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CEDF is a small NGO with only one goal—functional literacy for all. It came into being in 1986. A concerned citizen opened her house to street children who had no access to education. At first she taught them herself, and as the numbers increased she hired a teacher to educate them in her house. Soon other residents of the area also adopted the idea of having a classroom in their houses. The idea grew and attracted more like minded citizens and Citizens‟ Education Development Foundation (CEDF) was born.The next step was to have home schools in kachi abadis. Later, a bus was purchased and converted into a class room, equipped with desks, chairs and blackboard. This mobile school, staffed with a teacher, traveled to kachi abadis where no home schools could be opened. Now the children of the kachi abadis had a school at their doorstep.After a year of studying in the informal schools of CEDF, students who showed promise were helped with admissions into regular schools and all their educational expenses were borne by CEDF, under its Sponsorship program.CEDF is proud to have no overhead expenses. We have no office, no staff other than teachers, no phone. The members work as volunteers from their own homes and at their own expense and 100% of donations are used to educate the children.
The Working Committee consists of active and retired professionals and home makers who have taken it upon themselves to induct the “forgotten child” into the literate world. These socially conscientious members of society act as the governing body of CEDF. All the members work as volunteers and not only set the policy but also supervise the CEDF schools closely.In June 2015 our dear friend and Treasurer of CEDF, Lisa Khoso, passed away suddenly. Her death has left us all bereft. She had been one of the pioneers of CEDF and was one of the most active members of the organization. She worked tirelessly in the CEDF Sponsorship program and her goal was always to alleviate the lot of the poor. She will be sorely missed.The members of the Committee are Dr. Naseem Salahuddin, Dr. Bari Awan, Mrs. Lisa Khoso (till June, 2015), Mrs. Rehana Alam, Mrs. Zeba Ghias, Mrs. Shireen Maqsood, Mrs. Atiya Shujaat, Mrs. Ruby Sheikh, Mrs. Najma Hussain, Ms. Nazeeha Husain, Mrs. Amina Ghazi, Mrs. Zeba Javed, Mrs. Zeeba Shahid, Mr. Ayaz Hashambhoy, Ms. Ayeza Sumsam, Mrs. Ayesha Sachwani and Dr. Lubna Bokhari.Mr, Ayaz Hashambhoy is the CEO. No one has as yet been taken in place of Lisa Khoso as the Treasurer, Dr. Bari Awan is the Chairperson and Rehana Alam is the Secretary of the organization.
CEDF depends on donations from concerned individuals and organizations. Each year the accounts are audited by a firm of Chartered Accountants. In 2005 CEDF was certified by Pakistan Center for Philanthropy (PCP) and awarded tax exemption status. Since then CEDF has been recertified twice more.Since for some time CEDF has been unable to raise enough funds to cover the expenses, Dr. Iftikhar Salahuddin very generously donated 100 signed copies of his prize-winning book “Jerusalem” to be sold by CEDF members. The proceeds went to CEDF. We thank Dr. Iftikhar for his constant support and encouragement.Because of a rather rigorous attempt at fund raising, this year, after 2 bad years, we were able to raise more funds than we spent. The 2014-2015 financial highlights follow:
An effective method of reaching out to the children who have been neglected and forgotten by our education system is to open schools right where they live. With this in mind, women and girls of matric level education are approached in kachi abadis and urged to open informal 2 hour schools in their own homes. They are able to attract students since they are members of the same community.The home school teachers are paid salaries and also rent for the use of their rooms. A Working Committee member takes charge of each school for close and meaningful monitoring. If any teacher desires to continue her own education, CEDF gives the teacher financial support.Every home school closes for 2 weeks of summer vacations during June or July, according to the convenience of the teacher.The following home schools have been in operation during 2014-2015.
Z1 closed in September, 2014 because the teacher got a morning job and wanted to continue her education in the evening. PNT closed in June, 2015 because the teacher has got a full time job.Saira, the teacher of G2a, has got married and now both the schools (G2 and G2a) are conducted by Tahira. After the closure, there are 13 home schools and 4 shifts in the Mobile School. The total number of students comes to 520 for 2014-2015.
Citizen's education Development Foundation (CEDF) is an innovative and bold programe with the aim of educating the children of the poorest of the poor living in the "Kachi Abadies" (Shanty Towns).