Ghonsla girls’ orphanage in Islamabad, Pakistan, provides a home, food, healthcare and education to 56 girls between the ages of four and 18. Despite supporting vulnerable girls for 25 years, construction of the orphanage was never completed, and it struggled to meet the needs of the girls who depend on it.
30 girls would sleep in a single room, and there wasn’t enough bedding for everyone during winter. All classes would take place simultaneously in a single space, with different teachers struggling to be heard over each other.
Over the past ten months, Human Appeal has constructed and equipped four rooms and six washrooms. We’ve renovated damaged facilities, and installed electrics and security cameras so that the girls and the new equipment are protected from harm.
We’ve also been training the girls and their teachers on child protection, and provided food for the duration of the project.
Today, thanks to your donations, Ghonsla – which means nest – is able to provide some of the most vulnerable girls with the chance for a safe, happy start in life. Each girl has her own bunk and locker, classes are no longer overcrowded and disruptive, and there are only twelve girls to a bedroom.
“I was four years old when I came to Ghonsla and entered the nursery class,” explained Samreen. “Now, I’m in 9th grade and Ghonsla is my family. There used to be long queues in the morning to use the few bathrooms we had, 30 girls used to share one bedroom, making it very difficult for us to sleep and study. We didn’t have a place to put our belongings and our rooms were always a mess. Now we have our own beds, spacious living areas with
personal cupboards and lockers and separate classrooms. This is all we needed.”
14-year-old Rehmana added, “We have a peaceful environment now, and we feel safe because of the security cameras. Because of the separate living spaces we don’t disturb each other and we can focus on our studies.”
Thank you for helping us to transform lives in Pakistan. You’ve helped these 56 orphaned girls, and the many more that will pass through Ghonsla in the future, to have a safe home and an education, when it seemed as though they had lost all support in the world.
