“Every child has a uniform and a hot meal every day, and the sick children are taken to the doctor,” says Sr. Teresa Roszkowska of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians. “Visits are made to families living in very difficult conditions, in particular to young mothers. Some very poor families live close to our community, and we help them daily with supplies and food to eat.”

The school provides students a sense of normalcy and structure. Before classes begin the children have 15 minutes of gymnastics set to music. The exercises help the children to relax and calm down before classes. On Fridays and Sundays more than 300 children attend the youth center attached to the school, where children play games, watch a movie or just enjoy themselves with their peers. Some bathe and others wash their clothes, because where they live there is no water. At the end, youth are provided biscuits, sweets, soap or whatever other supplies that have been donated.

Once children finish the primary school, they are able to access secondary and technical training at the Salesian-run St. Joseph Technical School in Khartoum, which has been training poor and internally displaced youth since 1986. Shortly after its opening, enrollment at the school reached close to 900 students. Today, enrollment is just over 650 students and more than 50 are young offenders from local prisons working toward a second chance in life.

“Gaining an education can provide new opportunities young people never even imagined were possible,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “It’s more than just classroom training. Students have access to life skills that help them make better decisions and aid in later employment.”

Students at St. Joseph’s Technical School can choose from a range of programs including carpentry, electronics, auto mechanics and the operation of a printing press. Included in the programs are health services and food assistance. Career counseling and job placement services are also offered once students complete their studies.

“All youth deserve a chance at a better life,” adds Fr. Hyde. “At St. Joseph’s Technical School we help youth take responsibility for their own lives by providing them the skills to find and keep a job that will support themselves and help their communities.”

The Sudan is one of the poorest countries in the world, and according to UNICEF, has close to 46 percent of its population living in poverty. Low-incomes and food deficiencies are the norm and ongoing violence and civil unrest exacerbate already harsh conditions. Despite these conditions, more youth are in school today than ever before with school attendance up to 73 percent compared to 68 percent in 2008. There remain however, some 3.2 million children between the ages of six and 16 out of school. The rate of out of school children is highest among nomadic populations, those living in rural areas and in the poorest households.

School enrollment and retention is affected by weak curriculum in Sudanese schools, inadequate training of teachers (41 percent are untrained, according to UNICEF) and inadequate educational materials for students. Ongoing conflict and the high cost of education, particularly in rural areas where parents have to pay school fees, also affect enrollment rates. To meet the needs of the millions of out-of-school youth, Salesian missionaries in the Sudan work to educate poor youth and provide them a path out of poverty.

###

Sources:

(PHOTO: ANS)

ANS – Sudan – The inhuman life of so many of our brothers and sisters

UNICEF – Sudan Statistics

The post SUDAN: Salesian Missionaries Provide Education to More Than 1,000 Students in Primary and Technical Education first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The Salesian primary school welcomes more than 700 students, mostly girls who have little resources or a chance for an education. Every day nearly 300 of the children have their lunch provided to them by the Salesian Sisters. Nearly 2.5 tons of rice, the main meal, are provided to students in need each month. For some, this is the only meal they will have each day.  The meals provide proper nutrition for the students and serve as an incentive for families to send their children to school.

As a result of the feeding programs, students are thriving. Many have gained weight, suffered fewer illnesses and become more focused on their studies. Teachers are seeing better student performance in class, a decrease in absenteeism and an increase in program enrollment rates as a result of the feeding program.

“Feeding programs are a necessity to meet the needs of the massive number of children around the globe who are hungry today,” Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Meals children receive at Salesian schools may be their only meals. This food not only encourages them to attend school, it allows them to focus on getting the education they need without worrying about where their next meal will come from. Children cannot learn on an empty stomach.”

Madagascar, an island in the Indian Ocean off the coast of East Africa, is one of the poorest countries in the world. Seventy percent of Madagascar’s almost 19 million people live in poverty with 5.7 million of those youth between the ages of 10 and 24 years, according to UNICEF. This number is expected to double by 2025. Due to Madagascar’s poverty, geography and an ongoing political crisis, the country is ranked 143rd out of the 177 countries classified by the human development index of the United Nations Development Program. Women and children in the country are particularly vulnerable to the effects of poverty.

