The Asia Foundation

60 Merali Scholars will Receive Four-Year Undergraduate Scholarships at Prestigious Mongolian Universities

Ulaanbaatar – In a country where a limited portion of students enroll in higher education, many young Mongolian women face challenges in pursuing studies at a college or university. Committed to improving access to education across Asia, The Asia Foundation today launched the Shirin Pandju Merali Foundation Scholars Program in Mongolia to support university education for qualified female students who, despite their academic competence, are unable to continue their education due to financial constraints.

Through a generous donation from the Shirin Pandju Merali Foundation, established by Pandju Merali in honor of his late wife, Shirin Merali, the program will provide four-year scholarships to 60 women at two prestigious public universities in Ulaanbaatar: National University of Mongolia (NUM) and Mongolian University of Science and Technology (MUST). The  program in Mongolia will enroll 48 women in hard-science bachelor’s degree programs and 12 in social science bachelor’s degree programs.

The Asia Foundation will partner with a local Mongolian non-governmental organization, the Zorig Foundation, which has extensive experience in implementing scholarship programs in Mongolia to support the selection and monitoring of scholarship recipients.. The first scholars in Mongolia will enroll in September 2010. All costs for tuition, fees, educational supplies, and books will be covered by the scholarships.

Studies show higher education is essential to reducing poverty. Population increases in Ulaanbaatar, and great distances across Mongolia, combined with poor infrastructure and seasonal challenges in rural areas contribute to difficulties in providing children and youth with quality education – critical for driving economic growth. This program is especially timely given Mongolia’s recent winter Dzud during which extremely cold temperatures resulted in the loss of more than eight million livestock that disproportionally affected herder families in rural areas.

Since 1954, The Asia Foundation has worked to improve access to and the quality of education across Asia—especially for girls. In 1993, the Foundation was the first international NGO to set up operations in Mongolia. Since then, the Foundation has played an instrumental role in developing and strengthening governance and civil society in Mongolia.

In June 2010, The Asia Foundation launched the Shirin Pandju Merali Foundation Scholars Program in Pakistan for 200 young women.  The Pakistani scholars will enroll in the 2010-2011 academic year.

Thursday, August 23, 2010
5:30 networking reception, 6-7:30 p.m. program
Location: Commonwealth San Francisco Club Office
MLF: Asia-Pacific Affairs
Cost: MEMBERS FREE, $20 non-members

Following the overthrow of the misogynistic Taliban regime in Afghanistan, the situation for women seemed to enter a promising era. A Ministry of Women was established, and a new constitution guaranteed women 25-percent representation in the legislature. But progress has been stymied in Afghanistan and regionally. More than 80 percent of Afghan women are illiterate and many remain victims of violence. Our experts will address the key challenges that hamper progress in both Afghanistan and South Asia and present possible solutions. The panel will argue that improving the situation of women is the most effective way to ensure sustainable development in the region.

Katherine Brown: Truman National Security Project Fellow; Former Communications and Public Events Advisor, U.S. Embassy Kabul; NGO Worker; Former White House Staffer
Kate Francis: Assistant Director, Women’s Empowerment Program, the Asia Foundation.
Olga Oliker: Senior International Policy Analyst, the RAND Corporation

Program Organizer: Paul Clarke
In association with the Truman National Security Project Educational Institute, The Asia Foundation and the Asia Society of Northern California.

Purchase tickets here.

On June 14, 2010, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that Baysaa Ganbayasgakh, founder of the Gender Equality Center (GEC) and long-time partner of The Asia Foundation in Mongolia, was among the nine “Trafficking in Persons” (TIP) Heroes at the launch of the 2010 Annual TIP Report release ceremony in Washington D.C.

The TIP Heroes are individuals around the world who devote their lives to combating human trafficking. Ranging from NGO workers to police officers, they are selected for their work to protect victims, punish offenders and raise awareness of trafficking in their countries.

