New Rochelle, New York – This summer, between June and September, Salesian missionaries from various locations around the world will be visiting Catholic parishes throughout the U.S. to share inspirational stories about Salesian programs and the donors that support them making a difference in the lives of poor and disadvantaged youth. As part of the annual Missionary Cooperative Program, these forums are open to the public and Salesian donors and others interested in the work of Salesian missionaries are encouraged to attend.

This year, the visiting Salesian missionaries are from Sierra Leone, Tanzania, South Africa, Nicaragua, the Philippines and several locations in India. They will visit Catholic parishes from New York to California with several stops in between, sharing their stories of missionary work in education, workforce development and health and nutrition programs for youth and their families.

“We strive in many ways to communicate the depth and breadth of our mission and work, but nothing can compare to hearing firsthand accounts from our missionaries working and living in impoverished communities,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “In more than 130 countries around the globe, Salesian missionaries are providing support and life-changing programs that help youth and their families break the cycle of poverty and lead healthy and productive lives.”

Among those visiting include Father Jose Ubaldino, rector and parish priest at St. John Bosco Community in Sierra Leone’s capital city, Freetown. Sierra Leone has been ravaged by a 10-year civil war that has resulted in 500,000 displaced families, 60,000 orphans and thousands of street children seeking refuge in large cities. The Salesian-run Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown, is one of the country’s leading child-welfare organizations and has been on the forefront of efforts to help prevent the spread of Ebola while providing care for children left orphaned. Fr. Ubaldino will be visiting parishes in New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and California from June through August.

Several Salesian missionaries from cities across India will also be attending the forums. Father Dennis Panipitcha began his ministry in Arunachal Pradesh, India, where for 12 years he served in various capacities as administrator, rector and parish priest. Since 2006, he has been the rector and principal at Don Bosco Higher Secondary School in Kohima, Nagaland. As one of the only high schools in the impoverished northeast region of India, the school is recognized for transforming the economic, social and cultural status of the area’s residents. Fr. Panipitcha will be visiting parishes in Kansas and Nebraska in June and July.

“The great work of Salesian missionaries is only made possible through our generous donors and we encourage them, and others interested in learning how donations are making a very real and tangible difference in the lives of children and families in need, to join these public forums,” adds. Fr. Hyde.

To learn more about the visiting Salesian missionaries, including their bios and forum dates and locations, please visit Salesian Missions’ Missionary Cooperative Program.

ABOUT SALESIAN MISSIONS

Salesian Missions is headquartered in New Rochelle, NY, and is part of the Don Bosco Network—a worldwide federation of Salesian NGOs. The mission of the U.S.-based nonprofit Catholic organization is to raise funds for international programs that serve youth and families in poor communities around the globe. Salesian missionaries are made up of priests, brothers and sisters as well as laypeople—all dedicated to caring for poor children throughout the world in more than 130 countries. To date, more than 3 million youth have received services funded by Salesian Missions. These services and programs are provided to children regardless of race or religion. For more information, go to SalesianMissions.org.

The post GLOBAL: Salesian Missionaries from around the Globe Visit U.S. Parishes to Share Success Stories first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Real concerns remain about how the village with so few members will survive. When the village had 270 residents, it was already a challenge to sustain the community working together under challenging weather conditions, frequent water shortages and other threats to growing crops and raising animals. Recently, there has been growing concern about how to work the fields to gather enough to eat with so few people as well as concern about prevention methods to stop another Ebola outbreak.

Having first visited Kumbrabai during the Ebola outbreak to distribute food, water and other aid, Salesian missionaries are now bringing hope to the village by starting projects to improve residents’ health, hygiene and sanitation practices and enhance agricultural capacity for the long-term sustainability of the community.

“Salesian missionaries in the region developed a fondness for the people of Kumbrabai as they helped them cope with the effects of the Ebola epidemic,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco “From the start, they resolved to support concrete, sustainable projects that could help villagers become more self-sufficient and hopeful for the future. The first project, a newly installed water well, is just one small step toward that overall vision.”

Kumbrabai is only accessible via poorly constructed country roads and is surrounded by dense vegetation that during the rainy season turns into soggy marshland. Villagers used a small swamp of dirty water for drinking, washing, watering their animals and even as a toilet. The new water well will provide safe drinking water and water for agriculture as well as opportunities for people to learn healthy habits like hand washing, that can help protect against many diseases. Before the well, nearly two-thirds of Kumbrabai’s crops were lost to weather conditions, including drought, annually.

The new water well is the result of a renewed focus on clean water initiatives by Salesian Missions. According to Water.org, more than 750 million people do not have access to clean water and almost 2.5 billion do not have access to adequate sanitation. The lack of clean water causes more than 3.4 million deaths each year from water, sanitation and hygiene-related causes.

In response to this crisis, Salesian Missions has made building wells and supplying fresh, clean water a top priority for every community in every country in which Salesian missionaries work.

Looking ahead, missionaries plan to further expand agricultural expertise among the villagers of Kumbrabai by teaching new farming techniques and animal management practices and distributing seeds. And, they intend to create a local school where children can, for the very first time, begin their primary education.

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Sources:

Salesian Missions- In Sierra Leone, a Village is Reborn

Water.org

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The 2016 theme for International Women’s Day is “Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality.” This year the U.N is reflecting on how to accelerate and build momentum for the effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its new commitments under the UN Women’s Step It Up initiative. This new initiative asks governments to make national commitments that will close the gender equality gap – from laws and policies to national action plans and adequate investments.

Some key targets of the 2030 Agenda include: ensuring that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes; ending all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere; eliminating all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation; and eliminating all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation.

“On this International Women’s Day, I remain outraged by the denial of rights to women and girls – but I take heart from the people everywhere who act on the secure knowledge that women’s empowerment leads to society’s advancement. Let us devote solid funding, courageous advocacy and unbending political will to achieving gender equality around the world. There is no greater investment in our common future.”— UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon’s statement on International Women’s Day.

Salesian missionaries living and working in more than 130 countries around the globe are focused on achieving gender equality through programs targeted specifically for young women and girls. These programs strive to empower young women and girls by providing opportunities for education and training that lead to livable wage employment.

“Young women and girls face many disadvantages and barriers to accessing education and achieving financial independence despite their huge potential,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions. “It is very important for girls to attend school and gain an education. Girls that are empowered though education are more often able to achieve financial independence, marry at an older age and make better and healthier choices that affect not only themselves, but their families and communities as well.”

In honor of International Women’s Day, Salesian Missions is proud to share some of its programs around the globe that empower young women and girls.

BOLIVIA

Started in 1992, the Casa Maín girl’s home in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, provides shelter, nutritious meals and schooling for girls and young women with little access to education and those who were once living on the streets. Currently, there are more than 160 girls living and being educated at the home. Casa Maín is comprised of three houses and the girls are divided among them by age. The youngest girls, attending elementary school, live together in one house supported by several volunteer students from the secondary school. A second house provides shelter and peer support for girls attending secondary school while a third house is for young women attending the local university. The university students enjoy a setting that allows them to finish their degrees in higher education in a stable environment while learning how to live independently.

In addition to academic classes, the young women and girls at the home learn skills in communication and conflict management. Additional classes in dance, gymnastics and crafts are provided in the evenings and on weekends. Recently, the organization offered a three-week technology workshop to teach the girls basic computer skills including typing, word processing and drawing.

INDIA

Women from the slums of Mumbai, a densely populated city on India’s west coast, graduated from a Salesian-run 45-day skills training course. The women took courses in basic computing, English, tailoring, garment making, beauty care, hair dressing and mehndi (henna) application. The goal of the training was to help participants become better prepared for employment.

The Don Bosco Development Society in Mumbai which works to empower women in poverty to gain the skills and confidence they need to seek work, facilitated the training. For many of the participants, this was the first time they received educational training since the basic education they received when they were young. Salesian missionaries conducting the program modeled it after Skill India, an initiative by the Government of India’s Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. After the course was completed, many of the students noted that through the course they gained a sense of self-worth that they had not had before. They also felt that the skills and confidence they gained would enable them to earn a living and support their families.

SENEGAL

Center Kër Don Bosco officially opened at the end of January in Dakar, the capital and largest city in Senegal. The new center provides education, vocational training and apprenticeship opportunities to disadvantaged youth and women living in the Yoff district on the outskirts of the city.

Focused specifically on helping women gain opportunities in the workforce, the center is offering two literacy classes as well as a safe space for studying. Women in Senegal are often heads of households but lack the training and confidence to try to enter the workforce or advance into higher paying jobs. The center’s goal is to help women connect with their peers and provide access to employment training to boost confidence and improve employment prospects.

SIERRA LEONE

Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown, Sierra Leone, have been running a Girls Shelter for the past two years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been the victims of sexual assault. Those that access services at the shelter are also able to enroll in educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network. These programs train young women in the skills necessary to find and retain employment.

