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.

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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.

Salesian missionaries working and living in the region have reported that while no one enrolled in their programs was injured, some Salesian centers have sustained damage. The majority of the damage was reported in the cities of Iquique and Alto Hospicio. Don Bosco College and the Sagrado Corazón Sanctuary in Iquique and the Domingo Savio College and parish of Nuestra Señora de la Paz in Alto Hospicio sustained the most damage.

The missionaries also reported that roads to Alto Hospicio are impassable leaving the extent of the damage to programs in that area unknown. While communication remains a challenge during this recovery period, Salesians are working to keep programs operational and students safe while assisting the community with basic needs.

Salesians working in Chile focus their efforts on providing education and social services to poor, at-risk youth. At Salesian schools, universities and youth centers throughout the country, youth can access an education as well as the skills and resources necessary to break the cycle of poverty.

According to the World Bank, slightly more than 14 percent of Chile’s population lives in poverty. Although the education system in the country is far-reaching, many poor and disadvantaged youth fall through the cracks. In the city of Santiago, hunger, homelessness and poverty threaten hundreds of children who live on the streets. And throughout the country, young people from impoverished families lack the educational opportunities available to the middle and upper classes.

“Salesians have been working across Chile for over a hundred years and they are very entrenched in their communities,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Throughout the earthquake and in the weeks and months following, Salesians will be continuing their work educating and providing for the social and emotional needs of poor youth while helping to repair and rebuild their local communities.”

In January 2013, Salesians at the Don Bosco Institute in Punta Arenas, Chile celebrated 100 years of service. The Salesian institute provides education and technical skills to youth, helping them find stable employment and a path out of poverty for themselves and their families.

For youth who lack the resources to attend Chile’s universities, Don Bosco Institute as well as other Salesian education centers in the country provide opportunities for job skills training. Today, students can choose from a variety of courses including mechanics, electronics, telecommunications, tourism services and accounting. In dual education programs, students complete their education with a chance to gain work experience at the same time.

As a result of the technical education provided by the Salesian programs, Chilean youth are more likely to find stable employment and improve their standard of living.

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PHOTO: REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado

Sources:

ANS – Chile – After the Earthquakes

US Geological Survey – Chile Earthquake 2014

World Bank – Chile

The post CHILE: After Massive Earthquake, Salesian Missionaries Report Property Damage but No Injuries first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The theme for the Expo was “Capacity Building Training in Life Skills, Citizenship and Peer Education” with the goal of igniting the minds and spirits of the youth participating. According to many of the participants, it was a unifying event. With a focus on different cultural exchanges the youth had an opportunity to learn more about each other and create a dialogue which many believe has ignited the process of social change.

“Youth are the leaders of tomorrow so nurture them today,” stated Father Johnson Parackal, executive director of Don Bosco Institute in his welcome address.

The Youth Expo is one of many programs and activities facilitated by the Salesians in India whose focus is on providing education and vocational skills training to poor youth to break the cycle of poverty and help them lead productive lives. According to the World Bank, nearly 44 percent of India’s work force is illiterate and only 17 percent has secondary schooling. Building the skills of India’s rapidly rising workforce is a key focus for reducing poverty. Between 2003 and 2009, the number of out-of-school children declined from 25 million to eight million.

Many leaders in India attended the Youth Expo including His Excellency Sri Ranjit Sekhar Mooshahary, Governor of Meghalaya and guest of honor, Father V. M. Thomas, Salesian of Don Bosco Provincial in Guwahati.

In his speech, Sri Mooshahary focused on the importance of providing youth lessons in human values and helping them find the right path for their own social development. He urged the youth to transform their dreams into reality.

During Fr. Thomas’ speech, he expressed the importance of holding events such as the Youth Expo in the region while also training youth in leadership skills, enabling them to move forward and create productive lives for themselves and their communities.

The Expo was marked by the release of the book, The Secrets of High Achievers – 17 Lessons from the World’s Great Achievers, authored by Father John Parankimalil. The Governor, while releasing the book, emphasized the importance of youth standing united in society, building their own futures, achieving success in life and bringing change to the world.

The grand finale of Youth Expo 2013 was presentations of the traditional songs and dances of India.

Sources

ANS – India – The Youth Expo at Don Bosco Institute

World Bank – India

The post INDIA: Youth Expo 2013 Focuses on Development of Youth Leaders in India first appeared on MissionNewswire.

