(MissionNewswire) While Ghana’s economy continues to improve, nearly 45 percent of the population lives on less than $1 a day, according to UNICEF. Ghana ranks 135 out of 187 countries on the United Nations Development Program's 2011 Human Development Index, and rural poverty remains widespread in the
(MissionNewswire) In celebration of World Teacher’s Day, Salesian Missions joins with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and many organizations around the globe in focusing on the vital role that teachers play in student’s lives shaping them to have sustainable futures and
(United Nations) There is a huge need for well-trained and well-supported teachers, United Nations officials today warned, marking World Teachers' Day with a call for the recruitment of millions of professionals, particularly in African and Arab States worst hit by the teacher shortage. Some 5.2 million
(MissionNewswire) Last year, more than 3 million Haitian children returned to school with 200,000 of them educated in Salesian-run institutions. The country’s educational system is continuing to be rebuilt after the devastating January 2010 earthquake that destroyed 90 percent of schools and 60 percent of hospitals,
(MissionNewswire) East Timor has endured a decades-long civil war and is home to 1.1 million people. According to the United Nations Development Program Human Development Index, in 2007, East Timor ranked 162 out of 182 countries for life expectancy, access to education and standard of living. The
(MissionNewswire) Mozambique is one of the poorest countries in the world. Despite impressive growth and development over the last several years that has reduced the once 70 percent poverty rate (in the late 1990s) to 54 percent today, poverty continues to be severe and widespread, according the
(MissionNewswire) Building the skills of India’s rapidly rising workforce is a key focus for reducing poverty, according to the World Bank. More than 30 percent of the country’s population lives in poverty while nearly 44 percent of the work force is illiterate and only 17 percent
(MissionNewswire) Having access to education is a critical step in overcoming poverty. In the Philippines, drop-out rates double as children reach secondary school and there are more than 11 million out-of-school youth, according to UNICEF. Almost a quarter of the country's population (including a large percentage
(MissionNewswire) Cambodia has a long history of violence and conflict that has driven up poverty rates in the country. Having moved past the troubles of the Khmer Rouge regime, Cambodia’s economy has been strengthening with particular growth in construction, tourism and agriculture. However, according to the
(MissionNewswire) Although viewed as a relatively wealthy country, Argentina has a poverty rate of just over 26 percent, according to the World Bank. Close to 4.4 million people live below the poverty line and the country’s high school dropout rate is close to 20 percent. Youth account