As part of the rehabilitation program at the Girls Shelter, young women take coursework in hotel management, hairdressing and tailoring. This training helps to empower them to overcome the discrimination they have faced, gain a greater awareness of their rights and boost their work prospects. It also helps to build character while allowing the young women the freedom to make decisions that affect their lives and their health. Recently, both the trainers and the students in these programs were able to present their skills and products to the general public at an exhibition in Freetown.

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Sources:

International Women’s Day 2016

UN – International Women’s Day 2016

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that there were more than 14,122 total cases of Ebola and 3,955 deaths from the virus in Sierra Leone alone. During the Ebola outbreak, Don Bosco Fambul mobilized its staff and immediately began providing information about the prevention of Ebola. Salesian missionaries worked with local communities to provide food aid and education about Ebola while disseminating protective clothing including long-sleeve shirts and cleaning and disinfecting agents such as chlorine.

In addition, the organization provided 20 mobile hand washing basins fitted with taps and hygiene-related products to Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs for use in Freetown. Brother Lothar Wagner, director of Don Bosco Fambul, noted that the mobile hand washing basins were placed in strategic locations around the city to act as a reminder that good hygiene practices are some of the best methods to prevent the contraction of the Ebola virus.

Since 2010, Don Bosco Fambul has provided a countrywide phone counseling service. The organization began advertising its free hotline as a preventative defense against Ebola in May 2014 and youth were encouraged to call to access critical information about the virus. Since that time, more than 25,000 calls about Ebola have been answered and fielded. The data gathered as a result of the calls helped the country’s national registration office identify Ebola hotspots and crisis regions. The head of Don Bosco Fambul’s telephone counseling department maintained permanent contact with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry for Social Affairs as well as the Ebola command center. In addition, food deliveries were organized to the quarantine zones identified by these calls. Through the hotline, Don Bosco Fambul brought hope to the children and adolescents of one of the poorest country in the world during a terrible time of crisis.

Don Bosco Fambul, with assistance from the Catholic non-governmental development organization, Manos Unidas of Spain, also transformed a school into a home for 120 boys orphaned by Ebola. This unique care center for orphans on the Don Bosco Fambul campus meets the children’s basic needs while providing schooling and education on health and hygiene. Precautions around health and hygiene, including a focus on preventative measures, are extremely stringent since the orphans have all been in contact with people infected by Ebola.

Youth who do not have extended family to go to are able to stay long-term at Don Bosco Fambul, attend school and participate in activities such as music, dance and organized games. Counseling is also available to help them successfully transition into adulthood.

“Salesian missionaries live and work in the communities in which they serve so they are perfectly positioned to respond in times of crisis as they did during the Ebola epidemic,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “In addition to all of the Ebola related services, Don Bosco Fambul was still able to continue all of its regular programming providing education and social services to children and families who live in poverty.”

Providing crisis intervention services, long-term counseling, shelter, nutritious food and an education, Don Bosco Fambul reaches out to an estimated 2,500 street children in the region each year, many of whom have been abandoned by parents, the government and those who were supposed to protect them. Don Bosco Fambul staff are also active in providing services to young prisoners at the Pademba Road Prison in Freetown.

Don Bosco Fambul has also been running a Girls Shelter for the past two years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been victims of sexual assault. Girls that access the shelter’s services are also able to attend educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network.

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Sources:

ANS – Sierra Leone – President awards Don Bosco Fambul

WHO – Ebola Stats

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The two Covenants together with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights form the International Bill of Human Rights and outline the civil, political, cultural, economic and social rights that are the birthright of all human beings. The theme of Human Rights Day 2015 is “Our Rights. Our Freedoms. Always” which aims to promote and raise awareness of the two Covenants on their 50th anniversary. The day also marks the kick-off of a year-long campaign that will promote the theme of rights and freedoms – freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want and freedom from fear.

According to the United Nations, many people around the globe remain unaware of the existence of the International Bill of Human Rights and many countries still have much to do to build political institutions, judicial systems and economies that allow people to live with dignity. Through education and social development programming, Salesian missionaries in more than 130 countries around the globe fight to ensure that all youth know their rights, are able to fully participate in their communities and have their voices heard.

Whether it’s combating child labor, assisting homeless youth or building schools where children previously had no access to education, Salesian missionaries are on the front lines educating youth on their rights and ensuring access to programs and services they need. Working in more than 5,300 Salesian primary and secondary schools around the globe, missionaries educate children in some of the poorest places on the planet. Education provides vulnerable youth a sense of personal dignity and self-worth and helps to break the cycle of poverty. At Salesian schools, young children gain an education, learn about their rights and freedoms and participate in sports and other activities all in a safe environment that encourages learning and growth.

“Education is always our primary focus,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions. “We know youth are dealing with much more than just needing access to education. Salesian programs are tailored to meet the needs of 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. Salesian programs also provide food and shelter so students are able to focus on the education provided.”

In honor of Human Rights Day, Salesian Missions highlights its unique educational programs that are helping poor youth receive an education, understand their rights and find a path out of poverty, bringing them hope for the future.

CAMBODIA

In a country where less than half of children finish primary school, more than 50,000 children have received the encouragement and support needed to complete an elementary education through the Don Bosco Children Fund since its inception in 1992. The Don Bosco Children Fund assists poor youth between the ages of 6 and 15 who are either unable to go to school or have had to drop out due to poverty. Through the fund’s program, youth not only receive support to continue their education, they also receive a monthly assistance package consisting of goods and cash. Social workers ensure that participants make progress and remain in school and those with special aptitude are further supported and encouraged to pursue college coursework. During the 2013-2014 school year, the Don Bosco Children Fund supported 4,426 students in Cambodia’s government-run schools and another 637 students in schools managed by Don Bosco Schools Battambang.

INDIA

The Child Rights Education and Action Movement Project operated out of the city of Bangalore reached out to poor youth in both urban and rural areas of the State of Karnataka in southwestern India to create a culture that will support and uphold the protection of children’s rights. The goal was to encourage and enhance youth participation in the development process of promoting children’s rights and ensuring their care and protection. The project included the formation of more than 450 child rights clubs and the training of 900 teachers and 22,500 children in human rights education. The clubs aim to impart children’s rights awareness to about 75,000 children within a three year period.

SIERRA LEONE

Salesian Missions in Madrid, Spain recently released a report titled, Right to Protection of Children in Sierra Leone, which detailed a number of child rights violations that have been occurring in the country in the wake of the Ebola epidemic. According to the report, youth are faced with the devastating repercussions of Ebola including forced child labor, child abuse and more than 12,000 children who have been left orphaned. In Sierra Leone’s capital city, Freetown, Don Bosco Fambul, one of the country’s leading child welfare organizations, has been working for the prevention and detection of child rights violations as well as providing care and social integration for children and youth at-risk. Since 2010, the organization has provided a countrywide phone counseling service and since the outbreak of Ebola in 2014, the counseling line has turned into a widely used resource for Ebola prevention and support. More than 25,000 calls about Ebola have been answered and fielded. The data gathered as a result of the calls has helped the country’s national registration office identify Ebola hotspots and crisis regions. Through the hotline, Don Bosco Fambul brought hope to the children and adolescents of one of the poorest countries in the world during a terrible time of crisis.

SOUTH SUDAN

As a result of violence and a struggle to gain independence, much of South Sudan had been reduced to rubble. Infrastructure including hospitals, churches, schools and social program buildings were almost totally destroyed. Given the inability of the government to solve the problem, two Salesian priests decided that the best way to help the fledgling nation was through education. At the time of independence, more than 70 percent of the country’s children did not attend school. The “One Hundred Village Schools for South Sudan” project started in 2012 and since that time, 60 primary schools, comprised of four classrooms and a teacher’s office, have been built across the Salesian dioceses in the country. These schools are currently educating 13,500 children. The remaining 40 schools are expected to be completed by 2017.

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Sources:

Salesian Missions

UN – Human Rights Day 2015

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According to USAID, the lead U.S. government agency that works to end extreme global poverty and enable resilient, democratic societies to realize their potential, there are more than 62 million girls around the globe who are not in school. Many families cannot afford school fees and others send their daughters to work at a young age instead. As a girl ages, the fight to get an education becomes progressively more difficult. USAID notes that in the developing world, one in seven girls is married before her 15th birthday. Girls with secondary schooling are up to six times less likely to marry as children compared to girls who have little or no education.

For those who are able to attend school, the walk to and from school is often unsafe. Around the world, 246 million children experience gender‐based violence at or on their way to school every year. A report released by the United Nations Human Rights Council noted that attacks on schools occurred in at least 70 countries between 2009‐2014, and that approximately 3,600 attacks against schools, teachers and students were recorded in 2012 alone.

