Fatem's Story

The 12^th summer of Fatem's life has come to an end and the divisions of her world have become solid.  She is now old enough to go with other girls to collect wood for her family’s cooking fire.  She will do this every day until she has daughters old enough to take over for her. 

Her older brother will spend his day at school, learning to read and write.  When he marries, her bother will likely be the only literate member of his family. 

Fatem has risen with her sister to begin her four hour trek through the mountains to look for anything that can be burned.  She tiptoes past her sleeping family and picks up the strings she will use to bundle wood to her petite frame.  Her frayed sweater is not quite enough to keep off the chill of the predawn mountains.

Reduced understanding of nutrition and the causes of disease: 

Women are the primary caregivers in most societies.  A lack of information about basic health issues can have dramatic effects on infant mortality, the spread of diseases, child development, life span, quality of life and the productivity of the community.

Larger families and smaller earning power:  Illiterate women tend to have larger families and reduced earning power.  This makes them and their children particularly vulnerable to effects of the death of a spouse or a natural disaster.      

Reliance on folklore and gossip for news about the world: Inability to read newspapers or textbooks leaves women with only the information the literate members of their village know and chose to pass on to them.  This makes dissent very difficult and reinforces an imbalance of political power.