For close to 80 percent of the country’s inhabitants who live in rural areas and practice subsistence farming, living conditions have been steadily declining in recent years, particularly when it comes to access to transportation, health services, education and markets. Because of the lack of hygiene and access to safe drinking water coupled with chronic malnutrition, people in Madagascar often suffer from respiratory ailments, tuberculosis and hepatitis.

In order to help youth break the cycle of poverty and hopelessness, Salesian missionaries in Madagascar operate elementary, middle and high schools throughout the country. The focus of the schools is on providing educational opportunities, increasing literacy and laying a foundation for education well past the compulsory education required in the country. Access to education and training in social and life skills encourages young students to find livable wage employment, breaking the cycle of poverty.

###

PHOTO:

ANS

—————

Sources:

ANS – Madagascar – “For Many, the Lunch offered at the School is the Only Meal of the Day”

UNICEF – Madagascar

Don Bosco Madagascar

Salesian Missions

The post MADAGASCAR: Salesian Feeding Programs Provides Free Lunch to 300 Children Each Day first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Piotrowska never thought that she would do mission work. She had never been moved by the stories from Africa of children suffering from famine and drought but that changed when she started her volunteer work in 2015 and saw firsthand the work of Salesian missionaries and the volunteers who assist them.

“Everything changed when I experienced missionary work for myself,” says Piotrowska. “I started working in the oratory. I was in charge of the children, taking care of them. I do not say just that these children radically changed my heart, but they managed to enlarge my small, narrow selfish heart.”

Ethiopia is experiencing the worst drought the country has seen in more than 50 years. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) recently announced that agricultural assistance for the upcoming rainy season in Ethiopia is essential to help the drought-affected people as one of the strongest El Niño events on record continues to have devastating effects on the lives and livelihoods of farmers and herders. The agency reported that humanitarian needs in the country have tripled since the beginning of 2015 as the drought has led to successive crop failures and widespread livestock deaths. According to the United Nations, agricultural production in the affected regions has fallen by 50 to 90 percent and the Ethiopian government has declared a state of emergency.

As a result, food insecurity and malnutrition rates are alarming in the country with FAO reporting that some 10.2 million people are now food insecure. One-quarter of all districts in Ethiopia are officially classified as facing a food security and nutrition crisis. In addition, the country’s first rainy season is delayed and, with Ethiopia’s main agricultural season fast approaching, farmers need immediate support to help them produce food between now and September for millions facing hunger.

Salesian missionaries and volunteers with the International Volunteers for Development (VIS) are utilizing the deep wells built by VIS volunteers in recent years to distribute water to schools, hospitals and first aid clinics, centers for street children, women’s refuges and diocesan centers. The goal during this emergency phase is to support the 12,000 residents of the Somali, Tigray and Oromia regions and those living in the South.

Salesian missionaries’ primary focus in the country is on the education of poor youth. They accomplish this through the operation of six primary schools, three secondary schools and six vocational training centers for older youth. At all these Salesian-run educational facilities, youth are able to gain an education while having access to support services, including family sponsorship and school feeding programs, that provide care for them and their families all with the goal of keeping youth in school as long as possible.

“Education is always our primary focus,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “But we know youth in Ethiopia are dealing with much more than just having access to education. Salesian programs are tailored to meet the needs of the youth in the communities they serve. Homeless and malnourished youth are simply not able to focus effectively on their studies while they struggle to meet their basic needs. Our services provide food and shelter so youth are able to focus on the education provided.”

###

Sources:

(PHOTO: ANS)

ANS – Ethiopia – “These children have changed my heart and my life”

UNICEF – Ethiopia

UN News Center – Ethiopian farmers need urgent assistance amid major drought, warns UN agency

The post ETHIOPIA: Salesian Lay Volunteers Educate, Provide Hope to Poor Youth and Their Families first appeared on MissionNewswire.