“Young women and girls face many disadvantages and barriers to accessing education and achieving financial independence despite their huge potential,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “It is very important for girls to attend school and gain an education. Girls that are empowered though education are more often able to achieve financial independence, marry at an older age and make better and healthier choices that affect not only themselves, but their families and communities as well.”

In honor of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, Salesian Missions is proud to highlight programs around the globe that empower and educate young women and girls.

BOLIVIA

Started in 1992, the Casa Maín girl’s home in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, provides shelter, nutritious meals and schooling for girls and young women with little access to education and those who were once living on the streets. Currently, there are more than 160 girls living and being educated at the home. Casa Maín is comprised of three houses and the girls are divided among them by age. The youngest girls, attending elementary school, live together in one house supported by several volunteer students from the secondary school. A second house provides shelter and peer support for girls attending secondary school while a third house is for young women attending the local university.

The university students enjoy a setting that allows them to finish their degrees in a stable environment while learning how to live independently. In addition to academic classes, the young women and girls at the home learn skills in communication and conflict management. Additional classes in dance, gymnastics and crafts are provided in the evenings and on weekends. Most recently, the organization offered a three-week technology workshop to teach the girls basic computer skills including typing, word processing and drawing.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

In the Dominican Republic, women striving for a better life can access support services through the “Madres Project” in Santo Domingo. This project addresses the root causes that force children to live on the streets. By teaching mothers skills that enable them to earn a living wage and improve their living conditions, their children become more likely to stay at home and off the streets. Made possible through a partnership between Salesian Missions and the International Volunteer Movement for Development, the program offers women complete courses in literacy, post-literacy, health care and computer skills with each training module including lessons in human rights. Salesians in Santo Domingo also operate a training program for youth in the poorest areas of the city called “Boys and Girls with Don Bosco.”

INDIA

In the state of Tamil Nadu, India, the Salesian “New Beginnings” program helps to educate Sri Lankan refugees while giving their families the chance to achieve stability in their new country. The program offers technical and vocational courses and skill training as well as job placement support to aid refugees in finding employment.

For women with children who are unable to leave the refugee camp and attend traditional classes, a special program has been developed within the camp. Through it, women receive training in skills such as jewelry making and sewing and are also provided entrepreneurial workshops. In addition, they are eligible for financial assistance to start up new businesses where they can use their new skills while continuing to take care of their families. One such business is a cooperative that utilizes sewing machines and equipment financed through a micro-credit program. To date, close to 2,500 refugees have received vocational training scholarships through the program and 550 women are benefiting from the refugee camp-based small business incubator program. In addition, Salesian missionaries are currently serving 550 individuals by providing vocational training through a network of nine Salesian-run Don Bosco schools spread across Southeast India.

MEXICO

Salesians working in Mexico City, Mexico, are directing their efforts toward the country’s at-risk population, including girls and mothers living on the streets. Innovative programs are preventing poor youth from dropping out of school and are providing them important educational and training opportunities. Through the “Yolia” program, girls and young women are able to spend their days at a Salesian center in the city where they can have meals, receive tutoring, obtain therapy and learn job skills such as jewelry making and hair styling. Some girls choose the residential program where they receive additional education and services while gaining a renewed sense of dignity and self-worth.

SIERRA LEONE

Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown, Sierra Leone, have been running a Girls Shelter for the past three years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been the victims of sexual assault. Those that access services at the shelter are also able to enroll in educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network and which train them in the skills necessary to find and retain employment. The training helps to empower them to overcome the discrimination they have faced and gain a greater awareness of their rights. It also helps to build character while allowing the girls and young women the freedom to make decisions that affect their lives, improve their health and boost their work prospects.

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Sources:

Salesian Missions

United Nations Human Rights Council Report: Attacks on Girls February 2015

UN Women – 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence

USAID – Let Girls Learn

The post GLOBAL: Salesian Missions Highlights Girls Education and Empowerment Programs for 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Since the Ebola outbreak started, the World Health Organization has reported more than 14,000 Ebola cases in Sierra Leone and close to 4,000 deaths from the virus. The Salesian-run Don Bosco Fambul in Sierra Leone’s capital city, Freetown, is one of the country’s leading child-welfare organizations and was on the forefront of efforts to help prevent Ebola in local communities. Now the organization has turned its attention to helping care for children who have been left orphaned and assisting those whose rights have been violated.

The Salesian Missions report found that 82 percent of Sierra Leone’s children between the ages of 4 and 12 have been victims of violent punishments. More than 70 percent of children between the ages of 5 and 14 are forced into child labor. Some 10,000 children are working in mines and many others are working in places where they are exploited and made to work for more than 12 hours a day. In addition, child abuse and teenage pregnancy have increased and hundreds of children have been accused of witchcraft and blamed for the deaths of their family members. The report notes that the lack of political commitment, family disintegration, loss of values and overall poverty have led to these child rights violations.

“It is true that many things have been done to improve and protect children, but since the Ebola crisis, Sierra Leone has remained sorely tried and the facilities that care for children are weak,” says Ana Munoz, spokesperson the Salesian Missions Madrid. “Protecting the children and young people of Sierra Leone is the way to build a better country and a better future.”

Don Bosco Fambul has been working for the prevention and detection of child rights violations as well as providing care and social integration for children and youth at-risk. Since 2010, the organization has provided a countrywide phone counseling service. At one time, nearly half the calls focused on teen relationship issues. Since the outbreak of Ebola in 2014, the counseling line has turned into a widely used resource for Ebola prevention and support.

The organization began advertising its free hotline as a preventative defense against Ebola in May 2014 and youth were encouraged to call to access critical information about the virus. Since that time, more than 25,000 calls about Ebola have been answered and fielded. The data gathered as a result of the calls has helped the country’s national registration office identify Ebola hotspots and crisis regions. Through the hotline, Don Bosco Fambul brought hope to the children and adolescents of one of the poorest country in the world during a terrible time of crisis.

Youth living on the streets in Freetown face emotional trauma and are in need of support, basic necessities and education. Providing crisis intervention services, long-term counseling, shelter, nutritious food and an education, Don Bosco Fambul has reached out to an estimated 2,500 street children in the region, many of whom had been abandoned by parents, the government and those who were supposed to protect them.

In addition, Don Bosco Fambul has been running a Girls Shelter for the past two years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been victims of sexual assault. Girls that access the shelter’s services are also able to attend educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network. These educational programs give young women the skills necessary to find and retain employment while working to empower them to overcome the discrimination they have faced and gain a greater awareness of their rights. After having suffered tremendous disadvantages and violence in their past, these opportunities for a brighter and more stable future have been welcomed.

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Sources:

ANS – Sierra Leone – Violations of Children’s Rights have increased since Ebola

Don Bosco Fambul

World Health Organization – Ebola Stats Sierra Leone 

The post SIERRA LEONE: Salesian Missions Madrid Releases Report on Increase in Child Rights Violations Since Ebola Epidemic first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The theme of Universal Children’s Day 2015 is “Promoting children’s welfare and children’s rights” and focuses on protecting and promoting children’s rights to survive and thrive while making sure their voices are heard and they reach their full potential.

“This year, I wish to emphasize the importance of ensuring that the commitments made by the international community to the world’s children are extended to a group of children who are often forgotten or overlooked: those deprived of their liberty. Far too many children languish in jail, mental health facilities or through other forms of detention. Some children are vulnerable because they are migrants, asylum seekers, homeless or preyed on by organized criminals. Whatever the circumstances, the Convention dictates that the deprivation of liberty must be a measure of last resort, and for the shortest time. Our aim must be to pursue the best interests of the child, prevent the deprivation of liberty and promote alternatives to detention.” – UN Secretary General Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

The UN notes that this year’s observance falls at a time when 60 million people have been forcibly displaced from their homes, more than at any time since the Second World War. Almost half of those displaced are children fleeing oppression, terrorism, violence and other violations of their human rights. This observance also comes following the landmark adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development which points the way towards peaceful, prosperous and inclusive societies for all. Achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals will depend on reaching the most vulnerable children.

Salesian Missions serves more than 1 million students at more than 5,300 primary and secondary schools — most located in some of the poorest places on the planet. It also provides nearly 1,000 vocational, pre-professional and training programs with an emphasis on serving vulnerable youth.

In honor of Universal Children’s Day, Salesian Missions is proud to highlight programs that focus on children’s rights education and provide for the protection, education and promotion of children’s welfare around the globe.

BENIN

Salesian missionaries around the globe are working to end child trafficking and other abuses by addressing their root causes. From identifying traffickers and holding them accountable to educating families about these predatory practices, missionaries are working to change local laws and strengthen legal protections for youth. Child victims of trafficking are forced into all types of labor including work on farms and in sweatshops, construction, hotels and restaurants as well as in private homes as domestic servants. Some are forced to beg on the streets and are used as child soldiers. Others are sold into sexual slavery and forced into prostitution. In Benin, a country in West Africa, Salesian missionaries are focusing their work on providing hope and healing to victims of child trafficking. The Don Bosco Center in Porto-Novo, the capital city of Benin, cares for more than 200 victims of child trafficking, many who have been sold into slavery by their parents for the equivalent of $30 or less. Nearly 40,000 girls and boys are forced into agricultural or domestic labor each year within the country of Benin alone.

