Yet in the World Bank's client countries, hundreds of millions of adults are illiterate. More than 130 million children do not go to primary school and 80 percent of them are girls. Simply being able to read a label on a bottle of medicine can make a world of difference. The Balochistan Province in Pakistan sets an example of what can be done. Girls' schools are being established in many rural villages and special efforts are being made to ensure girls enroll by hiring female teachers and providing separate toilet facilities for girls.
Local people help secure teaching facilities, hire female teachers, and monitor school attendance.
Protecting the Environment Poverty reduction is intrinsically linked to environmental and social sustainability. Sustainability means a number of things, but first and foremost it means that resources, including human resources, are enhanced or protected rather than damaged or depleted as part of the development process. Developing countries are, in most instances, much more vulnerable to environmental degradation than industrial countries. The World Bank goes to great lengths to ensure that its projects do not harm the natural environment. All projects are screened to determine whether they pose environmental risks.