May 2008

• More vaccinations:
• On 25th May,   our staff members had a vaccination day. 96 of them were vaccinated against Typhoid and 92 against Hepatitis-B.
  Recently, we had a Typhoid case among our staff!
• On 27th May, we vaccinated 230 students from EK School with 3rd dose against Hepatitis-B.
  Sponsored by EK Foundation

April 2008

• Following the vaccination programme:
• On 20th April,   2nd dose of Priorix applied to 472 students who have taken the 1st dose in March.
• On 27th April, 2nd dose for hepatitis-B, applied to 230 students from  EAFS who have taken the 1st dose in March.

March 2008

• The Dhaka Project, following one of the most important  key points of our action has a continuous care with the health of the kids, dedicating them a careful vaccination programme.
     On 20th March we vaccinated:  
  • 472 students with Priorix (against measles, mumps and rubella, next dose on 20th April.
     On 27th March 2008 we vaccinated:  
  • 430 students from the old school for hepatitis-B, booster dose. The other 3 doses have been given last years.
    
  • 230 students for hepatitis-B, 1st dose. These are students from the new school (EAFS) There are 3 more doses to be given; 2nd dose on 27th April, 3rd dose on 27th May and last dose in 2009.
    
  • 215 students with Typherix, (for typhoid) 1st dose. These are (EAFS) students too. Next dose schedulled to 2011.
    
  
  The expenses related with these preventive measures have had a cost of 503217 Taka ( 27,348 .75 Dhs - 7,324.84 USD - 4,634.00 Eur ).
  
  All these vaccinations have been financed by Emirates Airline Foundation and donors from Dubai.
  
  

• Kay Smith an ex Purser for Emirates Airlines has been a big contributor since the beginning of the Dhaka Project.
  Sadly she left Dubai 3 months ago to work in another airline in UK.
  When we thought we had lost a great volunteer and supporter, she sent a message saying her mum's neighbour has did a garage sale for the project and raised 250 pounds.
  
  

• The Zayed Foundation has visited the Project earlier this month.
  You can find their feedback about The Dhaka Project in the link below:
  Zayed Foundation Feedback

February 2006

• The Latifa School for Girls (established in 1982 by
  H.H. Sheikh Maktoum Bin Rashid Al Maktoum under
  the aegis of the Government of Dubai) has kindly donated a variety of electrical equipment and books.
  
  Our kids and staff would like to thank all the team involved for their amazing willingness to help and in
  only days having secured facilities to enhance our
  school beyond our wildest dreams.

• As part of the World Thinking Day (on 22nd February), the Rainbows, Brownies and Girl Guides of the Dubai District, British Guides in Foreign Countries (an integral part of Girlguiding UK) dedicated their efforts and fund raising, in entirety, to the Dhaka Project.
  
  The result was phenomenal. In addition to raising
  significant funds, we were also honoured with bags
  of educational books, stationary, children’s clothes
  and toys.
  
  The children all showed thoughtful consideration for
  the cause and we hope we can repay their hospitality
  and kindness with a long term relationship with
  The Dhaka Project School children.

• Evaluation visits held by potential Computer Training Centre sponsor. International volunteer dentists arrived for 2 day dental health checks and work. Restructure of Kindergarten schedule to focus on increased early learning Recruitment of 4 new staff into School.
  


• 14 new families join the project and relocate from the slums.
  

Click here to see January's Newletter
Click here to see January's Newletter part 2

Click here to see March's Newletter
Click here to see March's Newletter page 2

Click Here for an article on Saved From The Slums.html


The Dhaka Project : A Volunteer's Experience

[ Mr Richard Ng, Senior Vice-President Customer Affairs & Service Audit, Emirates Airline, recently spent four days as a volunteer worker of The Dhaka Project in Bangladesh. Here is his story].

