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Most people are aware of the devastation caused by the Tsunami of 2004 and the subsequent earthquake in March 2005, but not everyone can fully appreciate the impact left on the children of Pulau Nias (Nias Island). While the world responded by generously contributing to the many victimized by these disasters, much of the aid did not reach this small island.
Nias is a small island off the west coast of Sumatra Indonesia with a population of over 700,000 where many children were left homeless in a community that was very poor before these disasters.
Many Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO’s) devoted time, energies and funding to rebuilding the infrastructure, but few concentrated on the long-term growth of the people. We believe that the future of Nias is in the hands of the next generation and the most beneficial contribution the world can make to help these people is through educating the children.
We are focused on supporting education and development for the children on Pulau Nias. We have elected not to partner with NGO’s that have large overheads and we are working directly with ‘Yayasan Bina Mandiri’ who will directly manage the education. Yayasan Bina Mandiri is a social foundation based in Jakarta with vast experience in building schools, developing curriculum and staffing education centers throughout Indonesia.
Laureoli International Indonesia has funded the construction of a Children’s Learning Center that will support a network of kindergartens in southern Nias. Our learning center was dedicated on May 13, 2008 and today has over 60 registered students. This learning center named POKAN, Pondok Kerativitas Anak Nias (the Learning Center for the Children of Nias), will be open to ‘all’ Nias children and its purpose is to supplement their education by teaching them computer skills, language training and various vocational skills so they can prosper in the future.
A graduating 'K' Class that attended the dedication
The official 'Ribbon Cutting Ceremony' with Dave Lance
Facts About POKAN
- Presently POKAN is supporting 7 kindergartens in Southern Nias
- There are 14 teachers from across Indonesia who have volunteered to live and work in Nias each for 2 years to support POKAN
- Yayasan Bina Mandiri has a structured process for recruiting teachers and many are preparing today for this valuable assignment in the future
- The average teacher salary is less than $140 US per month
- The running cost of POKAN is less than $12,000 US per year
- A small donation will have a significant impact on the children of Nias
Some of the teachers who have dedicated 2 years of their lives to help the children of Nias