Ecuador Mi Pais
Encyclopedia
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, not enough resources are spent on education. For this reason, its founders agreed that the most valuable and effective way to collaborate towards the development of the country was by supporting educational projects targeted to low-income groups. Since its origin, this organization has sponsored more than 100 students.
EMiP is now a registered 501(c)(3)organization operated and directed by volunteers and it was legally incorporated in the District of Columbia (D.C.) in June 2006.
EMiP was conceived to promote equal opportunities and to facilitate access to education for underprivileged children and adolescents in Ecuador, regardless of gender and ethnicity. The organization is well-positioned as one of the most solid NGOs created by Ecuadorian emigrants, and its membership has grown steadily every year, counting now with more than 3,500 members in its cause in Facebook. The organization has affiliates in different states of the United States of America, and also in Europe, specifically in Spain, Italy, France, and the United Kingdom, countries that have large concentrations of Ecuadorian immigrants.
Organization
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EMiP has become a very lean and efficient organization with very low operational costs (less than 10 % of revenues). The majority of Ecuadorians that volunteer for the organization reside in the United States of America. Its leaders are committed individuals determined to continue working towards expanding opportunities for poor students in Ecuador.
The organization has partnered with recognized Ecuadorian and international organizations in Washington D.C. such as the Ecuadorian Embassy in Washington D.C., Grupo FARO
Grupo FARO
Grupo FARO , is an independent, nonprofit and secular think tank established to provide support and promote active participation of civil society, the business sector and state entities, based on research and analysis, for the purpose of putting forward, implementing and monitoring public policies,...
, Symphony for Life -Ecuador, the Association of Ecuadorian Ladies in Washington D.C. (ADEW Ecuador), Federación de Entidades Ecuatorianas en el Exterior (FEDEE), Young2Young Community of the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
, Young Connection of the Inter-American Development Bank
Inter-American Development Bank
The Inter-American Development Bank is the largest source of development financing for Latin America and the Caribbean...
, and Centro Argentino (CEGA). These partnerships are sought to develop new ways to contribute to development projects and to work with the D.C. metro area community. As a testament of its responsible and serious work, one of EMiP's projects was selected as a finalist at the 2008 World Bank Remittances Fair, held in Bolivia.
EMiP is an open organization that provides opportunity for global community volunteering. Its grants have had a real positive impact on the lives of the students who receive education scholarships. Furthermore, the organization allows Ecuadorian emigrants to help their country by supporting the dreams of underprivileged children that need help with their education expenses. Volunteers have found in EMiP a bridge that connects them to their country, where their initiatives and voluntary work creates hope and contributes to a better future.
Projects and programs
The organization's main project is Edusemillas (Education Seeds), an ambitious sponsorship program established in 2007. The project was created to provide education scholarships to students in strenuous economic circumstances. EMiP has been teaming up with established organizations in Ecuador to help locate schools and educational programs that are able to work with the organization. During the 2007-2008 school year, Edusemillas sponsored 91 basic education students, and 3 university students. The program works as other sponsoring programs in the U.S., with two key differences: (1) the funds collected are utilized only for educational purposes, and (2) the program is run by volunteers, which ensures that the money of the sponsor actually goes to the children, rather than administrative expenses.Services offered
With a monthly contribution of $25, sponsors cover the educational expenses of one student in a given year. EMiP ensures that the child or adolescent attends classes, while at the same time committing the student’s parents or guardians to support and encourage their children’s education. Each individual sponsorship covers school supplies, uniforms, tuition, and a monthly stipend for attendance at an elementary or high school.Monitoring and evaluation
EMiP prepares information reports of each sponsored student, which includes a final report card and a summary of how the contributions were used. This information is sent twice per year to each sponsor. EMiP has monitored closely the results obtained by scholarship recipients. The partners associated with the program provide EMiP with quarterly report cards obtained from each student.Scholarship recipients are required to maintain a minimum grade average of 16/20 in a school year to keep their scholarship. Few scholarships have been cancelled due to failure of obtaining the required grade average, and fortunately the majority of children take advantage of the economic support for several years. EMiP is sponsoring the college education of three students that are currently attending local public universities.
In order to ensure that the funds provided for educational purposes are used only for this purpose, EMiP signs a contract with each one of the program’s partners specifying what type of expenses are allowed. Each partner provides detail annual expense summaries, including invoices to back up these expenses.
Target population
The services provided are not limited to specific religious or ethnic groups. However, in the distribution of the scholarships, EMiP tries to maintain gender parity. In addition, the scholarship program targets children not only in urban but also in rural areas of the country, where education opportunities are even more limited.Partners
The organization is currently working with the following partners:- Casa Victoria Foundation in the city of Quito, Province of Pichincha. It is currently sponsoring 20 children. http://casavictoria.blogspot.com/
- Muchacho Trabajador Program (a program to eliminate child labor and maintain children in school) in the city of Manta, Province of Manabí and the city of Esmeraldas, province of Esmeraldas http://www.pmt.gov.ec/Proyectos/NiñosComunidadesUrbanasyRurales/EspaciosAlternativos.aspx
- Fé y Alegría School in the city of Cuenca, Province of Azuay http://www.feyalegria.org.ec/
- Embassy of Ecuador in Washington D.C. http://www.ecuador.org/
- Grupo FARO, a public policy advocacy NGO http://www.grupofaro.org
- Symphony for Life - Ecuador http://www.sinfoniaporlavida.com
- Asociación de Damas Ecuatorianas en Washington (ADEW) http://adew-us.org
- Federación de Entidades Ecuatorianas en el Exterior (FEDEE) http://www.fedeemundial.com/
- World Bank Young2Young Community http://go.worldbank.org/0LU6B824U0l
- Inter-American Development Bank Young Connection: http://www.youngconnection.org/
- Centro Argentino http://www.centroargentino.org/