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Nobody wants to be illiterate.

Nobody wants to look at a store sign and not know what it says. Nobody wants to look at instructions on a bottle of medicine and not know how to take it. Nobody wants to be unable to read the words of Jesus Christ.

So it is not surprising that when Samaritan's Purse and our partner began offering basic literacy classes to women in Guidimagha, Mauritania, the classes filled quickly. In Mauritania only 43 per cent of women over the age of 15 can read and write.

“We thank God (for the classes) because now we can write our names and read words,” says Hawa, one of the students. “Now I can write a note, for example, ‘I have gone to the market.’ I am very happy.”

One of the biggest problems facing the women in these classes is the collection of wood and water for their families. Women must wake up very early in the morning, walking several kilometers to fetch water, returning home to finish their other household tasks before they attend class.

“I have never had a woman arrive late for class,” says Fatimetou, one of the instructors. “The women express a lot of joy in being able to learn. They are highly motivated.”

Another challenge for the women in the program is that their families live a nomadic lifestyle, moving their herds of sheep and goats to take of advantage of forage for the animals. If their families move too far away, the women are unable to remain in the classes.

“If a woman is pounding millet and stops before the grain has been sufficiently ground, she will lose both the flour and the rest of the grain,” says Fatimetou. “It is the same with women who have to leave the program. It is a pity when women have to leave before they reach a satisfactory level.”

Despite these challenges, 100 women in Mauritania have learned how to read and write.

“We were very happy to be able to have these literacy classes, because we knew nothing,” says Marion, a student in the classes. “Before we took the class, writing was just strange symbols to us. Now we can recognize letters and words.”

 

 

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Pray Please pray that God will restore hope and dignity to hurting women around the world, and that He will provide abundant resources, effective partnerships, and meaningful opportunities to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.		Give Partner with Samaritan’s Purse to break the cycle of poverty and exploitation that is oppressing women in the developing world. Donate Here. Donate Here.