PRIZE SUBJECTS 2004
FIRST CATEGORY:
" Strengthening women's participation in the labor market "
Only projects implemented by UN, international or regional organizations are eligible for nomination for the first category prize.
SECOND CATEGORY:
" Environmental protection through community based activities "
Only projects implemented by non-governmental organizations are eligible for nomination for the second category prize.
THIRD CATEGORY:
" Child accessibility to the new means of knowledge and comprehension of future technology "
Only projects initiated, sponsored and/or implemented by individuals are eligible for nomination for the third category prize.
PRIZE WINNERS 2004
THE FIRST WINNER:
ENHANCEMENT OF THE NURSING CAREER IN UPPER EGYPT
The first category prize is
allocated for projects implemented by UN, international or
regional organizations. It is consisted of a financial
reward of US$ 150,000 a certificate of recognition and a
trophy. Its subject for the year 2004 is (Strengthening
women’s participation in the labor market). The
"Enhancement
of the Nursing Career in Upper Egypt"
has been selected as the winner amongst 18 projects competed
for the prize under the first category. The project is
implemented in Egypt by the
Near East foundation's Center for Development Services (CDS).
Nursing is among a few other
professions, in which positions are occupied by women; the
word or Nurse is now deemed to refer to a female and not to
a male.
Egypt suffers a sever
shortage in the number of nurses; the 1998 census showed
that there are 17 nurses for each 10 thousand people, which
is a relatively low ratio if compared to the international
level. This shortage is more evident in the governorates of
Upper Egypt. Best estimates show that the Governorate of
Aswan alone would need 365 nurses each year for the next
five years’. The need for a larger number of nurses is
currently fulfilled by the nursing schools’ graduate
students, originally resident in Aswan, and who count for
165 of the total number required; another hundred positions
are filled by graduates from other governorates in the Delta
and another 100 remain unoccupied. Going back to the
academic nursing path, it was found that nursing schools do
not even work with their full capacities.
This contradicting situation
is the result of a number of social and institutional
factors; in Upper Egypt, nurses have stated that the nursing
profession has a bad reputation, because of the involvement
of the nurse (female) and the doctor (male) on the one hand
or the nurse and the patient on the other. In addition,
newly-graduate nurses have to work in areas far from their
homes. All of this contradicts with the traditional
perceptions of the woman’s “Straightforwardness and honor”;
this discourages parents from enrolling their daughters in
nursing schools.
All of this has triggered
actions to fill the gap created by the short number of
nurses, in the form of capacity building for the nursing
schools. The first step was to increase the percentage of
enrollment of girls in nursing school, appointing new
nursing teachers and ensuring that vacant positions will be
permanently filled by the graduates of nursing school. From
enrollment to appointment, students in nursing schools
become the main factor in making a change; they will
contribute to enhancing the technical, social and ethical
standards of the profession. In addition to good education,
the work conditions should also be improved to encourage
more enrollments in nursing schools.
Hospitals also suffer
shortage in the number of nursing supervisors, which is the
mid level in the nursing hierarchy, as well as low
supervision skills required for this level. This does not
only, affect supervisory and managerial levels in hospitals,
but also affects the quality and efficiency of work in the
nursing schools. Moreover, lack of technical supervision by
the nurse signifies that the person, to whom complaints from
inefficient nursing services should be address, does not
exist, which accordingly means poorer services and loss of
confidence in the service.
The main goal of the
project "Enhancement of the Nursing Career in Upper Egypt"
is to increase the number of nurses and to improve the
quality of the nursing services in hospitals, health units
and nursing schools in the governorate of Aswan, with the
ultimate aim of improving the quality of nursing services
provided to the public.
The Project objective is to
enhance the image of the nursing career in Upper Egypt,
through:
1.
Improve nursing capabilities in the 6 nursing schools in
Aswan.
2.
Improve the quality of the nursing services provided in 9 of
the hospitals and health centers in Aswan.
3.
Change the negative attitudes and perceptions that prevail
in the local community towards the nursing profession,
through involving the community in seeking solutions for the
issues pertaining to the nursing career in Egypt.
4.
Create a core training team that comprises nursing from
Aswan, to ensure the sustainability of the efforts aiming at
enhancing the nursing sector in Aswan.
