“Breaking the Cycle” project, funded by HSBC Vietnam, has been implemented by SCDI since 2020 to support for children of the poorest families who have been significantly impacted by the pandemic to pursue education.
Breaking the Cycle – inception
When the Covid-19 pandemic happened in 2020, its significant impact on children's education, particularly those from disadvantaged families. The project focuses on educational support for children of the poorest families, who have been severely affected by the pandemic across five provinces/cities: Hanoi, Hai Phong, Da Nang, Binh Duong, and Ho Chi Minh City. Education serves as an effective means of breaking the poverty cycle of families facing particularly challenging circumstances. The "Breaking the Cycle" project aims to put an end to intergenerational poverty in certain families through pursuing education. The primary objectives of the project include children living in slums or homelessness, children living in impoverished local households.
Children are the foundational age that shapes the entire life. Children from impoverished families lack access to proper nutrition from birth and are deprived of ideal conditions for their development. Furthermore, these children face the risk of not being able to attend school or dropping out early due to a lack of personal identification documents, parents are unable to afford them to maintain their education, they are forced to choose to earn money in society. That leads to a lack of knowledge, life capital and life skills, which in turn limits their job opportunities as they grow older. This vicious cycle perpetuates itself from parents to children, with high chances of continuing into the future. There is a great deal that needs to be done, and it undoubtedly requires collective effort, as "Breaking the Cycle" is not a one-time fix but rather a challenging journey that demands sustained commitment.
Intervention of Project
Through its work with the disadvantaged community, SCDI further emphasizes that ensuring children's rights to attend school, and to play, without the burden of struggling to survive, is the most effective and sustainable way to break the cycle of poverty.
Photo: The "Breaking the Cycle” project supports children in the most disadvantaged families to attend school through scholarships and other support
Understanding the importance of family in maintaining children's education, SCDI provides various forms of direct support, such as financial assistance for school expenses (tuition fees, contributions at school, books, learning materials, etc.), nutrition support, transportation assistance, tutoring and social support, including health insurance, personal identification documents, temporary and permanent residency, etc. SCDI implements these parallel supports such as livelihood to foster sustainable development within families. This includes providing support for personal identification documents, health insurance (including transportation costs), and other measures to enhance the conditions, motivation, and commitment of families to ensure their children's education. Besides, SCDI also focuses on building relationships between parents and children, as well as children's connections with the community, and life skills... through regular monthly activities and the development of a supportive community network.
Numbers “speak”
Photo: Interventions of the "Breaking the Cycle” project
The project sets two important indicators to pursue: the percentage of children attending school at the beginning of the year and the percentage of children remaining in school at the end of the school year. Each indicator serves as a milestone that reflects the dedicated efforts of the project. In the 2021-2022 school year, the project supported 438 children, provided 447 nutrition packages, 361 partial scholarships, 98 full scholarships, provided 94 learning devices and 116 health insurance cards. They all share a common purpose of ensuring the continuity of children's education. Because each additional day of school is another opportunity for children to acquire new knowledge, have fun, and develop in a safe and age-appropriate manner. With each extra day of schooling, they move closer to a future that is abundant and filled with happiness.
