Thursday, February 24, 2011 at 01:53PMAll of the families with which Her Star Scholars works fall below their national poverty threshold. In the Philippines a family of six earning less than US$177.08 per month is living in poverty.
Yet most of the families in our program have incomes of little more than $60 a month. Let's look at what that can buy.
4 1/2 pounds of rice - (ideally a family would have 1 pound of rice per person daily) - $4.74
6 cups of powdered milk - $6.25
2 pieces of sardines - 50 cents
1 pound of chicken - $2.11
1 month Pediasure for malnourished child - $42.64
Bananas (per pound) - 45 cents
School shoes and socks - $20.83
T-shirt (with no brand) - $3.79
Pair of Jeans (no brand name) - $12.20
4 cups of water buffalo milk - $2.21
Bottle of 50 acetaminophen - $10.00
1 Tablet of antibiotic - $11.62 - $46.51
Enrollment fee for elementary school - $9.50
Mandatory school PTA fee - $12.00
Book bag - $8.00
I can't imagine trying to raise well-nourished, well-educated children on only $60 a month. Can you?