My flight EK582 was taxiing ready for take-off at Dubai International airport. It was 3.45 am on a Saturday. This trip to Bangladesh was to experience first hand, how children from the slums in Dhaka were brought from abject poverty to a life of hope by EK cabin attendant Maria Conceicao, the Founder of The Dhaka Project. She was with me onboard togetherwith lady volunteer worker Gema Antinolo Martinfrom Spain.

As I prepare for retirement in Emirates come 31st January 2007, I wanted to feel the reality of what is involved in charity-related work, a new vocation for me post-retirement. The Dhaka Project gave me this chance.

I land in Dhaka at 9.55 am. Bleary-eyed.  My very first visit to Bangladesh. I headed for my guest house, Skylink House, in a district called Uttara. This place is close to the airport. It is near The Dhaka Project's premises.

The guest room is clean. Bed sheets, blankets, pillows met satisfactory standards of hygiene and cleanliness. For Dhs 50.00 a night, I had an air-conditioned room with a functioning ceiling fan. And this room rate included breakfast too! Three slices of toast, marmalade, butter, an omelette or fried egg, a banana, a bottle of mineral water and tea or coffee.

Volunteers also have the choice of 5-star Sheraton Dhaka downtown. A bit far from where The Dhaka Project is and daily commuting from downtown to The Dhaka Project  is wasted time sitting in day long traffic jam.

Volunteer workers visiting Dhaka pay for all their own expenses; airfare, hotel …

Once I had checked in my hotel and  taken lunch, I was then off to the Dhaka Project's premises on a familiarization tour that afternoon . I used a trishaw to get there. It takes 20 minutes of pedal-power to arrive. Cost? A paltry 50 fils! And the poor trishaw rider had to work so hard pedaling me all the way up and down uneven roads.

On arrival, I was introduced to The Dhaka Project's local team members, see school classes in session, meet the children , tour of the various rooms used for training, schooling, children's meal rooms, nursery and dormitories. Day 1 gave me a sense of what the next few days might look like.

Day 2. This is the morning after my arrival. The children of The Dhaka Project had assembled for the start of the day.

I was given the honour of distributing to each child, a brand new blanket as the cold months had arrived. Funds from the Emirates Airline Foundation bought these blankets. The smiles on each child's face told me how grateful they were. Every child said in clear audible English: Thank you!

It was planned that I engaged in recreational activities with the children. A badminton net was strung up and the children literally rushed to want to play with me. They are extremely happy to see foreigners, and volunteers are so welcomed.

By playing games with them, the children become less shy. They also become socially confident with the passing days engaging in English conversation with visiting volunteers.

Next, it was music and entertainment time as part of the recreation session.

I had bought for the children a four-stringed musical instrument called a "Ukelele".
By the time the sing-a-long session ended, these children, who previously lived in the slums in Dhaka, were belting out the tune and words of three English-language songs I had played and taught them: "You are my sunshine"; "Sunshine on my shoulders", "My bonnie lies over the ocean"…and of course the usual children's songs like "twinkle twinkle little star".

Music sessions carried on over the next three days in small groups as there were nearly a hundred children old enough who could participate with me.

The rest of Day 2 saw me giving classroom walls a fresh coat of paint, smoothening out a plank to be used as shelving rack for the children's library, sorting out and packing little bottles of shampoo, bathing soap, body lotion that the children will get in a gift pack.

I was lucky to get the opportunity to do the following things during the rest of my stay:
Visited a slum in Dhaka and talked slum-dwellers into allowing their children to begin school in January 2007 under the care of The Dhaka Project. 15 children will start school at The Dhaka Project's premises in the New Year.

• Got agreement from the Headmaster of a neighbourhood school to accept 300 street-children for schooling in January 2007. The Dhaka Project's school can accommodate only 200 children. It is now at maximum capacity. There are many street-children in the neighbourhood not in school and begging on the streets.
• Participated in "Neighbourhood clean-up day". School children armed with brooms, trash bins, disposable gloves scoured the neighbourhood and picked up scraps of paper and rubbish. This activity taught them social responsibility.
• Engaged the children in conversational English. You don't need special skills to do this. Just enthusiasm and a good sense of humour.