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 The
proposal of ELINEPA’s Vice-president, Dr.
Helen Ampadzi
to actively support the education of the economically weak children of
South Asia who live and study in Greece has been welcomed by all the
members and immigrant friends of the Society in Greece and abroad. Mrs
Ampadzi, who has worked several years for the development of South
Asian countries as an evaluation officer of the World Bank, assembled
the initial sum of 3.000 U.S. dollars for this aim with the noble
support of the Orthodox Archdiocese of America. With this donation,
the Aid and Development Committee of ELINEPA has established the "Philoxenia
Grant"
that expresses the ecumenical and hospitable character of the
Hellenic spirit.
The ‘Philoxenia Grant’ is addressed particularly to the
children of financially weak immigrants
coming from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, India, Shri Lanka, Pakistan,
Tibet and Afghanistan and wish to study their own culture in Greece.
The Society would like to support the
immigrant children and their families by paying school fees and
purchasing books as well as schools and non-profit organizations that
share similar objectives by paying salaries to teachers, organizing
regular classes and establishing cultural centers and libraries.
The “Philoxenia Grant” 2006 was granted to the “Athens Bangla
Academy” a civil non-governmental and non-profit society that has been
registered in the Athens Court in December 2004. President of the
Academy is the Honourary Consular of Bangladesh to Greece. Mr.
Theodoros Venetsianos while director of the school is Mr. Arifur
Rahman Arif.
The main objective of the Academy is to provide education to the
children of about 17.000 Bangladeshi immigrants who work in Greece on
the language, culture and customs of their country.
For this aim, the Academy has established
a children's station in which today study 12 children of preschool
age. In the same space has been created a library and are working two
schoolteachers, Mrs Rina Islam (Bangla language and the Islam) and Mrs
Luneta Gonjales (mathematics, English and history). The Academy
organises also lectures and
cultural events, as musical concerts, projection of
films,
painting exhibitions etc. for the
spread of a better understanding among the common Athenian people
of
the culture and customs of
Bangladesh.
The "Philoxenia” Grant is particularly important for the aid and
materialisation of the aims of the Athens Bangla Academy, as this
newly established institution does not receive up to today economic
support from the Greek Government or from the state of Bangladesh.
Exclusive resources of the Academy are the contributions of its
members and the subscriptions of immigrants and its supporters.
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