Baysaa worked for several years at the National Center Against Violence (NCAV) as a Child Protection Unit Coordinator before establishing the GEC in 2002. The organization has grown from a staff of three people to its current staff of 12, and runs two shelters, two hotlines, and a variety of programs focusing on human trafficking prevention, victim protection, and gender and migration issues. Over the past eight years, the GEC has provided assistance to more than 300 survivors of trafficking, and repatriated 160 victims, including women, men, and children from across Asia and Europe. “This award would not be possible without my strong and dedicated team of legal consultants, social workers, and psychologists,” Baysaa said.

The Asia Foundation has supported the GEC for several years in operating a hotline for victims and potential victims of trafficking, capacity building and strategic planning, and is currently working with the GEC to implement a prevention and public awareness campaign. The Asia Foundation congratulates Baysaa on this well-deserved honor.

San Francisco

Many young Pakistani women from low-income families can only dream of going to college or university. Now, however, some disadvantaged young women will have the chance for their dream to come true. With a generous donation from the Shirin Pandju Merali Foundation, established by Pandju Merali in honor of his late wife Shirin Merali, The Asia Foundation is set to launch a scholarship program that will enable young Pakistani women—”Merali Scholars”—to pursue undergraduate studies at eight highly respected colleges and universities in Pakistan. The Asia Foundation will enroll 66 women in hard-science degree programs, 67 women in medical degree programs, and 67 women in engineering degree programs.

The Pakistani literacy rate for women is one of the lowest in the world. If poor families cannot afford to send all of their children to school, they usually give preference to boys over girls. Many girls enrolled in primary school are forced to drop out before secondary school to contribute to family income. Poor girls who do manage to finish secondary school have few options to continue their education as their families cannot afford to pay for college and university tuition and books.

The Asia Foundation will partner with a local Pakistani non-profit, the CARE Foundation, to assist with scholarship recipient selection and manage the logistics of the program. The Shirin Pandju Merali Foundation scholarships will cover the cost of tuition, fees, uniforms, and educational supplies and books. Without this scholarship, the young women who will be selected would not be able to continue their education beyond secondary school.

Since 1954, The Asia Foundation has worked to improve access to and the quality of education across Asia—especially for girls and women. During the 1990s in Pakistan, The Asia Foundation worked with local non-governmental organizations in remote rural areas where there were no girls’ schools to enable girls to get at least a primary education. The Asia Foundation has also worked to strengthen the education system throughout Pakistan by bringing together educators, donors, policy-makers, and government officials to examine the state of education in Pakistan and make recommendations.

The Asia Foundation will implement this five-year, $560,359 project with support from the Shirin Pandju Merali Foundation. The first Merali Scholars in Pakistan will enroll in the 2010-11 academic year and be supported until they attain an undergraduate degree.

For more information, please visit our Press Room.

The Administrative Staff College of India announced a delegation of secretaries from the Afghanistan Ministry of Women’s Affairs who will visit India to take part in a management development workshop sponsored by The Asia Foundation. Read the full article: “ASCI Training Prog for Afghan Govt Officials kicks off.”

San Francisco

The Asia Foundation announced today it will begin repairs on the Lama-e-Shaheed Girls’ School in Kabul—a school with an enrollment of over 4,500 students from kindergarten through 12th grade. With funding from the Janet Ketcham Foundation, The Asia Foundation will make critical improvements on the school building, which was severely damaged during years of violent conflict and neglect, and also provide brand new textbooks and other educational materials.

The 155 teachers at Lama-e-Shaheed Girls’ School have to make do with outdated textbooks and inadequate educational materials. Because of limited space in the damaged building, students currently learn in makeshift classrooms in hallways, tents, and converted metal shipping containers on the school grounds.

In consultation with the Ministry of Education and the school’s principal, The Asia Foundation prepared construction plans to repair the school’s roof, walls, and wooden floors that have suffered water leaks. The number of classrooms will be increased by reconfiguring large hallways, and the science laboratory will be upgraded with modern equipment and visual aids. The Asia Foundation’s Books for Asia program will donate new English-language books–ranging from computer science and math to communications and political science–to supplement Afghan textbooks. The school’s plumbing will also be upgraded as it currently has only two functioning toilets.

