Students enlightened on childhood poverty

UNICEF in conjunction with UNIC Windhoek hosted thirty-five young, vibrant students from Windhoek International School at the United Nations House in Windhoek last week,during which they were briefed on poverty in Namibia and the world.
The resident coordinator of the UN, Ms. Kiki Gbeho introduced the children to the work of the United Nations and its goals of combating poverty nationally and on a global scale.
Following the discussion, the UNIC team briefed the students in more detail on facts and statistics on childhood poverty, why it exists and what more can be done to eradicate it. The presentation addressed in detail indicators that play a key role in a country’s ability to combat and eradicate poverty, also referred to as the five ‘Ps’ – Place, Past, People, Politics, Peace. Using this criteria, the students learned that Namibia, due to its location, semi-arid climate, long struggle for independence and lastly its diverse population was and still is facing high poverty rates in all parts of the country.
Students learned the hard facts from this discussion, like 1. Every third child in Namibia is poor, does not have enough food, clothes and a safe house to live in 2. Many Namibians don’t finish school and only 5% go to University. At the end of this unique outreach each student received an individual “I pledge to help end poverty” certificate to remind them of their participation in the event and of their potential to make this world a better place.