The children of the village of Annathur, in south-east India, will see their village transforming day after day. In the coming months, all the village children will have the right to go to school, and their mothers will receive training and tuition, and learn to read, write and count …
The idea is that the women will then go on to create micro-enterprises and have a real role to play in the development of their village and their community. They will develop new sources of revenue and improve the well-being of their families. This change starts this week with the launch of a project supporting sustainable development in the village of Annathur.
Annathur semantically means “place of the incarnation of fraternity”. The village consists of three hamlets and is the home of 3,000 inhabitants over an area of 2 km2. The villagers speak Tamil, the language spoken in the state of Tamil Nadu.
The main sources of income for the community are agriculture and livestock, which represent over 70% of activities. Most villagers are poor: more than 80% of them live on less than $ 2 per day. The survival of the villagers is therefore strongly dependent on crops and livestock, thus exposing them to the vagaries of drought and animal diseases.
Significant socioeconomic disparities exist in Annathur For example, one of the hamlets is composed entirely of untouchables, and they are therefore isolated geographically from others. Many tribal peoples also live Annathur and, like the untouchables, they are traditionally discriminated against.
The villagers are deeply committed to transforming their lives and improving future prospects for their children. Humanium has therefore pledged its support in this endeavour, and its assistance in developing a sustainable development project for the entire community, with its two local partners, Hand in Hand Tamil Nadu and SEED Trust. This global project will be implemented over 24 months, after which the village will continue its development independently.
To learn more and monitor the project’s progress, please visit our blog.
If you wish to participate in helping the children and villagers, donations can be made online.