In the early days of Don Bosco Institute, the city of Punta Arenas had close to fifteen thousand residents but no educational facility offering technical skills to youth. Technical training was needed to help youth learn skills and trades that could lead to employment. The Don Bosco Institute filled that need by providing technical training in addition to preschool, primary and secondary education.

According to the World Bank, although the economy in Chile is one of the more stable and prosperous in Latin America, a little more than five percent of the population live on just two dollars a day. The country suffers from high economic inequality which is particularly evident in access to educational opportunities.

“Although the education system in the country is far-reaching, many poor and disadvantaged youth fall through the cracks,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions – the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Throughout the country, young people from poor families lack the educational opportunities available to the middle and upper classes.”

In its early years Don Bosco Institute began by offering courses in printing, carpentry, boot-making and mechanics. Seven years after its foundation, the institute added courses in primary education to serve the huge development in the city at that time as well as the population that had begun to spring up along the Avenida Bulnes and in the suburb of Prat. Throughout the school’s history, it has grown and expanded to meet the needs of its students giving them access to new skills and trades to remain employable in the marketplace.

For youth who lack the resources to attend Chile’s universities, Don Bosco Institute provides the opportunity to receive job skills training. Students today can choose from a variety of courses including mechanics, electronics, telecommunications, tourism services and accounting. In dual education programs, students complete their education with a chance to gain work experience at the same time.

As a result of the technical education provided by the Salesians, youth are more likely to find stable employment and improve their standard of living.

“Students also learn the latest in technology at the Don Bosco Institute in Punta Arenas,” adds Fr. Hyde. “A recent donation of new equipment added to the capacity and technical infrastructure of the high school laboratories. Teachers will be able to expand the skills taught and students will have more hands-on use of information technology.”

Learn more about Salesian Missions programs in Chile >

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Sources:

ANS – A century’s history for Don Bosco, Punta Arenas

Don Bosco Institute Chile – Website

World Bank – Chile

The post CHILE: Salesians Celebrate 100 Years of Providing Education to Poor Youth first appeared on MissionNewswire.

A recent news article in The Hindu estimated that as many as 278 relief camps had been opened to shelter people from these districts. Salesian-run programs in the area have been aiding the refugees as well.

Father V.M. Thomas, founder and director of the Salesian-run Don Bosco Institute in Guwahati, is spearheading the effort. The Salesian relief services are being organized through Guwahati-based Bosco Reachout, Don Bosco Institute and programs of the organization at Bengtol, Kokrajhar and Dotma.

Fr. Thomas is no stranger to organizing and directing relief services. In 1996, he set up the CARE program for thousands of children whose families were affected by the riots of that year. Currently, he is prioritizing program initiatives to respond to the refugees in need.

News reports in The Hindu indicate that refugees may begin to return to their homes as early as Aug. 15, 2012. But those living and remaining in the refugees camps need food, clothing, baby food and shelter. Relief materials consisting mainly of clothes continue to be distributed by the Salesians who plan to continue their work for as long as needed and are also working locally with civil authorities.

“Our services may be just a drop in the ocean,” says Fr. Thomas. “However, as we distribute these relief materials, we pray and hope that we will be able to spread the message of peace and harmony among the various communities living in these districts.”

“When there is violence, no one wins,” adds Fr. Thomas. “The children and women suffer most. We plan to supplement the relief services of the Government, particularly with an eye to help the children, women and the elderly. We mourn the death of those who lost their lives and pray and work for the healing of those wounded and stand by those who have been displaced.”

The relief services are further supported by Don Bosco Institute’s sister organizations; the Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco, the Congregation of Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians and the Sisters of Mary Immaculate.

Fr. Thomas has appealed to the general public and particularly the former students of Don Bosco Institute to work together in this humanitarian initiative by mobilizing human and material resources.

To learn more and support programs like this, visit www.SalesianMissions.org.

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PHOTO: REUTERS/Utpal Baruah

Sources:

The Hindu – Sporadic violence in Kokrajhar

The Hindu – Refugees to return home by Aug 15: Gogoi

The Assam Tribune – Don Bosco chips in with aid in BTAD districts

Salesian Missions – Don Bosco Institute

Don Bosco Institute Website – Don Bosco Institute

Reuters/AlertNet: Refugees flee ethnic violence in India’s troubled Assam

The post INDIA: Salesians Aid Refugees of Ethnic Violence first appeared on MissionNewswire.