More stories about the work of Salesian missionaries in Benin >

CAMBODIA

In a country where less than half of children finish primary school, more than 50,000 children have received the encouragement and support needed to complete an elementary education through the Don Bosco Children Fund since its inception in 1992. The Don Bosco Children Fund assists poor youth between the ages of 6 and 15 who are either unable to go to school or have had to drop out due to poverty. Through the fund’s program, youth not only receive support to continue their education, they also receive a monthly assistance package consisting of goods and cash. Social workers ensure that participants make progress and remain in school and those with special aptitude are further supported and encouraged to pursue college coursework. During the 2013-2014 school year, the Don Bosco Children Fund supported 4,426 students in Cambodia’s government-run schools and another 637 students in schools managed by Don Bosco Schools Battambang.

More stories about the work of Salesian missionaries in Cambodia >

INDIA

The Child Rights Education and Action Movement Project, launched in November 2012 by the Salesian-run Bangalore Rural Educational and Development Society, has started more than 200 child right’s clubs that are responsible for training more than 8,000 children and adults on the rights of children while providing resources to keep children safe. Child Rights Education and Action Movement Project staff have also provided human rights education in schools for thousands of children, youth and teachers as well as formed task forces, peer education programs and three regional networks and one state level network to address the issues of child labor. Early this year, 140 school children representing 63 human rights clubs from 55 schools participated in a two-day event in collaboration with juvenile justice professionals from the police and courts in the Srikakulam and Vizianagaram districts of Andhra Pradesh. The event focused on the children’s right to be heard, a basic right established in India’s Convention on the Rights of the Child.

More stories about the work of Salesian missionaries in India >

SIERRA LEONE

In 2014, Don Bosco Fambul, a leading educational and vocational organization that serves disadvantaged youth in Freetown, Sierra Leone, in collaboration with Catholic Caritas and Sierra Leone Prisons Service, launched the Legal Support Project with the intention of helping the most disadvantaged inmates incarcerated at Pademba Road Prison in Freetown. The project provides legal representation for poor inmates who would otherwise be unable to access legal services to ensure their rights are upheld. As a result of this project, one young prisoner held for nearly six years without a conviction has been released. Many of the prisoners being assisted through the project do not have family outside the prison to ensure that the court and prison system acts in a fair and balanced way. Don Bosco Fambul hopes the project will free up to 100 inmates who have been held for more than three years without a conviction.

More stories about the work of Salesian missionaries in Sierra Leone >

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Sources:

UNICEF –Press Release

UNICEF report – For every child, a fair chance: The promise of equity

United Nations – Universal Children’s Day

The post UNIVERSAL CHILDREN’S DAY: Salesian Missions Highlights Children’s Rights Education and Child Welfare Programs first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The donation by IRN provided new desks, chairs, tables, bookcases and filing cabinets for Salesian-run elementary and nursery schools, a library, a youth center and an office. Desks and chairs help to provide a more dignified and organized educational environment for students to complete their studies. As a result, students are often more focused on their classroom work and more prepared for their lessons.

“This donation is especially important for the children in our schools,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “The furniture has contributed greatly to their discipline and learning environment while bringing smiles to their faces. This has been a great contribution to the primary and nursery schools.”

The Institution Recycling Network was started in 1999 to match surplus items that need to be recycled with organizations and people who need them. Every educational, commercial and healthcare organization in the U.S. has surplus furniture and equipment. Hundreds of millions of people living in poverty or recovering from natural disasters worldwide are in desperate need of the kinds of surplus goods these very organizations are discarding. IRN makes the match and facilitates the distribution of the surplus into the hands of the organizations and people who need it most.

“There is a clear match between Salesian Missions’ need for furniture and equipment for their worldwide projects and the supplies of surplus to which IRN has access,” says, principal of the Institution Recycling Network. “Salesian Missions has been an excellent partner.”

IRN partners with nonprofits who are known to be reputable and effective providers of relief and development assistance, and who are able to use the types of surplus that IRN can provide. The organization has a “wish list” from each of its nonprofit partners of the types and quantities of surplus they can use.

When a project comes to IRN, it makes a match against these wish lists and offers the surplus to the most appropriate nonprofits. At this point, surplus is offered on a first-come-first-served basis; the first nonprofit(s) to express interest in the surplus, receives it. In many cases, a single nonprofit will claim the entire project but in some cases, the surplus will be split among two or more organizations.

“There is almost infinite demand in the U.S. and worldwide for good quality surplus so IRN’s surplus program will continue to grow,” says Lennon. “The school or company that supplies the surplus pays IRN for the service of matching their surplus with our nonprofit network. In almost all cases they pay IRN much less than they would pay to bring in dumpsters and throw the surplus away.”

There is a three pronged benefit to the work that IRN does. The generating organizations profit by disposing of their surplus for less than the cost of throwing it away, while the recipient organizations profit from a very low cost source of quality furniture and equipment. Impoverished and disaster-stricken people benefit from furniture and equipment they otherwise would have no access to. And finally, the planet benefits from reuse of important resources.

In addition to this shipment to Sierra Leone, additional furniture from the same source has been donated to Salesian programs in the Ivory Coast, Vietnam, East Timor and Liberia.

“IRN donations have furnished Salesian schools and development offices in Central America, South America, Africa and Asia,” adds Fr. Hyde. “We plan to continue working with IRN because they are a reliable partner who is eager to assist in our mission and provide quality donations to our programs.”

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Sources:

Institution Recycling Network

Salesian Missions – Sierra Leone 

The post SIERRA LEONE: Salesian Programs Benefit from Furniture Donation from the Institution Recycling Network first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The prisoner, Musa Brima, was accused of fraud he did not commit. He saw a judge only once at the start of his imprisonment to declare he was not guilty and then was largely forgotten by the system until identified by Salesian missionaries. When his case was brought back to court, the judge told him he was free and could go home.

“I remember well my time in prison because when you live through a sad reality you count every day hoping this terrible nightmare will end,” says Brima. “It was wonderful to be able to go home free and unhindered, after all this time, and hug my wife and my three children.”

Many of the prisoners who will be assisted through the project do not have family outside the prison to ensure that the court and prison system acts in a fair and balanced way. Don Bosco Fambul hopes the project will free up to 100 inmates who have been held for more than three years without a conviction.

“We obtain the information for which prisoners are eligible for the legal support from personal interviews with the detainees, and we check the prison register to verify their requests and their claim that they had been in prison for more than three years,” says Brother Lothar, director of Don Bosco Fambul.

Prison life in Sierra Leone offers very little hope for rehabilitation or reintegration back into society once a prison term has ended. According to humanitarian watch groups, prisons in Sierra Leone face overcrowding and inadequate food as well as lack vital sanitation and health care. Inmates die from overcrowding, illness and violence.

All too often, minors are detained for petty crimes and end up falling prey to prison violence, giving them little hope for the future upon their release. The population of the country’s largest detention facility, Pademba Road Prison in Freetown, was designed for 324 detainees but had over 1,300 inmates at the time of the report with the number continuing to grow.

In addition to providing legal support, Don Bosco Fambul provides education and counseling services to reach youth inside the prison. A long-term partnership between the prison and Don Bosco Fambul was established to allow the opening of a youth counseling center for the prisoners that is staffed four hours each day with two social workers and three assistants. The goal of the center is to give youth and their families the necessary tools for rehabilitation and reintegration upon release.

Don Bosco Fambul is also providing food and water to more than 70 inmates of Pademba Road Prison each day while offering counseling services, medical assistance and stress therapy to ensure inmates are mentally fit when their prison terms have ended.

“Youth incarcerated in Sierra Leone must see hope for the future if we expect to deter them from crime and other dangerous behavior,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Our goal is for youth to use their time in prison constructively and through counseling, begin to address what brought them to the prison in order to prevent their return.”

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Sources:

ANS – Sierra Leone – The Salesians obtain the release of a young man imprisoned for five years without sentence

UNICEF – Sierra Leone

The post SIERRA LEONE: Salesian Missionaries Are Working to Free Young Prisoners Who Never Received Convictions first appeared on MissionNewswire.

At one time, nearly half the calls focused on teen relationship issues. Since the outbreak of Ebola in 2014, the counseling line has turned into a widely used resource for Ebola prevention and support. The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that there were more than 13,264 confirmed Ebola cases and 3,949 deaths from the virus in Sierra Leone alone.

“At the beginning of the Ebola epidemic, the children asked for information about symptoms and for protective measures,” says Brother Lothar Wagner, director of Don Bosco Fambul. “From September 2014 forward, we became a crisis intervention measure against the deadly disease.”

