BACKGROUND

The East Bali Poverty Project (EBPP) is a non-profit organisation established in 1998 by a British resident of Bali after an appeal for help by an isolated 7,200Ha mountain village, forgotten by time and progress. Participatory community surveys in 1998 with 1,056 of the 3,000 families in 19 sub-villages revealed thousands of people living in abject poverty without water, sanitation, roads, schools, health facilities and electricity. Illiteracy was up to 100%. Malnutrition and iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) were endemic, iodine being the essential nutrient for healthy child births, brain and body development. When interviewed in November 1998 to determine their priorities if EBPP could help, over 1,000 families requested children's education as a foundation for a better future. An inspiring and productive collaboration then began with the most disadvantaged communities. With the philosophy of “helping people to help themselves”, all programmes are designed as models that can be replicated, and executed by local people who directly transfer knowledge and appropriate technology within their communities.

VISION & MISSION

· To empower illiterate and malnourished children through relevant education, improved nutrition and basic “stay healthy” principles; and

· To reduce poverty and promote culturally sensitive sustainable social and economic development in impoverished rural communities that have little or no choice to alleviate their own plight.

KEY EBPP ACHIEVEMENTS FROM AUGUST 1999 – JUNE 2008

1. INTEGRATED & RELEVANT EDUCATION FOR PREVIOUSLY ILLITERATE CHILDREN OF ILLITERATE PARENTS

·          >800 children educated in 6 EBPP Schools; 127 have graduated primary school AND 35 children graduated Junior high school until July 2007; 57 children are now in EBPP Junior high school in 5 hamlets and 29 will graduate this year

·          32 EBPP children in first ever Senior High School programme in the village in 2007 and another 29 will join this year

·          School meals: each child gets daily nutritious meal PLUS a glass of milk & multivitamins

·          School buildings: 6, which EBPP call “Community Learning & Development Centres” as they are also for community vocational training & libraries. Built with 100% community participation, ownership is handed to the communities, and maintenance becomes their responsibility

·          Sponsored tertiary education for local children: 3 village girls sponsored to Kindergarten & Elementary Teacher Training College in Singaraja; and 1 girl completed Accounting diploma in Denpasar in 2007.

·          Libraries: Comprehensive community library in “EBPP Centre for Sustainable Development”, with more than 3,000 titles & in each of EBPP’s 6 Schools with wide range of topics for complete global learning

2.   DIRT ROAD IMPROVEMENT FACILITATING ACCESS FOR 3,000 FAMILIES: More than 25 kilometres linking 19 hamlets

3. MICRONUTRIENT SUPPLEMENTS – ALL CHILDREN & MOTHERS PREVIOSLY HAD IODINE & VITAMIN A DEFICIENCIES

3.1 Iodine deficiency elimination education & supplements provided annually: 1,300 mothers & 1,875 children

3.2 Vitamin A supplements provided annually: 1,100 infants and their mothers

4. COMMUNITY HEALTH

4.1 Initiated 27 Posyandu (monthly community health posts) Ban village with local kaders:

·   1,200 mothers & 1,400 infants 0-5 benefit monthly

4.2 Nutritious food for 1,400 infants in all Posyandu in Ban village

4.3 Primary health education for mothers & babies: All 3,000 families in Desa Ban twice a year

4.4 Eye testing and remedial for the whole community by John Fawcett Foundation: 1,500 children & 300 adults

4.5 Cleft palate, cataract & eyes operations PLUS all other serious illness including cranio-facial surgeries

4.6 Polio vaccinations since 2005: facilitated by EBPP team – 1^st time in history: 1,117 infants 0-5 yrs

4.7 Measles vaccination since 2005: facilitated by EBPP team – 1^st time in history: 1,070 children

4.8 TBC assistance programmes: TB awareness & training to schools, cadres & “posyandu” to protect the populations from exposure to active TB and ensure those individuals sick with TB obtain complete treatment.

5. MOBILE DENTAL CLINIC: >10,000 mostly children have been treated in Ban & 3 adjacent villages since October 2006

6. SAFE WATER SUPPLY & EDUCATION: Safe water from mountain springs, appropriate technology bamboo-cement rainwater collection reservoirs and rehabilitate existing artesian wells in dry riverbed benefiting 2,000 families

7. ORGANIC VEGETABLE & HERB FARMING: All EBPP school children & OVER 500 families in 6 hamlets who can now grow a wide range of vegetables & herbs for daily meals on rehabilitated farmland – eventually able to sell the surplus

8. VETIVER GRASS TO STOP EROSION, CONSERVE SOIL/WATER & FACILITATE ORGANIC FARMING & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: Millions planted! Vetiver Systems and Vetiver Grass Technology introduced to the Department of Public Works for all future highway design & waste water treatment in Indonesia

9. BAMBOO FOR REFORESTATION, ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION & SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: Develop a sustainable Bamboo building, from local bamboo, as EBPP training centre and example for local communities, schools, local government, etc. of “grow your own house”, attributed to Ms Linda Garland of EBF; Bamboo reforestation of 20Ha, owned by the communities and designed to bring back ecosystems and sustainable community livelihoods

10. PLAYGROUP PROGRAMMES: To empower thousands of illiterate mothers and infants 2-6 years and their families through relevant education in nutrition, hygiene, sanitation, basic reading & writing skills and intelligent games which they can apply at home. After development of our model pilot programme, the playgroup will be conducted twice monthly in all of our 27 Posyandu

11. SOLAR POWER ELECTRICITY for remote regions of Desa Ban with no access to electric power grid. Installed in 4 EBPP Schools and the 8 most isolated posyandu – enabling cadres to communicate 24 health emergencies

PROGRAMME REPLICATION: COMMUNITY HEALTH PROGRAMS IN TIANYAR VILLAGE SINCE 2005