In 2014, European Union countries hosted a relatively small share of refugees. At the end of 2014, the world’s top refugee host was Turkey followed by Pakistan, Lebanon, Iran, Ethiopia and Jordan. Lebanon hosted by far the largest number of refugees by population. By the first six months of 2015, 137,000 refugees and migrants arrived in Europe by sea under profoundly difficult and unsafe conditions as compared to the 75,000 that arrived during the same time period last year. The numbers are expected to continue to rise throughout the rest of 2015.

Syrian refugees make up the single largest group followed by refugees from Eritrea and Afghanistan. High numbers of refugees from Somalia, Iraq and Sudan who are in need of international protection are also arriving in Europe. According to UNHCR, the majority of those arriving in Europe in the first six months of 2015 were men searching for a safe place to live and work before attempting to reunite later with their families. However, this total also included large numbers of women and children, including thousands of unaccompanied and separated children.

Often the lack of legal routes to safety leaves no choice for many men, women and children other than to turn to smugglers at enormous cost and danger to their lives. Before arriving in Europe, many have suffered high levels of abuse, exploitation and human rights violations.

In countries around the globe, Salesian missionaries are assisting close to 400,000 refugees and internally displaced persons whose lives have been affected by war, persecution, famine and natural disasters such as floods, droughts and earthquakes. Salesian programs provide refugees much needed education and technical skills training, workforce development, healthcare and nutrition.

Salesian missionaries are working across Europe helping to provide needed services for the new wave of refugees arriving in these countries.

ITALY

In Sicily, Salesian missionaries have revamped a reception center for children who come to Italy looking for a better life. The reception center provides the first emergency point of contact for unaccompanied migrant and refugee minors. By creating two new sections within the existing center, missionaries have been able to add an extra bedroom and bathroom as well as a new bathroom for staff. The center also includes a living room and balcony that serves as a communal area to encourage sharing and relaxation.

All the fittings and interior doors of the premises have been replaced and new furniture has been acquired including a television set, DVD player, computer, cookware and plates. Currently, the house can accommodate up to 12 youth. The center offers an immediate welcome and safe space and is prepared to offer accommodation for as long as necessary until youth find a suitable, more permanent solution. The new structure also offers educational initiatives including language skills training and legal assistance to help youth begin a new life in Italy.

In addition to the center in Sicily, the Salesians of the Special Circumscription of Piedmont and Valle d’Aosta are active in welcoming refugees to their new reception center at the Don Bosco Institute in Alessandria, a city in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. And in Turin, Italy, Salesian missionaries are working with the local government to actively plan a new center for refugees while assessing what assistance might be needed to help unaccompanied youth long-term.

GERMANY

The German Province of the Salesians of Don Bosco has been strengthening its commitment to young refugees. To meet the large and growing need in Germany in recent weeks, Salesian missionaries have been continually increasing the number of houses where they give assistance to youth in need.

In addition to new houses, missionaries are now offering temporary housing. Today, 11 Salesian programs across Germany are caring for 448 refugee youth and more accommodations are being prepared to accept additional refugees as the need increases. Most of the refugees are young males between 16 and 18 years of age who have come to Germany from African countries, Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. The boys are provided shelter in Salesian houses that can accommodate up to 12 people with four social workers available 24 hours a day.

SPAIN

In Madrid, Salesian missionaries are developing programs across the country in preparation for additional refugees seeking services. Missionaries are working with local governments and other social programs to respond to the refugee crisis.

Salesian missionaries who have previous experience working with young refugees and their families are helping to start additional Salesian programs that will address the needs of today’s refugee youth. Many of the new programs focus on meeting the immediate needs of newly-arrived refugees and go on to address the need for education and employment. Missionaries are also working with local schools to help assimilate children from refugee families into classrooms.

Salesian Sisters with the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians are working with the local government and diocese in Madrid to determine the most appropriate course of action to respond to and assist refugees from Syria. Currently, the Salesian Sisters operate six socio-educational projects that offer services for children at risk of social exclusion (many of them immigrants) and a social work project that was created to provide education and workforce development services to help decrease youth unemployment and educational inequality for those in poverty, especially girls.

