Utah , US
The divide between urban-rural knowledge and education and training is one of today’s main barriers in eradicating poverty and hunger. Four out of five of the at least 72 million out of school children (UNESCO 2009) and, as a consequence, of about 774 million illiterate youth and adults are rural people.
At WTGF we believe that education is the most effective way to empower the rural poor and that it is the key to developing capabilities, building confidence and increases the chances for individuals and communities to grow themselves out of poverty.
We believe in the power of positivity which empowers individuals, families and communities to identify the broadest range of educational, vocational and entrepreneurial pathways out of poverty.
To make our belief into actions, the WTGF, its friends and partners meet once a year during an educational conference on Behalf of Rural Togo. After Atlanta in 2010 and Denver in 2011, the 2012 conference will be held in the beautiful City of Salt Lake in Utah from the 06 and 07 of September 2012. This conference is being presented by World Togolese Foundation in collaboration with its affiliates and the support from the Global Togolese community.
Our goal is to bring awareness on the state of education and its infrastructures in rural areas in Togo, explore current solutions and elaborate a plan of action to better serve those undeniably deprived communities, with input from many educators, experts and official representatives.
FAO education expert Lavinia Gasperini said that “Illiteracy is a correlate of poverty and hunger and is mainly a rural phenomenon which hinders rural development and food security, threatens productivity and health and limits opportunities to improve livelihoods, particularly for rural girls and women.”
Girls remain woefully outnumbered in African schools. They make up nearly 60 percent of the children who should be in school but in fact don't attend. Part of the problem is economic, but much of the reason remains rooted in societies that undervalue girls and, in some cases, abuse them. These problems are prevalent in Togo, but there's some progress as well and we all can be apart of the solution. The Togo Girls Scholarship Program by the WTGF is a first baby-step. During in Salt Lake City, the WTGF will announce the recipients of the 2012 Scholarship among other activities.
Please join us and take a moment to Register today. Your support is more than just a step toward the right direction. The Full Program will be pushised 30 days prior to the conference date. For more information, please contact us by using the Contact Form.