“This generous grant from the Janet Ketcham Foundation enables us to help create a safe, positive learning environment for thousands of Afghan girls, who will help turn the tide on Afghanistan’s extremely low female literacy rate,” said Carol Yost, Director of The Asia Foundation’s Women’s Empowerment program. “We know from our ongoing comprehensive public opinion surveys of the Afghan people that most Afghans highly value education for girls as well as boys, and that parents say they see education as the key to a better future.”

For more information, please visit our Press Room.

In an article in The New Nation on the occasion of International Women’s Day about the increase in women’s access to education and health care in Bangladesh, The Asia Foundation is mentioned for supporting the Female Secondary School Stipend Programme there. Read the full article: “Honouring the women on Women’s Day.”

Vientiane

Read this press release in the Lao language.

At a ceremony held today in Vientiane, The Asia Foundation signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Lao Women’s Union (LWU). The new agreement will allow The Asia Foundation to expand programs that ensure women’s rights and personal security, increase women’s participation in public life, and advance women’s economic opportunities. For over two decades, The Asia Foundation has formed valuable, long-standing relationships with Lao government bodies and local organizations.

“On this important occasion, The Asia Foundation is pleased to reaffirm its commitment to the Lao people and the Lao Women’s Union in their dedicated work to improve social and economic opportunities for women and society as a whole,” said Ms. Gretchen A. Kunze, Laos Country Director for The Asia Foundation. “We look forward to the opportunity to continue our partnership with the Lao Women’s Union and government of the Lao PDR in shared efforts to support development and growth for the entire nation.”

For 20 years, the Foundation has partnered with Lao Women’s Union to implement activities promoting gender equality and the prevention of human trafficking and violence toward women. For instance, in 1995, The Asia Foundation provided financial support to LWU representatives to participate in the Women’s World Conference held in Beijing. In 2003, the Foundation supported the LWU in drafting the Law on Development and Protection of Women, including carrying out a survey on domestic violence to provide data. More recently, the Foundation contributed funds for the construction of a Counseling and Protection Center for Women and Children, as well as technical support for training and upgrading legal knowledge of LWU staff. In addition, The Asia Foundation supported leadership skills training for women political leaders.

Read more about The Asia Foundation’s programs in Laos.

For media inquires, please visit our Press Room.

The Embassy of Afghanistan announced on its homepage that Ambassador Said Jawad hosted a book signing event at the embassy author of the new book, Tall the Mountain, by Awista Ayub. The Asia Foundation is mentioned for co-hosting the event, and background on the Foundation’s Women’s Empowerment Program in Afghanistan are highlighted. Read the full article: “The Embassy Honors Author and Asia Foundation Partnership.”

In a Washington Times article about the effects that the escalating war in Afghanistan has on the role of women there, The Asia Foundation’s Women’s Empowerment Program Director Carol Yost and Board of Trustee member Karl Inderfurth are quoted on the topic. Read the full article: “Democrats torn on Afghanistan, women’s rights.”

In an Australia Broadcast Corporation Connect Asia  program about the progress of establishing democracy in Indonesia, comments on perceptions of women by The Asia Foundation’s Director for Gender and Women’s Participation in Indonesia Hana Satriyo are featured.  Listen to the program: “Democracy robust in Indonesia.”

In a TIME Magazine article about feminism in Indonesia and the increasing leadership role that women play in Islamic schools there, The Asia Foundation’s Senior Program Officer in Indonesia Lies Marcoes is quoted. Read the full article: “Indonesia’s Islamic Schools: More and More, Female Friendly.”

An article in The Phnom Penh Post features highlights from The Asia Foundation’s Inter-country Consultative Dialogue conference in Phnom Penh on anti-trafficking and features quotes by Nandita Baruah, The Asia Foundation’s Chief of Party for the Counter Trafficking in Persons Project (C-TIP). Read the full article: “Multilateral treaties needed to end flesh trade, say delegates.”

In a San Jose Mercury News article about human trafficking in Vietnam and Cambodia, The Asia Foundation’s contact details are provided as an organization “working to prevent human trafficking among Vietnam’s poor.” Read the full article:  “Globalization’s ugly side: sex slavery.”

