Getting to Know Your International Contacts—Part 1

I have not been able to receive a response so for this assignment I went to the Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre’s page. On this page, I chose to learn about childhood poverty in the country of Kyrgyzstan. I chose Kyrgyzstan because this was a country that I had never heard of.

Before looking at the website I took the time to learn about the country. Kyrgyzstan is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan was the second poorest country in the former Soviet Union, and is today, the second poorest country in Central Asia. One of the most popular sports in Kyrgyzstan is football (soccer), wrestling is also a very popular sport in Kyrgyzstan. In 2008 Beijing Olympics  Games, 2 athletes from Kyrgyzstan won medals in Greco-Roman wrestling. In 2011 the Kyrgyzstan men's national ice hockey team won the 2011 Asian Winter Games Premier Division.

Three insights/ideas that I’ve gained from the website all are revolve around the education of the people of Kyrgyzstan.

• On the website under Key Findings of Research that the resources that are available to families who are living in poverty do no reach those who truly need to resources, this I believe may be a result of families not knowing where to locate resources or what resources they are entitled to.  The second insight/idea affects the rights of the children in the country.
• I read on the website that children are expected to work in the fields with their families to make ends meet, I do believe that children should have responsibilities in family functioning, however I do not agree that children should miss school because of these duties. Perhaps programs, laws could be designed to meet the educational needs of the children and the needs of their family survival at the same time. This may also limit the effects of the intergenerational poverty cycle.
• According to the website there are a number of initiatives are under way to reduce poverty in Kyrgyzstan. The government has developed a Comprehensive Development Framework, as well as produced the National Poverty Reduction Strategy (NSPR), Kyrgyzstan's Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper.  The NSPR prioritizes economic growth, good governance and building a fairer society, including specific commitments to tackling childhood poverty. However, much more concerted action is needed to tackle the many problems faced by children in poverty in Kyrgyzstan today. Through reading the plans for tackling poverty, it is uplifting and positive; this gives hope to the struggles and hardships of the families and their young children. 

Reference:

Childhood Poverty Research and Policy. (n.d.). Retrieved from  http://www.childhoodpoverty.org/index.php