5.
Introduce nursing quality tools Project Outcomes.
The project seems to have
been very successful. It mostly exceeded its targets, in
terms of the number of nurses trained, nursing teachers
appointed, and nursing services upgraded in six nursing
schools and nine hospitals and health centers in the
Governorate of Aswan.
This seems to have been a
well-conceived and efficiently run project with a clear time
frame and precise goals. It also serves a very important
need in Upper Egypt training health care providers.
Although some may question whether the training of nurses is
a modem or innovative project for women and development, in
the context of Upper Egypt (or other cultural contexts where
nationals do not go into the nursing profession in large
numbers), it most certainly is. The project is also
sustainable in that the nursing teachers will be teaching
future cohorts of nurses.
THE SECOND WINNER:
THE COMPOSITE PROGRAMME FOR PRESERVATION AND PROTECTION OF ENVIRONMENT IN BANGLADESH
The second category prize is
allocated for projects implemented by NGOs. It is consisted
of a financial reward of US$ 100,000 a certificate of
recognition and a trophy. Its subject for the year 2004 is
Environmental protection through community based activities ). The " Composite Programme for Preservation and Protection of
Environment in Bangladesh
t"
has been selected as the winner amongst 48 projects competed
for the prize under the second category. The project is
implemented in Bangladesh by the
Dhaka Ahsania
Mission.
The Rio Summit was a
landmark in the history of mankind because, it brought into
focus the realization that the issues relating to
environment and development are intricately related and a
harmony between the two had to be established to ensure
sustained life on earth. Since Rio there has been a lot of
debates, lot of thinking, lot of programmes for
implementation and by now there has been an increasing
awareness among the peoples and Governments that in the long
run the future of life on earth depends largely on caring
for, and conserving the environment. An integration of
environment and development, and greater attention to them
can go a long way in fulfillment of the basic needs,
improved standard of living for all, better protected
ecosystem and a safe future for mankind.
Bangladesh is a small
country of 56000 square miles with a population of about 120
million. The people of this country live close to
environmental disasters. Cyclone, tidal bore and flood are
almost normal feature in Bangladesh. Only a small percentage
of population has access to pure drinking water. Sewerage
systems are almost nonexistent in rural areas of the
country. Industrial and domestic wastes, fertilizer, toxic
chemicals, synthetic detergents etc. are causing water
pollution. Industrial effluents, exhaust from mechanized
vehicles, house-hold kitchen fuel, brick work etc. cause
pollution of air. A very serious environmental problem. in
Bangladesh is desertification which is being caused by
climatic factors and also man-made disturbances in the
natural balance of ecosystem. The topography, socio-economic
dynamics and agricultural systems of the country are being
badly damaged because of this desertification. Its forests
are gradually vanishing.
In recent years people all
over the world including donor community stared to give a
second thought about the capability of the government to
tackle national problems especially environmental issues.
This perception of people about the government has given
rise to the idea of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) to
act in partnership with the government in handling problems
including those in the areas of environmental degradation.
Many of the environmental NGOs have started to incorporate
environmental issues in almost all their programmes of
activities. Dhaka Ahsania Mission also came forward and
integrated some of the environmental issues like
indiscriminate cutting of trees, tree plantation, water and
sanitation into its on going programmes of activities,
particularly the Composite Programme for Preservation and
Protection of Environment, which is characterized by a
holistic approach towards sustainable development. It
includes multi-stakeholders and multi-activities.
Objectives of the Project:
-
Preservation and protection of natural environmental in
Bangladesh.
-
Mass
mobilization and creation of awareness about the causes &
consequences of degradation of environment
-
Prevention of environmental pollution, specially of water,
air, soil and sound.
-
Advocacy for adoption of appropriate policy and action
progrmmes for preservation, protection and promotion of the
natural environment and eradication of environmental
pollution.