The organization began advertising its free hotline as a preventative defense against Ebola in May 2014 and youth were encouraged to call to access critical information about the virus. Since that time, more than 25,000 calls about Ebola have been answered and fielded. The data gathered as a result of the calls has helped the country’s national registration office identify Ebola hotspots and crisis regions. The head of Don Bosco Fambul’s telephone counseling department maintained permanent contact with the Ministry of Health and the Ministry for Social Affairs as well as the Ebola command center. In addition, food deliveries were organized to the quarantine zones identified by these calls.

Through the hotline, Don Bosco Fambul brought hope to the children and adolescents of one of the poorest country in the world during a terrible time of crisis. For Fatmata and Samuel, who lost their parents to Ebola, Don Bosco Fambul provided much needed refuge. Both had contracted Ebola but were treated and recovered. Relatives looted their home and neglected the children, leaving them languishing in a hospital in Port Loko until Fatmata recalled one of her teachers telling her of the Don Bosco Fambul hotline.

Once connected with the organization, Fatmata was provided immediate assistance from a Don Bosco Fambul social worker. The children were cared for at the Don Bosco Interim Care Center in Freetown and were both eventually reunited with relatives and returned back to school. Their parent’s home has been renovated and both receive supportive family services.

In order to help children like Fatmata and Samuel, Salesian missionaries at Don Bosco Fambul, with assistance from the Catholic non-governmental development organization, Manos Unidas of Spain, transformed a school into a home for 120 boys orphaned by Ebola. This unique care center for orphans on the Don Bosco Fambul campus meets the children’s basic needs while providing schooling and education on health and hygiene. Precautions around health and hygiene, including a focus on preventative measures, are extremely stringent since the orphans have all been in contact with people infected by Ebola.

“Because the Ebola virus has an incubation period of 21 days, sometimes it is thought initially that the children are not infected, and some have even come with false certifications of a clean bill of health but it may be just that the symptoms have not yet appeared,” says Father Jorge Crisafulli, Provincial of the Salesians in English-speaking West Africa. “All the boys who come to us, no matter where they come from, pass an initial period in quarantine cared for by nurses who have survived the virus. Their temperature is taken every three hours for the entire 21 days and any change is recorded immediately.”

Youth who do not have extended family to go to are able to stay long-term at Don Bosco Fambul, attend school and participate in activities such as music, dance and organized games. Counseling is also available to help them successfully transition into adulthood.

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Sources:

ANS – Sierra Leone – In the fight against Ebola: Don Bosco Child Line 116

Don Bosco Fambul

WHO Ebola Stats

The post SIERRA LEONE: Don Bosco Fambul Free Child Hotline Provided Critical Support During Ebola Crisis first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Celebrated each year on August 19, the day was established by the United Nations to recognize those who face danger and adversity in order to help others and was designated to coincide with the anniversary of the 2003 bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq. The theme of World Humanitarian Day 2015 is, “Inspiring the World’s Humanity” and highlights humanitarian organizations around the world while inspiring people to become active messengers of humanity.

“On World Humanitarian Day, we honor the selfless dedication and sacrifice of workers and volunteers from around the world who devote themselves – often at great personal risk – to assisting the world’s most vulnerable people,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon in a statement on World Humanitarian Day 2015. “This year, more than 100 million women, men and children need life-saving humanitarian assistance. The amount of people affected by conflict has reached levels not seen since the Second World War, while the number of those affected by natural and human-induced disasters remains profound. On this Day we also celebrate our common humanity. The families and communities struggling to survive in today’s emergencies do so with resilience and dignity. They need and deserve our renewed commitment to do all we can to provide them with the means for a better future.”

From the recent earthquakes in Nepal and flooding in Myanmar to the deadly Ebola outbreak in West Africa, Salesian missionaries are on the forefront of relief efforts and operate programs in more than 130 countries around the globe. Missionaries provide immediate assistance but also remain in countries in need to assist families, rebuild communities and restore livelihoods long after other organizations have left.

“Because Salesian missionaries live within the communities they serve, they are perfectly positioned to respond in times of crisis,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Our programs help to provide food, clothing and shelter to those in need and our missionaries remain through the long recovery process after a humanitarian crisis to help families rebuild their homes and salvage their livelihoods.”

In honor and celebration of World Humanitarian Day 2015, Salesian Missions is proud to highlight its humanitarian efforts that have benefited more than 450,000 people since the start of 2015.

MYANMAR FLOODING

Salesian missionaries have been providing emergency relief and helping flood victims displaced by the heavy monsoon rain and flooding that has affected Myanmar this summer. Nearly 1 million people have now been affected by the widespread flooding across the country since June. Myanmar government officials have reported that close to 100 people have died and 1.2 million acres of rice fields have been destroyed. Heavy rains in early August caused by Cyclone Komen worsened the already precarious situation and led to intensified flooding across much of the country. Salesian missionaries living and working in the region are responding to the situation with aid for the flood victims, many who have lost everything. The regions most affected include Chin, Rakáin, Magwe and Sagaing which the Burmese government declared a state of natural disaster. The Salesian house of Kalay, a boarding school in the region of Chin, is located at the center of one of the most flood-stricken areas but did not suffer any damage. The Salesian community in the region is already actively engaged in emergency relief work and also planning long-term rebuilding and education and social development initiatives to help flood victims.

NEPAL EARTHQUAKES

Salesian missionaries immediately responded with food, medicine and temporary shelter after a devastating 7.8 earthquake struck Nepal on April 25 and a second earthquake struck on May 12. More than 8,000 died and close to 20,000 were injured as a result of the earthquakes and their aftermath. Forty of Nepal’s 75 districts were affected, 16 of them severely, with homes, schools, buildings, cattle, fields ready for harvest and other property destroyed. More than 500,000 people were displaced and remain in need of shelter and other assistance.

Salesian missionaries are building temporary schools and addressing long-term training needs as part of their reconstruction and relief efforts. To date, more than 21 temporary learning centers have been completed. In a recent evaluation meeting with Nepalese government officers and other non-government organizations, it was acknowledged that the temporary learning centers built by the Salesian missionaries and students from the Salesian-operated technical school, Don Bosco Thecho in Kathmandu, Nepal, were of such high quality they could possibly serve as permanent school buildings.

SYRIAN CONFLICT REFUGEES IN TURKEY

Sharing a 500-mile-long border with Syria, Southeastern Turkey has more than 1.6 million Syrian refugees, as reported by the United Nations. Salesian missionaries are providing services at three sites within Syria while also providing for Syrian refugees in Turkey. While many Syrian refugees stay in towns on the Turkey-Syrian border, many find their way to big cities like Istanbul where Salesian missionaries operate a program that currently serves close to 400 Syrian refugees.

At the Don Bosco Center in Istanbul, Salesian Father Andres Calleja Ruiz leads special programs for refugee children and youth from Syria as well as for a growing number of families fleeing ISIS persecution in Iraq. Because most refugees do not speak the local language it is difficult for children to attend school and adults to find work. At the Center, Salesian missionaries provide a school for more than 350 refugee children where they learn the English language and traditional school subjects such as mathematics, geography and music. Students have access to sports and dance programs intended to help them connect with their peers and find enjoyment and comfort in their new surroundings. In addition, the program provides counseling both for youth and their families to help them overcome the challenges and traumas they have faced.

Technical skills training is a critical component of Salesian work in Istanbul. Many refugees leave the country’s border towns and refugee camps and make their way to Istanbul hoping to find employment and a more stable life. If they fail to find work, refugees are often left in dire circumstances. The Don Bosco Center’s technical skills training program is a critical safety net for those in need.

WEST AFRICA EBOLA OUTBREAK

The recent Ebola outbreak in West Africa, the most deadly on record, has infected close to 21,200 and killed more than 8,400 across Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Salesian missionaries in both Sierra Leone and Liberia immediately responded with health prevention education and humanitarian assistance in the form of food aid and medical supplies as well as soap and other cleaning and disinfecting products to help slow and eventually stop the spread of Ebola. The Salesian-run Mother Patern College of Health Sciences, one of five colleges that make up the Stella Maris Polytechnic University in Monrovia, the capital city of Liberia, was on the front lines of the Ebola crisis with all 63 of its staff reassigned to address the Ebola outbreak. Education was an important step in stopping the spread of the disease and Salesian missionaries in Liberia and Sierra Leone went door to door providing education on Ebola and passing out prevention materials. Salesian missionaries also continue to provide ongoing support, shelter and education to Ebola orphans, those children who have lost parents, and for some, their entire families, as a result of the deadly disease.

