Education Empowerment for Marginalized Children

Project Overview

Education Empowerment for Marginalized Children

The Daughters of Mary Immaculate and Collaborators (DMI) is a religious congregation founded in 1984 and active in Papua New Guinea since 2018. Guided by their mission to serve the poorest and most marginalized, DMI operates in 15 informal settlements across Port Moresby, reaching over 2,500 families through education, women’s empowerment, and humanitarian support programs.

In the settlements of Kogeva, Talai, and Kou Kou, children face major barriers to education. Many families live below the poverty line and depend on daily wage labor or subsistence farming. Financial hardship, gender-based stigma—especially toward girls—and lack of academic support force many children to drop out of school. These children often end up in informal labor such as street vending, domestic work, or agriculture, continuing a cycle of illiteracy and poverty.

This project offers urgent intervention by:

Operating three Bridge Course Centers to improve literacy and numeracy for 125 out-of-school children under age 14
Distributing educational supplies and providing mentoring support to help students return to and succeed in formal school
Forming Children’s Parliaments to develop leadership, advocacy, and civic engagement skills
Raising community awareness to challenge cultural barriers and promote school retention, especially for girls

By engaging children, parents, and community leaders, this initiative addresses both the immediate and root causes of school dropouts. It aims to create long-term educational change, elevate youth voices, and empower marginalized children with tools to lead more secure, dignified futures.

Support Inclusive Education in Papua New Guinea

Your donation will help marginalized children—especially girls—reclaim their right to education and leadership

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In settlements like Kogeva, Talai, and Kou Kou, many children—especially girls—drop out of school due to poverty, cultural stigma, and lack of educational support. With only 35% of children completing primary school in PNG and 30% of youth aged 14–24 illiterate, urgent intervention is needed. This project offers bridge courses, educational supplies, and community advocacy to reintegrate dropout children into school, improve literacy, and foster youth leadership through Children’s Parliaments.

Mission Statement

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Goal:

$21,320

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Global Outreach

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Education Empowerment for Marginalized Children

Goal:

$21,320

Project Overview