Last
month, I returned from a whirlwind tour of the U.S. As the Founder and Director
of the Nhaka Foundation in Zimbabwe, I work to give hundreds of kids every day the
opportunity to experience early childhood education. On my tour, I was an
advocate for millions more.
Why
does an early education matter? Children start to learn the alphabet. They learn
shapes and sounds. They begin to develop fine motor skills like cutting and
folding. They enter the world of numbers. These opportunities are their right,
but I don’t take them for granted. When
I was young, I didn’t have the chance to learn these essential skills. My own children
laugh at me sometimes because I have trouble telling colors apart, like
burgundy and red. I think many colors look the same. My children already know
better because their education began early. I am still catching up, and
probably will be the rest of my life.
This
is why I’m so passionate about funding early childhood development programs. Every child around the world deserves to
learn these basic skills at an early age. Their brains are incredibly flexible,
with neural connections developing hundreds and thousands of times faster than
adults. It’s a crucial time for their development. The
Global Partnership for Education (GPE) is doing amazing work funding these
opportunities for children. It is a powerful multilateral partnership working to
fund education in the world’s poorest countries, inviting international donors
to invest in their plan. It brings foundations, governments, organizations, and
private donors together around a single purpose. We must continue to push our
governments around the globe to fund it.
I went to the U.S. to do a media tour about the GPE. I traveled to 11 cities, from
Houston to Topeka, meeting with RESULTS volunteers and their local media
outlets to explain the power of education. I shared my story, hoping the
editors would recognize the importance of this opportunity for the U.S. to fully
fund its portion of the partnership. They
responded with nine media hits about the GPE, including 5 newspaper editorials.
“By giving children an education, GPE is giving them a chance,” (The Topeka Capital-Journal). “The United States can
and should hold up its role in the world to promote education,” (Hutchinson News). Other outlets included The Mercury, The Ottowa Herald, and the Charleston Gazette-Mail.
I
was honored to meet with these editors and volunteers, and I take these
experiences back with me to Zimbabwe. I look at my little children and I’m
grateful that they know more about colors than I do. I want every child to get
started on their education early in life, when it matters most.
Education Matters!
Patrick Makokoro
June 12, 2017