###

Sources:

ANS – Italy Reception Centre for unaccompanied minors

ANS – Germany Welcoming Refugees: Salesians of Don Bosco in Germany give increased aid

ANS – Spain Welcoming Refugees: the Salesians in Spain are ready

UNHCR – The sea route to Europe: The Mediterranean passage in the age of refugees

The post EUROPE: Salesian Missionaries Providing Shelter and Education to Refugees Arriving in Europe first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Through the programs, Daughters of Mary Help of Christians provide for the basic needs of young East Timorese including housing, nutrition, clothing and education. Educational programs aim to impart life skills such as responsibility, self-discipline and organization in addition to offering traditional schooling that enables students to advance to technical and skills training programs to prepare for the workforce.

East Timor has endured a decades-long civil war and is home to 1.1 million people. According to the United Nations Development Program’s Human Development Index, in 2014, East Timor ranked 128 out of 187 countries for life expectancy, access to education and standard of living. The World Bank estimates that East Timor has just over 49 percent of its population living in poverty with over one-third of the population regularly experiencing food shortages.

Salesian missionaries in the country have been providing programs to help residents recover and rebuild in the wake of the devastating civil war that claimed countless lives, decimated entire communities and resulted in living conditions that are among the worst in the world. Since the violence has subsided, efforts are being focused on helping the needy, restoring hope and providing new opportunities for the future.

“Salesian missionaries offer a wide range of programs that work to improve the lives of the people of East Timor,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Poor youth and their families receive support at community health centers, orphanages, parishes and youth centers. In addition, classes are conducted in primary, secondary, technical and agricultural schools – many of which provide room and board to their students.”

Access to nutritious meals allows youth to be better prepared to take part in school activities and focus on their education. Prepared students are more likely to learn valuable skills that will help them gain employment, break the cycle of poverty in their lives and give back to their communities.

“Feeding hungry children is often the first step to providing an education,” adds Fr. Hyde. “Once children have their most basic needs met, they are then able to concentrate on their studies and further their education.”

Stop Hunger Now partners with Salesian Missions (in New Rochelle, N.Y.) which works to identify needs and coordinate delivery of 40-foot shipping containers full of meals, supplemented with additional supplies when available. The partnership was developed in 2011 and since that time, more than 60 shipping containers, including more than 16 million rice-meals, have been successfully delivered to 19 countries around the globe. The meals and life-saving aid has helped to nourish poor youth at Salesian schools and programs and care for those in need of emergency aid during times of war, natural disasters and health crises.

“The partnership with Stop Hunger Now allows Salesian Missions to expand the scope of services to youth in need,” says Jessica O’Connor, property and logistics officer at the Salesian Missions Office for International Programs. “Operating feeding programs for youth in Salesian schools whose families cannot afford to feed them is very important and integral to the success of our students and their ability to gain an education.”

###

Sources:

World Bank – East Timor

The post EAST TIMOR: Donation of Nutritious Rice-Meals by Stop Hunger Now Benefits More than 1,100 Youth first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Due to the high number of homeless youth in the country, Salesian programs in India have been created to provide safe shelter, rehabilitation services and educational opportunities to those living on the streets.

In May, Salesian missionaries began two summer camps for street children in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, located in the Indian state of Telangana in central India. More than 100 youth from the Don Bosco Navajeevans Rehabilitation Center and the Salesian-run Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and the Sisters of Charity of Jesus centers participated in the two camps.

The camps ran from morning to mid-afternoon and focused on English language courses and social activities including music, dancing, football, basketball and volleyball. The camps provide recreation for street youth as well as teach important life lessons in collaboration, teamwork and working towards a common goal.

“The Salesians in India are working hard to rehabilitate street children and restore their childhoods,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Many take for granted things like having a safe place to sleep, enough food to eat and access to medical care. The Salesians recognize how critical it is to meet these basic needs before youth can focus on education.”