Jakarta

A series of trainings for women legislative candidates was held in four cities in November and December, 2008. These trainings, organized by The Asia Foundation in partnership with its regional implementing partners, covered candidates from the provinces covered by this program: Jakarta, Aceh, East Java and South Sulawesi. The first batch of the training was conducted between November 11 and 20, 2008. Each of the three day trainings was attended by 25 women candidates and addressed crucial issues the women need to know as they prepare for their campaign: how to target voters, how to develop an effective media strategy, and the finer details of the electoral system. Advancing Indonesian Women in Politics The reason for this program is clear: women in Indonesia remain grossly under-represented. Indeed, there are less women representatives today than 20 years ago. Currently, women representatives only constitute 11.8 percent of national parliament members. There are even fewer women in the provincial and district legislatures where political power is now concentrated in Indonesia.

In anticipation of the upcoming 2009 elections, the Royal Norwegian Embassy is supporting The Asia Foundation with a wide-ranging program that includes support for electoral law reform, building the capacity of women candidates, supporting women in politics to build their constituency networks, and helping women candidates develop sharp and focused media and voter education campaigns. These activities have been supported by public awareness-raising and voter education campaigns focusing on the importance of women’s involvement in the democratic process in Indonesia.

About the training “Preparing Women Candidates to Prepare for the 2009 Elections” was organized by The Asia Foundation and it regional partners, the University of Indonesia’s Center for Political Study, covering Jakarta; MISPI covering the province of Nanggro Aceh Darussalam; the Human Rights Center of the University of Airlangga covering East Java; and the Institute for Public Policy Studies (LSKP) covering South Sulawesi area. The Asia Foundation will trained over 300 women candidates under this program.

During the training participants focused in depth on important elements of an election campaign, namely women and political parties, the election system, and campaign strategy. Discussions about constituency-building and developing campaign issue were the most lively sessions as the candidates were pushed to articulate why they would be different and how they would attract particular segments of the electorate. Significant time was also allocated to assist the women candidates develop their political platforms engage voters and be responsive to voter needs. For many of the candidates, how to use the media effectively to market themselves, and the different tools in the media tool kit, was a new and unexplored issue for them.  Participants now have a much sharper understanding of how to use the media to help them articulate and disseminate political messages. The new vote counting system and knowledge of electoral districts are two significant factors that will determine if a candidate wins or loses a sit in the national or local legislature. Therefore, it was very important for the women candidates to have an accurate knowledge and the appropriate skills to be able to mediate their way through their campaign in relation to these subjects successfully. Throughout, the training was interactive providing opportunities to simulate many elements of the campaign that candidates will face later on.

The three-day trainings were attended by a total of 92 women candidates. The women come from Indonesia’s seven largest political parties and some local political parties that have a significant number of seats at the local level. Almost all the women are political party activists who have not previously been elected to office. The trainings were especially well received by the women candidates who have previous experience of defeat and failure to secure a seat from the previous 2004 elections. Aside from their participation through these training sessions, The Asia Foundation will continue to provide support to the women candidates through constituent meetings and media campaigns.

The trainings were featured on Jakarta’s Royal Norwegian Embassy’s web site.

Jakarta

The Asia Foundation in Indonesia and The Netherlands Embassy today officially launched their new cooperative program to strengthen participatory democracy and good governance in Indonesia.

The Government of the Netherlands is granting The Asia Foundation € 2.5 million (USD 4 million) to carry out this program that will support civil society and religious-based organizations all over Indonesia.

This four-year program will focus on supporting mainstream Indonesian organizations’ efforts to strengthen Indonesia’s traditions of tolerance and religious freedom, to support Indonesian efforts to increase women’s participation in public decision-making, and to improve the accessibility and quality of healthcare for women.

Dr. Douglas Ramage, Country Representative of the Asia Foundation in Indonesia and Dr. Nikolaos van Dam, Ambassador of The Netherlands officially launched the program during a reception held today.

The renewed cooperation between The Netherlands Embassy and The Asia Foundation follows the successful “Netherlands Local Women Fund” cooperative program operated from 2004 to 2007.

For more information, please contact Dr. Sandra Hamid, Senior Program Director, sandrahamid@tafindo.org.

