2010 Annual Report: Education - PartnershipsInAction

Dear friends,
As another year ends, we reflect on the accomplishments of 2010 and look forward to progress
in the future. Last year, we acquired almost $18 million in new grant funding and raised $7.8
million at our annual fundraisers held throughout the US. With the total $25 million, we were
able to improve the lives of millions of men, women and children in Africa and Asia. Pregnant
mothers in Pakistan now have access to midwives and inexpensive healthcare; drought-ridden
farmers in Kenya are growing more crops and marketing them more efficiently; and girls in
Afghanistan are now receiving the education they deserve.
Aziz Valliani
Chairman
National Committee
As established by His Highness the Aga Khan many years ago, the Aga Khan Foundation is
unwavering in its commitment to combat illiteracy, ill health and poverty. In partnership with
other Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) agencies, the Foundation pursues this mission
with confidence. The AKDN is rooted in the developing world with a history, permanency and
sustainability that few others are able to match.
In the vast portfolio of development work and community needs, nothing is more important to
the long-term sustainability and health of a community than ensuring access to education – the
focus of this year’s annual report. We all know that education improves livelihoods and builds
achievement all over the world, but there is increasing recognition of education as a much
greater and more integrated tool. As we continue this quest for a better and safer world, we have
found that education generates good citizenship, promoting greater tolerance and creating
pluralism in human societies. Education has become, in essence, a foundation for peace.
Dr. Mirza Jahani
Chief Executive Officer
We have learned over the years not to become frightened by the complexities of the development
process but to embrace the challenges and the multiple inputs required. In this report, we
invite you to stretch your thinking, offer feedback and reflect on the challenges faced every day
by the work of the Foundation. We have changed the format of our report to have one main
‘thought’ piece, addressing a central development issue: how a child transitions from home to
preschool to primary school and onwards. What are the challenges presented to the child, the
educators, the family and the community What are the critical factors that support this
transition especially in the early formative years What are the policy implications What is your
own experience with your child This new approach, with articles from recognized leaders in
the field, will become a regular feature of our annual report, complementing our usual annual
progress update. This year, we are pleased to have contributions from Robert Myers and Dr.
Sharon Lynn Kagan, both known experts in childhood education.
No message would be complete without noting our most heartfelt gratitude to the huge numbers
of individual, corporate and institutional supporters of Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A. as well as
our volunteers whose commitment stands as a backbone for many of our outreach activities.
Our current portfolio remains at a stable $65 million and is now set to grow in 2011 and
beyond. This would not be possible without your generosity. Thank you.