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Sources:

ANS – Spain – “In the midst of calamities, we reassert our commitment to the poor”

World Humanitarian Day 2015

The post GLOBAL: Salesian Missions Highlights Humanitarian Efforts on World Humanitarian Day first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Celebrated each year on August 12, the day was established by the United Nations to raise awareness of issues affecting young people around the world. The theme of International Youth Day 2015, is “Youth Civic Engagement” and focuses on the engagement and participation of youth for the achievement of sustainable human development. The UN notes that while opportunities for youth to engage politically, economically and socially are low or non-existent, developing the foundation for youth engagement improves their lives and the communities in which they live.

“As the world changes with unprecedented speed, young people are proving to be invaluable partners who can advance meaningful solutions,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon in a statement on International Youth Day 2015. “Youth movements and student groups are challenging traditional power structures and advocating a new social contract between States and societies. Young leaders have contributed fresh ideas, taken proactive measures and mobilized through social media as never before. I applaud the millions of young people who are protesting for rights and participation, addressing staggering levels of youth unemployment, raising their voices against injustice and advocating global action for people and the planet.”

Working in more than 130 countries around the globe, Salesian missionaries focus on education, workforce development programs, social development services and human rights education to provide young people with the knowledge and skills needed to lead productive lives and become contributing members of their communities.

“For youth to be actively engaged in their communities they must have access to education and other basic human services that allow them to feel valued and that their voices will be heard,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Salesian missionaries meet the basic needs of disadvantaged youth who often have nowhere else to turn. They also provide education and social and workforce development services to ensure a positive transition into adulthood.”

In honor and celebration of International Youth Day 2015, Salesian Missions is proud to highlight Salesian programs that empower youth.

CAMBODIA

In a country where less than half of children finish primary school, more than 50,000 children have received the encouragement and support needed to complete an elementary education through the Don Bosco Children Fund since its inception in 1992. The Don Bosco Children Fund assists poor youth between the ages of 6 and 15 who are either unable to go to school or have had to drop out due to poverty. Through the fund’s program, youth not only receive support to continue their education, they also receive a monthly assistance package consisting of goods and cash. Social workers ensure that participants make progress and remain in school and those with special aptitude are further supported and encouraged to pursue college coursework. During the 2013-2014 school year, the Don Bosco Children Fund supported 4,426 students in Cambodia’s government-run schools and another 637 students in schools managed by Don Bosco Schools Battambang.

INDIA

The Child Rights Education and Action Movement Project operated out of the city of Bangalore reached out to poor youth in both urban and rural areas of the State of Karnataka in southwestern India to create a culture that will support and uphold the protection of children’s rights. The goal was to encourage and enhance youth participation in the development process of promoting children’s rights and ensuring their care and protection. The project included the formation of more than 450 child rights clubs and the training of 900 teachers and 22,500 children in human rights education. The clubs aim to impart children’s rights awareness to about 75,000 children within a three-year period.

SIERRA LEONE

Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown, Sierra Leone, have been running a Girls Shelter for the past three years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been the victims of sexual assault. Those that access services at the shelter are also able to enroll in educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network and which train them in the skills necessary to find and retain employment. The training helps to empower them to overcome the discrimination they have faced and gain a greater awareness of their rights. It also helps to build character while allowing the girls and young women the freedom to make decisions that affect their lives, improve their health and boost their work prospects.

SOUTH AFRICA

Through the Salesian Institute Youth Projects, an organization in Cape Town, South Africa, Salesian missionaries provide shelter, education and workforce development services in an effort to meet the basic needs of the youth they serve while helping them break the cycle of poverty. For the last four years, one of the Salesian Institute’s projects, Waves of Change, has been assisting unemployed youth in finding work in the fishing industry. Requiring minimal levels of education, jobs in the fishing industry can provide a significant income, a stable career path and extensive travel opportunities for poor youth. Some youth employed through the project have had the opportunity to travel as far as Antarctica. The Waves of Change project offers a compulsory five-day life skills course after which students who successfully complete the course are awarded financial assistance towards obtaining the required certification for work in the fishing industry through the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA). During the 2013-2014 school year, more than 300 youth received education and life skills training through this program. Nearly 75 percent have already been placed into jobs within the fishing industry.

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Sources:

UN – International Youth Day 2015

The post INTERNATIONAL YOUTH DAY: Highlights Programs Providing Child Rights Training, Education and Workforce Development Opportunities first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Youth who are robbed of their freedom are often aware of their rights being systematically violated but lack the resources and support to challenge and change their circumstances. While sending a minor to prison or a rehabilitation center should be the last resort, in many places it is common practice. For example, in Kenya, more than 1,800 children are detained because they are homeless and live on the streets. In addition, close to 500 are being held because they are not under the control of parents and another 600 for begging.

To bring awareness to these issues, Salesian Missions in Madrid has launched the Youth IN-Justice campaign to highlight growing concerns surrounding the juvenile justice system and the needs of incarcerated youth.

“There are alternatives to a child or a youngster entering a prison or a reformatory center,” says Ana Muñoz, spokesperson for Salesian Missions Madrid. “The great challenge is to understand that in order to end these practices, we must provide supports like education and social development programs to help youth break the cycle of poverty and incarceration.”

Salesian missionaries have a long history of working with poor youth and those who have been incarcerated. Programs focus on rehabilitation as well as education and skills training so youth are able to provide for themselves once released. At the Pademba Road Prison in Freetown, the capital city of Sierra Leone, Don Bosco Fambul, one of the country’s leading child-welfare organizations, provides a range of services to help incarcerated youth. Prison life in Sierra Leone offers very little hope for rehabilitation or reintegration back into society once a prison term has ended. According to humanitarian watch groups, prisons in Sierra Leone face overcrowding and inadequate food as well as lack vital sanitation and health care. Inmates die from overcrowding, illness and violence.

All too often, minors are detained for petty crimes and end up falling prey to prison violence, giving them little hope for the future upon their release. The population of Pademba Road Prison, the country’s largest detention facility, was designed for 324 detainees but had over 1,300 inmates at the time of the report with the number continuing to grow.

“My life in the prison of Pademba Road was a continuous torture,” says Johnny, a former prisoner who was 14 years old at the time of his incarceration and whose only crime was being homeless and sleeping on the streets. “I was in a cell with adults who were criminals. All I would get to eat was a plate of rice and a cup of black tea without sugar. The other prisoners would take away my sandwich at breakfast and other things from my plate of rice. They would not allow me to sleep at night as I had to fan for the elder ones. In the morning, it was my turn to clean the can that we used as a toilet. But the worst thing was the sexual abuses which I was a victim of for two years. I complained against them but no one listened.”

In addition to providing legal support and working to gain early release for incarcerated youth like Johnny, Don Bosco Fambul provides education and counseling services for youth inside the prison. Through the establishment of a long-term partnership between the prison and Don Bosco Fambul, a new youth counseling center for prisoners will be staffed with two social workers and three assistants for four hours each day. The goal of the center is to give youth and their families the necessary tools for rehabilitation and reintegration upon release.

Don Bosco Fambul is also providing food and water to more than 70 inmates of Pademba Road Prison each day while offering counseling services, medical assistance and stress therapy to ensure inmates are mentally fit when their prison terms have ended.

“Incarcerated youth must see hope for the future if we expect to deter them from crime and other dangerous behavior,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “A goal of Salesian missionaries is to do everything possible to keep youth out of detention centers. For those already incarcerated, Salesian programs help them to use their time in prison constructively and, through counseling, begin to address what brought them there in order to prevent their return.”

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Sources:

ANS – Spain – One million children in the world are deprived of their liberty

UN – Facts on Juvenile Justice

(Stock photo)

The post SPAIN: Campaign Launched to Highlight Struggles of Youth Unfairly Kept in Juvenile Justice Centers first appeared on MissionNewswire.

As of the beginning of April, there were no new cases of Ebola reported in Liberia, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Since the outbreak started, WHO has reported more than 9,712 confirmed Ebola cases and 4,332 deaths from the virus in the country. Across Liberia, Sierra Leone and Ghana, more than 800 healthcare personnel have been infected with Ebola and nearly 500 have died since the epidemic began. The WHO has noted that this will have devastating implications for the long-term health of these countries.

Before schools officially reopened in Liberia, Salesian missionaries provided Ebola prevention information and teacher training in preparation for the return to school. School buildings and classrooms were thoroughly cleaned and disinfected. A team of educators with the National Catholic Task Force led by Sister Evelina of the St. Teresa’s Convent school in collaboration with the Catholic Education Secretariat, conducted two separate trainings for 528 teachers from 28 Catholic schools located in Montserrado, Bomi, Gbarpolu, Margibi and Grand Bassa Counties.

The first training, conducted during the emergency phase of the response, focused on basic facts and awareness surrounding Ebola prevention. The second training was for select groups of teachers to become Ebola trainers. These teacher trainers provided Ebola prevention workshops and awareness programs for students and other teachers once the schools reopened in February. A guide on Ebola prevention which will serve as a reference for Ebola prevention in schools was circulated among Catholic schools, including Salesian schools in the country.