Phnom Penh

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal published an op-ed by The Asia Foundation’s Marielle Sander-Lindstrom, Chief of Party, Counter Trafficking in Persons Project (C-TIP), about Cambodia’s first-ever national efforts to collect standardized data on human trafficking. Trafficking statistics are notoriously difficult to gather, and consistent, accurate data and analysis will help ensure that Cambodia’s policies and programs respond to real needs.

Read the full article.

Each year, thousands of young women are trafficked within and outside of Nepal and forced into exploitative labor situations, including prostitution. Extreme poverty, illiteracy, and internal conflict contribute to the tragic cycle of this illegal practice. The Asia Foundation has provided more than 2,300 trafficking survivors and those at risk of being trafficked with vocational training and education, enabling them to become economically self-reliant. Some are now mechanics and drivers. With support from Give2Asia, The Asia Foundation’s philanthropic partner, the Foundation helps program graduates establish “one-stop shops” where customers come for motorcycle and electronic repairs. The program challenges gender stereotypes and provides the young women with good jobs and useful businesses that directly reduces their risk of being trafficked.

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San Francisco-based landmark effort has provided critical services to close to a million women

San Francisco

Two San Francisco-based organizations are leading the effort to provide Chinese migrant women workers with free social services, education and legal aid. The Levi Strauss Foundation enters its ninth year of partnership with The Asia Foundation – San Francisco’s largest international charity – with a $200,000 grant to continue to best serve the immediate needs of migrant women workers in China, protecting migrant women’s rights, and providing educational and legal services, while expanding the project into new regions. Both organizations are participating in this week’s Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) conference in San Francisco.

China’s rapid economic development has brought a mass migration of workers from the country’s rural inland to the booming southern and eastern industrial cities to pursue the promise of high-paying jobs. On the way, these migrant laborers leave behind not just their families, but also social and community support and services. Since 1999, The Asia Foundation, with the support of the Levi Strauss Foundation, has been working to ensure that migrant women workers – who make up sixty percent of all migrant labor in Guangdong province – are provided free education and counseling, occupational health and safety training, HIV/AIDS awareness education, and legal services.

The Asia Foundation’s staff in Beijing works with local government agencies, Chinese women’s organizations, labor unions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), academic leaders, and workers to build social support networks and deliver services to migrant women workers. To date, the Foundation has provided assistance to more than 850,000 migrant women workers from more than 1,000 factories in 22 cities and districts in China’s Pearl River Delta, more than 50 factories in the Lower Yangtze River, and in Beijing municipality and has helped enhance joint policy making in favor of migrant workers.

“Our nine-year partnership with The Asia Foundation has reached hundreds of thousands of migrant women workers in Guangdong province and will now further expand into Jiangsu and Beijing. The Asia Foundation program provides access to critical worker-rights and life-skills services and information that ultimately provide opportunities for advancement and improve the quality of life for women workers living away from their families and villages,” said Theresa Fay-Bustillos, Executive Director of the Levi Strauss Foundation.

“A safe working and living environment, with real opportunities for securing the additional skills for advancement by China’s migrant laborers, should be a widely shared goal,” Douglas Bereuter, President of The Asia Foundation said. “Through responsible corporate initiatives businesses operating within China are well-positioned and should be motivated to take a proactive role in supporting such conditions and employee improvement opportunities.”

At this week’s BSR conference, which runs from October 23-26, representatives from The Asia Foundation’s Beijing office will present on the current climate for NGOs operating in China, based on its own strong record of cooperation with Chinese government and civil society organizations in implementing vital social services and legal rights programs for workers.

Jakarta

On October 9, Indonesia’s State Minister for Women’s Empowerment, Meutia Farida Hatta Swasono, led a campaign to encourage people to send sms text messages to a database especially established for people to show their support for changing the electoral laws to mandate an obligatory 30% quota for women candidates. Names on the sms petition will be taken to the parliament in November. This is thought to be the first ever political advocacy campaign in Indonesia using text messaging.

The campaign, which runs until November 20, is being led by a coalition of NGOs including the Civil Society Alliance for the Revison of Political Laws (ANSIPOL) and the Movement for Concerned Indonesian Women (GPPI). This program is being supported by The Asia Foundation through funding made available from the Royal Norwegian Embassy.