Last year we reported how the charity SEED Madagascar had begun accepting bitcoin donations. As this year draws to a close, they’re hoping the cryptocurrency community can help them raise one Bitcoin before Christmas, to buy 100 much-needed school benches for children in one of the world’s poorest countries.
SEED Madagascar is a charity dedicated to helping the people and animals of the African island, and improving children’s education lies at the heart of what they do.
Ranked 161/189 on the Human Development Index, Madagascar remains one of the world’s poorest and least developed countries. Children bear the brunt of this poverty, with over 70% of Malagasy children living in poverty. Over 1.7 million children are out of primary school, and only 30% of children who commence primary school complete their education. Moreover, 6,900 Malagasy children die annually from water, sanitation, and hygiene-related diseases. Insufficient or even non-existent water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure in schools contributes to the transmission of these diseases, whilst impeding academic achievement.
Mark Jacobs, MD of the charity, explains why school furniture, and in particular benches, are desperately needed as part of their bigger goal of improving children’s access to education in Madagascar…
“In Madagascar, only 30% of children complete a primary level of education. There are many contributing factors to the problem, but one of these is a lack of school infrastructure, including benches. Where classrooms do exist, they often do not have comfortable seating, if they have any at all. In many classrooms, children have no option but to sit on the concrete floor, exposing them to fleas and severe discomfort. This seriously impacts the children’s motivation and ability to complete their education.”
“We want to put 100 benches into schools, particularly in the in the Fort Dauphin area in the south east of the country, where the drop-out rate for primary schools is 47% higher than the national average. As it turns out, with the current exchange rate, it will cost almost exactly one Bitcoin to purchase 100 benches. We therefore thought this project presented the perfect opportunity to ask the cryptocurrency community for help again, as they responded so well when we first opened our donations system to bitcoin, despite a few teething problems.”
The charity are hoping to hit their target before the start of 2020 and, so if you have any spare currency in your wallet and are feeling festive, please click here to find out more or donate.
www.madagascar.co.uk / 44(0)20 8960 6629 / info@seedmadagascar.org
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