Project: Adopt A Village

"Adopted" the Village of Loonh Khan

Loonh Khan village is located approximately 20 miles from the city of Badin. There are about 115 homes scattered throughout the area and the population is about 650 out of which close to 300 are children. Most of the villagers eke out a meagre living by working on nearby lands. 10% of the villagers cultivate their own lands which are dry and inhospitable. It is a hand to mouth existence in a forgotten part of the country plagued by nutritional deprivation, lack of clean drinking water, illiteracy, high neonatal/infant mortality and general poor health.

The project is divided into 4 areas of focus:

Housing

Project: Loonh Khan Village
Home/Shelter

Until recently, the villagers were living in basic mud huts that were ill-equipped to deal with the torrential monsoon rains. Each hut had one living area where the entire family would sleep and cook together with no access to electricity. PAAS foundation has committed to rebuilding the destroyed homes and replacing them with a stronger version with some added amenities. Each house will now have a solar panel powering a light bulb and a fan. There will be a shed outside under which cooking can take place. There will also be a latrine pit adjacent to the hut.

Education

Project: Loonh Khan Village
Education

The literacy rate in Sindh is estimated to be at about 62%. In a village like Loonh Khan, this seems to be an optimistic overestimation. There is a small school offering a curriculum extending to a 2nd or 3rd grade level. This school has recently been closed and upon speaking with the local villagers, we discovered that most girls weren’t being sent.

Building a school-after some deliberation, the board members of PAAS decided to build a small school that would provide basic literacy to boys and girls in the village. The villagers were made to understand that in return for having clean water access and new huts built for them, all PAAS wanted in return for their assurance that their daughters would also attend the school!

Partnering with Teach the World Foundation to build a “microschool”. We will be starting with a group of 25-30 students and will provide them with tablets preloaded with unique software sourced by Teach the World. This previously tested model has been successful in helping children acquire basic literacy in Malawi, Bangladesh, and other areas in rural Pakistan. Funds raised will be used towards building the school and acquisition of tablets.

Health

Project: Loonh Khan Village

Health

PAAS foundation provides free medications to the villagers from a dispensary that is staffed daily by a local pharmacist. We also triage the more serious cases to healthcare facilities in Badin and Karachi and cover all expenses incurred. We recognize the importance of preventative medicine and are proud to be partnering with People’s Primary Healthcare Initiative (PPHI) to establish recurrent vaccination camps and regular visits by healthcare providers addressing adult/obstetric and pediatric concerns.

TB initiative-Tuberculosis is a serious health problem in Pakistan with a high rate of incidence and prevalence with many of the pulmonary cases having been identified as multidrug-resistant. In Lun Khan, we are committing to provide free of cost TB treatment for confirmed cases.

Clean water- the source of many prevalent ailments is the drinking water in Loonh Khan. Villagers are dependent on pools of stagnant water or water from streams that are contaminated with human and animal waste. At PAAS, we recognized the importance of harvesting rainwater in an otherwise arid land. Every year, the area is flooded during the summer monsoons with potentially drinkable water going to waste. This year, PAAS partnered with PaaniProject to build 10 water tanks that would collect rainwater.

Economic Support

Project: Loonh Khan Village

Economic support and relief

Monthly income support initiative. We have been sending funds to 30+ families every month to help supplement their income.

Looking ahead. Empowerment of women is essential to the well-being of the entire community. We are looking at providing skill development such as sewing to the women.