U.K. Registered Charity 1084436
NAWA
Background about NAWA
The Nilgiris Adivasi Welfare Association (NAWA) is a charity which aims to help Adivasi (tribal) people in Kotagiri, Tamil Nadu, a state in the southern part of India. It has been involved in welfare work for over 40 years.
Initially, the work was focused on health, since the founder of NAWA was a doctor. Dr Narasimhan devoted his life to giving medical help to Adivasis, as they were very isolated and could rarely afford to pay for treatment.
The charity was given a massive boost following a visit by Victoria Armstrong (one of Her Majesty's Inspectors of Schools) in 1966. She was so struck by the plight of the poor tribal people that she decided to take early retirement and live among them, devoting the rest of her life to improving their health, education, and quality of life. As honorary treasurer of NAWA until her sad death in 1998, she managed to find a number of European donors to support NAWA's work. In addition, she helped to extend its work to economic development and also to education. For many years now, NAWA has provided play facilities to children below school age and has sponsored some older children in school.
Project
Unfortunately, in the past, many of the tribal children were unable to attend school, partly because sponsorship opportunities were limited and partly because it often took too long for them to travel to the distant municipal schools. Therefore, for the first time in 2002,
NAWA
established its own school (the Victoria Armstrong Memorial School) for Adivasi
children. This needs substantial financial support for at least the next five
years. (In the long run, when the school is fully established, it is likely
that funding from the Indian government will become available.)
The school is currently located in the grounds of the house which Victoria Armstrong bequeathed to the community. Mr. Shanmugam has been appointed head-teacher, and there are five other teachers and two helpers. It is intended that at least 60% of the children come from the tribal communities and that at least 40% of the children are girls. Several of NAWA's supporters from European countries have visited the school and reported that they are impressed with the progress being made in the temporary, re-furbished building. The long term aim is to build a new school and to provide sufficient funds to ensure its future.
The building project and the necessary equipment will cost around £20,000; running costs will be about £5,000 per year. We would like to suggest that donations could be made in the form of sponsoring children (at £100 per year/ £9 per month) or teachers (at £450 per year/ £38 per month) at the school. Alternatively, we would welcome a one-off donation towards the construction costs of the new school building.
Other than providing funding, the main roles of Vidya involve monitoring and evaluating the progress of the school and advising NAWA about certain decisions. Apart from considering reports sent directly by NAWA, Vidya is able to follow the progress of the school by regularly speaking to other European supporters and volunteers who frequently visit or work with NAWA. Over the five year period, there will also be at least two separate visits made by a trustee of Vidya to ensure that real progress is being made and to offer support and suggestions for improvement. The first of these visits was undertaken in March 2004. Finally, since one trustee of Vidya has been nominated as a member of the school's governing committee, Vidya will always be in a position to influence major decisions. This broad approach should continue to ensure rigourous and continuous evaluation. Vidya is very well positioned to be able to offer systematic and professional scrutiny, since many of its supporters (including two of its trustees) are current or former HM Inspectors of Schools in England.
Please Help!
If you would like to contribute towards this project, please print and complete the donation form or contact us. All contributors will receive an annual newsletter updating them about progress made on this project. This newsletter will also be published on the website. In addition, anyone sponsoring an individual child at the school will receive an annual progress report directly from NAWA. If you have any questions, please contact us.
For information about other ways in which you can help Vidya, please click here.