Salesians in India also work with the government and child protection system on training, advocacy and outreach program development to help reduce the number of street children and provide a safety net of resources for finding, identifying and rehabilitating youth currently living on the streets.

In April, BOSCO, a Salesian-run program that has been working with at-risk youth in Bangalore since 1980, held a training session for the city’s railway authority and police personnel to alert them to the risks faced by youth who arrive at the city railway stations and train them in how to safeguard the rights of these youth. The training was supported by the Department of Women and Child Development, the government of Karnataka and South Western Railways, Bangalore Division. More than 35 people took part in the day-long session.

Participants of the training learned about a week-long survey and rescue operation held in March by BOSCO staff in collaboration with the Department of Women and Child Development. This event helped rescue 202 children at the city railway station within a week’s time. Over the last 18 years, BOSCO has rescued and rehabilitated more than 50,000 youth at the city railway station.

“The children who come into our hands are safe,” says Father George PS, executive director of BOSCO. “The majority of youth we are not able to reach fall into the hands of the brokers and middle men who hand them over to the hotels as cheap labor or abuse and exploit them. If these children are not protected, there is a higher chance they will turn to criminal activity themselves.”

In meetings following the training, the National Commission for the Protection of the Rights of Children together with local Salesians developed the “Recommendations for the Protection of Children in Railway Stations.” These recommendations lay the ground work for future training and best practices for helping the city’s street youth population. The document highlights the need for separate services for boys and girls and for the continued education of at-risk youth on the dangers of living on the streets. The recommendations also call for police to adopt a more reassuring approach when encountering street children at the railways platforms and for better collaboration between all who are working for the protection of children.

“Salesians are making steady progress in fighting for children’s rights in India, but there is so much more to be done. As long as children face unspeakable hardships, Salesians will be there to offer shelter, education and other supports in the hopes of providing a brighter future,” adds Fr. Hyde.

###

Sources:

ANS – India – Training for Street Children

ANS – India – Camps for Street Children

World Bank – India

The post INDIA: Salesians Provide Protection and Rehabilitation for Street Youth first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The Salesians have been working to restore hope in South Africa, particularly among poor youth. From empowering youth (particularly girls and young women) to building schools and teaching trade skills, the Salesians have a long history of affecting change in the country.

Most recently, the Salesians and the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians joined forces to create the Don Bosco Center at Ennerdale, in the outskirts of Johannesburg. The Center was 12 years in the making and combined separate programs run by the two organizations, one a skills training program and the other a school. The goal was to create one center offering both services to greater benefit the local youth.

In late May, the new buildings of Don Bosco Center were completed and opened. The Center is dedicated to the memory of Father Declan Collins, an Irish missionary dedicated to working with street children, who was murdered in 2002. His murder aroused anger and great sorrow among the communities he helped. Far from deterring them, his death motivated the Salesians and Daughters of Mary Help of Christians to pursue his dream with greater commitment and collaboration.

“There are many children and youth on the streets not attending school or finding employment,” explains Father Robert Gore, administrator of the Southern African Vice-Province. “A single program was envisioned to provide schooling and trade skills to the poor youth in the community.”

Through the assistance of donors helping to establish the new center, a plot of land was acquired and a number of new buildings erected. Even before they were completed they were occupied by children and older youth anxious to attend school or learn a trade. Don Bosco Center offers courses in hydraulics, carpentry, bricklaying, plastering, computers and electronics.

Today, there are 200 children attending the school and 60 young people enrolled in the various professional courses. Another 60 youth are attending classes to complete their secondary schooling.

“The Salesians see a need in a community and develop programs to meet that need,” adds Father Mark Hyde, executive director of South Africa, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Education is the greatest tool in combating poverty and the collaboration of the two communities will strengthen and enhance the ability to help youth achieve educational success and break the cycle of poverty.”

###

Sources

ANS – South Africa – Salesians and Daughters of Mary Help of Christians working together for disadvantaged young people

UNICEF – Poverty Rates in South Africa

The post SOUTH AFRICA: Salesians Collaborate to Open New Don Bosco Center first appeared on MissionNewswire.