Now that schools are open and classes have resumed, Salesian missionaries are getting back to the important work of establishing a regular routine for their students. The recent shipment of food aid resulting from the partnership between Salesian Missions and Stop Hunger Now is providing nutritious meals to students each day to help them focus on their studies and improve their overall health. In addition, Salesian programs are helping children get back to school by providing financial assistance to more than 100 families to help them pay school fees.

“Feeding programs like the one in Liberia are helping to meet the needs of the massive number of children around the globe who are hungry today,” says 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.”

Through ongoing partnerships like the ones with Feed My Starving Children and Stop Hunger Now, Salesian Missions is able to deliver life-saving food aid and other supplies to those most in need.

“Salesian missionaries are an integral part of the existing infrastructure in many countries and Salesian Missions plays an important role in making sure aid from the United States reaches its destination country and gets into the hands of those who need it most,” adds. Fr Hyde.

Salesian missionaries have also turned their attention to helping Ebola orphans. Missionaries in Liberia report close to 530 children who have lost both of their parents to Ebola and another 153 who have lost either their father or mother to the virus across the three West African countries affected. Salesian programs are working to unite orphans with relatives or educational programs and orphanages that will help to provide ongoing care and education. Other Salesian programs are already in the process of providing food, medical care and education to Ebola orphans.

Headquartered in New Rochelle, New York, Salesian Missions has launched an Ebola Emergency Fund to assist Salesian missionaries in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone who are working to help contain the deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa. To raise money for the fund, the Catholic nonprofit aid organization has launched an emergency fundraising campaign and is issuing an urgent appeal for donations. Go to www.SalesianMissions.org/ebola to give.

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Sources:

World Health Organization Ebola Crisis

The post LIBERIA: Food Aid Provides Returning Students Nutritious Meals Thanks to Salesian Missions Partnership with Feed My Starving Children first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Salesian missionaries report more than 530 children who have lost both of their parents to Ebola and another 153 who have lost either their father or mother to the virus across the three affected West African countries. Salesian missionaries living and working in Sierra Leone have been responding with preventative education, food aid, medical supplies and other assistance since the outbreak began.

© 2015 / UNICEF / Kamara

The Salesian-run Don Bosco Fambul in Sierra Leone’s capital city, Freetown, is one of the country’s leading child-welfare organizations and has been on the forefront of efforts to help prevent Ebola in local communities and provide care for children left orphaned.

With assistance from the Catholic non-governmental development organization, Manos Unidas of Spain, Salesian missionaries at Don Bosco Fambul have recently transformed a school into a home for 120 boys orphaned by Ebola. This unique interim care center for orphans on the Don Bosco Fambul campus meets the children’s basic needs while also providing schooling and education on health and hygiene. Precautions around health and hygiene, including a focus on preventative measures, are extremely stringent since the orphans have all been in contact with people infected by Ebola.

“Because the Ebola virus has an incubation period of 21 days, sometimes it is thought initially that the children are not infected, and some have even come with false certifications of a clean bill of health but it may be just that the symptoms have not yet appeared,” says Father Jorge Crisafulli, Provincial of the Salesians in English-speaking West Africa. “All the boys who come to us, no matter where they come from, pass an initial period in quarantine cared for by nurses who have survived the virus. Their temperature is taken every three hours for the entire twenty-one days and any change is recorded immediately.”

The interim care center has a designated isolation area called Zone A which is a quarantined tent where up to 60 boys stay for their first 21 days at the interim care center. Strict preventative health protocols are enforced within this area such as a special handle to turn water on and off in the shower to ensure that no one is touching anything that has been touched by someone else.

The goal of the interim care center is to eventually reunite the boys with extended family that can care for them such as aunts, uncles and grandparents.

“When a child comes to us and is proven to be healthy, social workers and volunteers from Sierra Leone go to his village of origin to find someone of his extended family, so that he can return to them,” adds Fr. Crisafulli. “But this is not always possible, either because no one is left alive or because their families do not want to take care of the child.”

Often, Salesian missionaries at Don Bosco Fambul run into complications when trying to place boys with extended family such as struggles over land rights.

“One of the serious problems that we have encountered is that sometimes the extended family does not want the child because they want to keep the land of the dead parents that rightfully belongs to the child survivor. So they refuse. They say the child is a witch or a wizard and that it is their fault that the family died, and then they keep the land that rightfully belongs to the young person. For that reason, we have hired lawyers who take care of these problems, so that these children will have a future,” explains Fr. Crisafulli.

Boys who do not have extended family to go to are able to stay at Don Bosco Fambul, attend school and participate in activities such as music, dance and organized games. Counseling is also available to help them successfully transition into adulthood.

Headquartered in New Rochelle, New York, Salesian Missions has launched an Ebola Emergency Fund to assist Salesian missionaries in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone who are working to help contain the deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa. To raise money for the fund, the Catholic nonprofit aid organization has launched an emergency fundraising campaign and is issuing an urgent appeal for donations. Go to www.SalesianMissions.org/ebola to give.

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Sources:

ANS – Sierra Leone – Post-Ebola: we share responsibility

UNICEF Report

World Health Organization – Ebola Stats Week of March 22

Don Bosco Fambul in Sierra Leone

The post SIERRA LEONE: Salesian Missionaries are Caring for 120 Orphans in Wake of Ebola Crisis first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Each World Water Day focuses on a particular theme. This year’s theme is ‘Water and Sustainable Development’ and focuses on the connection between water resources and sustainable development for the future. Water is at the core of sustainable development and relates directly to the viability of poverty reduction, economic growth and environmental sustainability.

According to UN-Water, the United Nations inter-agency coordination mechanism on all freshwater related issues, 1.3 billion people cannot access electricity, 768 million people lack access to improved water sources and 2.5 billion people have no improved sanitation, worldwide. For those who have no access to clean water, water related disease is common with more than 840,000 people dying each year from water related diseases.

In addition, women and children bear the primary responsibility for water collection in the majority of households, and globally, spend 140 million hours a day collecting water. Children in these communities are forced to walk for hours to collect drinking water—water that often proves contaminated, and seriously sickens those who consume it. Many others are unable to attend school regularly because they must spend time searching for distant wells.

In response to this crisis, Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, has made building wells and supplying fresh, clean water, a top priority for every community in every country in which Salesian missionaries work.

“Water is essential for life,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions. “From helping to ensure our communities have access to clean water for drinking and agriculture to helping build a hydro-electric power station, Salesian missionaries working in 132 countries around the globe are always looking to expand their services to meet the needs of the poor youth and families they serve.”

In honor and celebration of World Water Day 2015, Salesian Missions is proud to highlight Salesian programs around the globe that provide clean, safe water to those most in need.

CAMBODIA

Salesian missionaries have a long history of working with poor youth in Cambodia. Continuing this work, the Don Bosco Technical School in Kep Province built a new water tower as part of a Water System Project at the school that was made possible by donors from Don Bosco Mondo in Bonn, Germany. Christened the Mary Help of Youth Water Tower and constructed by a group of volunteers, the tower provides more water than traditional wells, which are relied upon by most people in the region, as it goes deeper into the ground and has two reserve tanks to hold additional water. It also utilizes green technologies by featuring a water pump that is generated by installed solar panels. The Mary Help of Youth Water Tower will guarantee water for this large educational community for years to come.

INDIA

With more than 1.2 billion people, India’s growing population is putting a severe strain on the country’s natural resources. Salesian missionaries across India are dedicated to ensuring that access to safe water is a priority in Salesian-run programs and schools and in the communities in which they operate. In Mumbai, alumni from the class of 1969 at Don Bosco High School in Matuga recently enacted the Aqua Pure Water Project. This alumni-led volunteer project is ensuring clean water access at the school for nearly 3,500 children. A.V. Suresh, alumnus of Don Bosco High School, Matuga and CEO of Eureka Forbes, a water purification company, installed the water purification system at the school. As part of the project, he promised that the Eureka Forbes company would commit itself to providing clean drinking water to the school for the next 10 years. In addition, the company is initiating a collaborative project with Don Bosco High School for water harvesting and water recycling at the school which, when it is completed, will be the first of its kind in the country.

KENYA

Residents in Kenya face regular water and sanitation shortages. To address the need for clean, safe water, a water borehole restoration project is underway at the Salesian-run Bosco Boys community in Nairobi, Kenya. Made possible thanks to the generosity of donors, the project entails removing all the pipes and the electric pump in an existing 250 meter borehole, cleaning the pipes, replacing rotten ones and removing a massive amount of mud. The restoration of the borehole will ensure proper function of a well on the property while providing clean, safe water for students and faculty at the Bosco Boys community.