-
Encouraging every one to make development efforts
environment friendly at local and national levels;
-
Sharing experiences among grass roots level organizations
and communities through networking and working hand in hand
with them;
-
Motivating people for abstaining from actions that cause
further damage and hinder the growth of the natural flora
and fauna;
-
Improvement of water and sanitation situation;
-
Development and production of appropriate training manuals
for providing training on water & sanitation and
environmental preservation and protection;
-
Development of awareness materials on environmental
degradation, water and sanitation;
-
Providing saplings for tree plantation; ‘ Providing sanitary
latrines and tube-wells etc.;
-
Training on water & sanitation issues;
-
Training of various types of programme personnel of DAM and
also of APOS Branch Committees on environmental issues;
Training of programme personnel of local NGOs, Local Youths
and Community Leaders.
More
importantly, financial sustainability is ensured, objectives
are well-defined and outputs and results are realized. The
achievement and output of the different components of the
project have been found to be very much beneficial not only
in relation to the needs of the beneficiaries but also in
relation to the needs and demands of the entire community.
THE THIRD WINNER:
THE COMMITTEE FOR DEMOCRACY IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (CDI)
The third category prize is
allocated for projects founded, sponsored and/ or
implemented by individuals. It is consisted of a financial
reward of US$ 50,000 a certificate of recognition and a
trophy. Its subject for the year 2004 is (The children
accessibility to the new means of knowledge and the
comprehension of future technology). The
"Committee for Democracy in
Information Technology (CDI)"
has been selected as the winner amongst 17 projects competed
for the prize under the third category. The project is
implemented in Brazil upon the initiative and efforts of
Mr. Rodrigo Baggio.
The Committee for Democracy
in Information Technology — CDI — is a non profit,
non-governmental organization aiming to foster the social
inclusion of low-income communities, using Information and
Communication Technologies as tools to create awareness of
citizens’ rights Since 1995, CDI has been carrying out a
pioneer initiative to promote social inclusion, by using
Information and Communication Technology as tool to create
awareness of citizens’ rights and carry out community
development projects.
CDI implements educational
programs in Brazil and abroad through its Information
Technology and Citizens Rights’ Schools, mobilizing excluded
segments of society and helping them to bring about positive
changes in their lives. It works in partnership with
low-income community organizations and associations
representing individuals with special needs, such as
psychiatric patients, prisoners, street children, the
visually impaired, and indigenous populations. -
Gaining skills in the use of
new technologies should not only make students better
equipped to take advantage of employment and income
generation opportunities, but also to create access to new
information sources and social spheres.
Background.
In 1993 Rodrigo Baggio, a
businessman and Information Technology teacher from Rio de
Jarieiro, devised the idea of using the Internet as a
communication channel for young people belonging to
different social groups. This idea resulted in the creation
of a BBS (Bulletin Board System) called “Jovemlink” and was
the first step towards the establishment of CDI: a pioneer
attempt to use Information and Communication Technology as a
digital bridge to promote social integration. The idea was
to use the BBS to help encourage dialogue between people
living in “favelas” and in the rest of the city of Rio de
Janeiro.
The service reached hundreds
of users, but soon a new concern arose: almost all the users
came from middle class and upper class families. Thus, the
new challenge became to provide low-income communities with
access to this technology. The campaign “Information
technology for all”, the first initiative of this kind in
Brazil, was then created to raise computers for young people
living in poor communities.
In July 1994, the impact of
the campaign was evaluated: computers were being used
properly by the communities, but not to their full
potential, as the communities were not used to this kind of
technology. Then came the idea of creating the Information
Technology and Citizens’ Rights Schools (ITCRS), a pioneer
initiative in Brazil and indeed in Latin America, combining
technology with the promotion of citizens’ rights, creating
a new focus within the social sector.
The project reflects an
innovative model of the usage of information technology to
suit local needs for employment and rehabilitation.
Information technology is not merely used as a tool for
computer literacy, which is a step-forward towards a more
rational use of information technology to suit human needs
and as a tool for "social inclusion" through democratizing
services for the impoverished segments of the population,
whether for children, adults, prisoners, juvenile
delinquents, psychiatric patients, or others. The project is
also self-sustained and replicable as it is currently
implemented in various countries in Latin America, Asia, and
Africa. The project's tools are innovative in a sense that
they include a thorough evaluation methodology, research,
adaptability of curriculums to suit local and/or children
with special needs, and the ability to disseminate
information on a global scale.
Through the project,
hundreds of schools were established across Brazil and
abroad in partnership with other community organizations,
benefiting thousands of children of the most vulnerable
population.
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