, DO and LRDE found that private tutoring for these children was needed.

The principal of sponsorship works well for all the parties involved.  For the beneficiaries because it provides food and essential items to the families who send their children to the LRDE and to school, for the children because they have a chance to receive an education and for the Sponsors because it creates a bond and a commitment towards the future of the sponsored child which goes beyond a donation.  Regular communication between the sponsors and DO Cambodia ensures that their money is going where it is intended.

“You have given these children 
the opportunity to be children"
Ngauv Chhiv, co-founder of Le Restaurant des Enfants (LRDE).

After their most recent visit this August, DO Project, were able to see remarkable progress and results in the welfare and development of the children.  The children know their sponsors by name and write to them and feel secure that they can go to school and even feel proud that by doing so, their earn bags of rice for their family, who need it to survive.  They feel they can make a difference and the smiles on their face show their pride in taking provisions to their family.

Do Project have also sought to introduce the Helen O’Grady programme to schools in Malta.  With DO MALTA they deliver a development-through-drama programme, together with the Helen O’Grady Academy, on a local level.

Gharghur Primary School was identified as the school that would benefit from the programme and a full year of the programme was implemented. Marisa Pace, a teacher at Gharghur Primary, commented that "the children's diction in the English language has remarkably improved through these sessions. The children really enjoyed it and did their very best - it was a nice and fruitful experience.”

DO Project president Alan Montanaro said that “DO Malta provided a unique opportunity for children to improve their spoken skills and understanding of the English language through usage. The Helen O'Grady Academy gives children a boost of confidence and a sense of creativity and allows them to absorb, repeat and create without fear of ridicule. All this gives them confidence to deal with any issues they may be dealing with at home or at school.”

DO Project will be continuing its work in Gharghur and will start a new project in Pieta School as of the next school year in 2015. Meeting with Her Excellency President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca, Chiara Hyzler, co-founder and vice-president of the organisation, was able to have a dialogue with the aim of cooperation and solidarity.   Keeping the Maltese children well in mind, the President praised the organisation. 

It would be, perhaps, better than just a cheque payment, if a Board were to be set up to explore the possibility of applying the same principal of sponsorship to the Maltese children who are missing out on their education and maybe also facing problems at home and in the family.  Certainly, we are looking at 13,000 families which is no small amount.  But we are growing quite familiar with the Public Private/Social Partnership concept now, so why not try to share the scheme in this way?  DO Project Malta could be asked to share their expertise on running the programme, in a way that the social funds are used to provide infrastructure for the families and children, with workers, volunteers and sponsors all coming in on the project on a long-term basis.  In delivering their programme, DO project reach the children in a way that they are often able to understand their needs further, possibly discovering new ones.

A team would be required to identify the individual needs of families, whether it is a lack of education or a health or financial problem that is keeping the children away from school.  This would be done without having to resort to inquisitive questionnaires and intrusive data.  The trust is essential.

The children deserve more than a hand out.  We risk losing another generation of underprivileged children.  Those children who are aware the family is receiving this payment, may think that they are going to be in that situation for life and remain stuck in a pattern, rather than that a good education will help to change their life. 

Even in India and Africa they run similar programmes of support, where help is given to the women, so they can train and work.

It just seems that we went for the most basic and antiquated way of trying to appear to be doing something, without considering the benefit for the children themselves, where political gain was the motivator.   And the poverty cycle continues or gets worse.