Maiser Jahan is an eight-year-old girl who benefits from one of The Hope Venture’s India NFE (Non Formal Education) Centers. The NFE project was created to have schools established in impoverished areas to encourage children like Maiser to improve their chance for a formal education. India has not counted their citizens living in extreme poverty in a census since 2011. People who are living in these conditions are not cared for by society, and are left to pick up the pieces of their lives with the little they have. The NFE project strives to acknowledge the people who are impacted by poverty, and give them a chance at a different path.
In 2010, her parents found that they could not earn enough in their village to feed their children, so they migrated from Bengal to Delhi in an effort to keep their family afloat. Their main source of income relied on collecting garbage, in addition to Maiser Jahan’s mom working as a maid. Her father knew the value of education, as he struggled with being illiterate, and dreamed of his children having a different life. Their economic situation was so difficult that they fell below the poverty line. Between the two of them, they earned roughly one hundred USD per month, a small salary for a family of six. Due to this small salary, luxuries such as going to school, having nice clothing, and new toys were not things that her family could afford.
The family struggled so immensely that Maiser even recalls playing in mud and waste as a child. She grew her imaginative spirit by making up stories with her broken dolls and old utensils. Despite these challenges, being part of The Hope Venture’s NFE program has greatly improved her education, and given her a pathway toward a better life. She loves learning to speak English in her classes, and even tries to introduce herself in English to anyone she meets! Her teacher, Ms Sweata, encourages her to continue learning and says she is a very bright student. Despite the challenging upbringing for Maiser and her siblings, she continues to dream of a better future for her life, and dreams of becoming a police inspector to make a difference in her local community. To this day, the NFE project continues to invest in Maiser’s education in the midst of a society that has deemed her not worthy of investment.