The Need
Education provides children opportunities to escape poverty, gain a voice in the community, and experience a better quality of life. But worldwide, 115 million elementary-age children are unable to attend school.
Many poor parents cannot pay school fees or buy supplies. Communities often lack suitable school buildings and qualified teachers. And families may need their children’s help in the fields or family business just to survive.
Without an education, a child has little hope of breaking free from poverty and reaching his or her full potential.
Fast Facts
One -third of all children do not complete five years of schooling — the minimum needed for basic literacy skills.
Two-thirds of the world’s 875 million illiterate adults are women.
Education reduces poverty: studies show that each year of schooling increases a person’s earnings by a worldwide average of about 10 percent.
World Vision’s Response
World Vision’s goal is to ensure that all children receive access to basic education that will help them become fulfilled, productive members of their communities.
Increasing educational opportunities
Financial assistance | World Vision assists parents in need with the cost of school fees and/or uniforms for their children.
Programs for disadvantaged children | World Vision programs are opening doors for children around the world who might otherwise be denied an education. In Armenia, for example, preschool programs for disabled children allow them to socialize in regular classrooms instead of being isolated at home or in an institution.
SchoolTools | This program ensures that poor children have the supplies they need to attend school — basics like pens, paper, and pencils.
Advocacy | World Vision advocates for girls’ education to ensure they have the same opportunity as boys to attend school and develop their potential.
Improving classroom facilities
Building new schools | In communities lacking school facilities, new schools are constructed to help make education a reality for impoverished children.
Repairing existing schools | World Vision helps make improvements and additions to schools in places like Afghanistan, where dilapidated buildings have been transformed into safe learning environments benefiting thousands of students.
Adult education
Vocational training | World Vision provides adults with access to job-skills training that can help them earn a sustainable income for their families.
Literacy training | In communities around the world, World Vision literacy programs are helping adults learn to read, write, and count — establishing a legacy of literacy that can last for generations.
With help from donors like you, World Vision is bringing the gift of education to millions of needy children and their parents around the world.
Your Opportunity to Help
You can transform the lives of children by ensuring they receive a basic education — and the opportunity to work toward a better future.
Your gift will make an impact. For example:
$50 sends a child to school for a year, providing important stability and instilling the practical skills and knowledge that can help break the cycle of poverty.
A gift of any amount will help meet urgent education needs so that more children can achieve their God-given potential.
Juliet's Story
When Juliet Nantume lost her parents, school became a luxury she couldn’t afford.
The 12-year-old Ugandan girl attended class when she could, but most days she had to work in her neighbor’s garden to earn money to buy her uniform and school supplies — things her 17-year-old brother, the new head of their household, couldn’t afford.
When World Vision staff learned about Juliet, they came alongside her, giving her school supplies, clothing, and a goat to help generate future income.
Now Juliet is back in school. Once again, this young girl is free to learn — and to strive for a future beyond poverty.
"I applied my heart to know, to search and seek out wisdom..."
—Ecclesiastes 7:25 (NKJV)
Juliet's Story 