SIERRA LEONE

Don Bosco Fambul, a leading Salesian educational organization serving disadvantaged youth in Sierra Leone, in collaboration with Brunnenbau Conrad Ltd, a German drilling company, has installed a new water well at Pademba Road Prison in Freetown. The prison faces overcrowding and inadequate food and due to compromised infrastructure, has experienced a serious water crisis with a lack of clean drinking water and water for healthy sanitation and hygiene. The new well will provide 60,000 liters of water each day and new storage facilities to house the water supply will allow for 40 liters of water per prisoner each day.

TANZANIA

Like many poor nations around the world, Tanzania struggles to provide clean, safe water to its citizens. Salesian missionaries living and working in Tanzania focus their programs on the educational and social development needs of youth and their families while working to provide safe, clean water for their students. Well digging and restoration projects are underway at Salesian Missions facilities in Tanzania with new wells being created and older wells that have rotten pipes, often filled with mud, being cleaned and replaced in order to bring water to students and faculty involved in Salesian programs.

Sources

UN World Water Day 2015

The post WORLD WATER DAY: Salesian Missions Programs Provide Access to Safe Water in Poor Communities around the Globe first appeared on MissionNewswire.

This year’s theme, “Make It Happen,” celebrates the achievements of women while calling for greater equality and effective action for advancing and recognizing women.

To mark this year’s International Women’s Day, senior United Nations (UN) officials highlighted the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a historic roadmap signed by 189 governments 20 years ago that set the agenda for realizing women’s rights. While the UN noted that there have been many gains in education and healthcare for women, there is still a long way to go.

“We must acknowledge that the gains have been too slow and uneven, and that we must do far more to accelerate progress everywhere,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon in a statement on International Women’s Day. “From Nigeria and Somalia to Iraq and Syria, the bodies of women have been transformed into battlegrounds. Women have been attacked for trying to exercise their right to education and basic services; they have been raped and turned into sex slaves; they have been given as prizes to fighters, or traded among extremist groups in trafficking networks.”

Salesian missionaries living and working in more than 130 countries around the globe are focused on achieving gender equality though education and workforce development programs targeted specifically for young women and girls. These programs strive to empower young women and girls by providing opportunities for education and training that lead to livable wage employment.

“Young women and girls face many disadvantages and barriers to accessing education and achieving financial independence despite their huge potential,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions. “It is very important for girls to attend school and gain an education. Girls that are empowered though education are more often able to achieve financial independence, marry at an older age and make better and healthier choices that affect not only themselves, but their families and communities as well.”

In honor of International Women’s Day, Salesian Missions is proud to share some of its programs around the globe that empower young women and girls.

BOLIVIA

Started in 1992, the Casa Maín girl’s home in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, provides shelter, nutritious meals and schooling for girls and young women with little access to education and those who were once living on the streets. Currently, there are more than 160 girls living and being educated at the home. Casa Maín is comprised of three houses and the girls are divided among them by age. The youngest girls, attending elementary school, live together in one house supported by several volunteer students from the secondary school. A second house provides shelter and peer support for girls attending secondary school while a third house is for young women attending the local university.

The university students enjoy a setting that allows them to finish their degrees in higher education in a stable environment while learning how to live independently. In addition to academic classes, the young women and girls at the home learn skills in communication and conflict management. Additional classes in dance, gymnastics and crafts are provided in the evenings and on weekends. Most recently, the organization offered a three-week technology workshop to teach the girls basic computer skills including typing, word processing and drawing.

ECUADOR

The Salesian Polytechnic University which started in 1994 and has campuses in Cuenca, Guayaquil and Quito, Ecuador, provides education to more than 35 indigenous students, many of whom are women. These students are taking degree coursework in communications, biotechnology, management and leadership and psychology.

The Salesian Polytechnic University provides educational programs in biology, social science and human behavior, education, science and technology, animal science, literature, administration and finance and religion. Many students attending the university take part in hands-on research and job training in addition to traditional coursework. In addition to offering classroom lessons, the University has become a place for the meeting of cultures and the exchange of knowledge for both students and teachers. It offers real opportunities for education and progress for disadvantaged youth coming from indigenous communities.

INDIA

In the state of Tamil Nadu, India, the Salesian “New Beginnings” program helps to educate Sri Lankan refugees while giving their families the chance to achieve stability in their new country. The program offers technical and vocational courses and skill training as well as job placement support to aid refugees in finding employment.

For women with children who are unable to leave the refugee camp and attend traditional classes, a special program has been developed within the camp. Through it, women receive training in skills such as jewelry-making and sewing and are also provided entrepreneurial workshops. In addition, they are eligible for financial assistance to start up new businesses where they can use their new skills while continuing to take care of their families. One such business is a cooperative that utilizes sewing machines and equipment financed through a micro-credit program. To date, close to 2,500 refugees have received vocational training scholarships through the program and 550 women are benefiting from the refugee camp-based small business incubator program. In addition, Salesian missionaries are currently serving 550 individuals by providing vocational training through a network of nine Salesian-run Don Bosco schools spread across Southeast India.

SENEGAL

Center Kër Don Bosco officially opened at the end of January in Dakar, the capital and largest city in Senegal. The new center will provide education, vocational training and apprenticeship opportunities to disadvantaged youth and women living in the Yoff district on the outskirts of the city.

Focused specifically on helping women gain opportunities in the workforce, the center is offering two literacy classes as well as a safe space for studying. Women in Senegal are often heads of households but lack the training and confidence to try to enter the workforce or advance into higher paying jobs. The center’s goal is to help women connect with their peers and provide access to employment training to boost confidence and improve employment prospects.

SIERRA LEONE

Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown, Sierra Leone, have been running a Girls Shelter for the past two years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been the victims of sexual assault. Those that access services at the shelter are also able to enroll in educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network. These programs train young women in the skills necessary to find and retain employment.

As part of the rehabilitation program at the Girls Shelter, young women take coursework in hotel management, hairdressing and tailoring. This training helps to empower them to overcome the discrimination they have faced, gain a greater awareness of their rights and boost their work prospects. It also helps to build character while allowing the young women the freedom to make decisions that affect their lives and their health. Recently, both the trainers and the students in these programs were able to present their skills and products to the general public at an exhibition in Freetown.

Sources

International Women’s Day

United Nations – On International Women’s Day, UN urges more action to achieve gender equality

The post INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY: Salesian Missionaries Focus on Gender Equality Providing Young Women Education and Workforce Development Programs first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Salesian missionaries report close to 530 children who have lost both of their parents to Ebola and another 153 who have lost either their father or mother to the virus across the three affected West African countries. Salesian missionaries living and working in Sierra Leone have been responding with preventative education, food aid, medical supplies and other assistance since the outbreak began.

The Salesian-run Don Bosco Fambul in Sierra Leone’s capital city, Freetown, is one of the country’s leading child-welfare organizations and has been on the forefront of efforts to help prevent Ebola in local communities and provide care for children left orphaned. Promoting the welfare of children is a top priority for staff at Don Bosco Fambul as they work to tackle issues affecting street children, in particular educating them on Ebola prevention. Social workers from the organization have been meeting with homeless children on the streets of Freetown in the evenings while other staff offer group counseling, mediation and family tracing services in an effort to return children to their relatives. Following the outbreak of the disease, Don Bosco Fambul provided much-needed items for children affected, including those living in quarantined homes.

“This is a very scary and traumatic time for these children,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Overcoming this deadly disease only to find they have lost parents, siblings and other relatives is devastating for them. In the coming weeks and months, Salesian missionaries will be working to ensure proper shelter and care is provided to children now orphaned as a result of the Ebola outbreak.”

Recently, fortified rice-meals have been donated to Don Bosco Fambul to help feed orphans of the Ebola epidemic thanks to an ongoing partnership between Salesian Missions and Feed My Starving Children, a non-profit Christian organization committed to, “feeding God’s children hungry in body and spirit.”

Starvation is a concern in the affected countries. According to reports from Salesian aid workers in the field, as a result of the Ebola epidemic, many of the local markets have been shuttered and many farmers have died. Children who could previously count on at least one meal a day at Salesian schools are left hungry because the government ordered schools to be closed for the last several months in an attempt to contain the outbreak.

The most recent shipment of emergency food aid has allowed Salesian missionaries to provide meals for more than 150 poor youth three times a week. Many of the children relying on the food aid have few options to turn to for meals and are very hungry. Without proper nutrition children are more susceptible to getting sick and at a faster rate.

With the decrease in Ebola infections (Sierra Leone currently has 117 cases), schools in the country are expected to reopen in March. Government officials report that much still needs to be done to disinfect the schools and provide training and resources to teachers. Teachers will be trained to use thermometers to take the temperatures of students and other staff members and chlorinated water buckets will be made available in all schools.

Headquartered in New Rochelle, New York, Salesian Missions has launched an Ebola Emergency Fund to assist Salesian missionaries in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone who are working to help contain the deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa. To raise money for the fund, the Catholic nonprofit aid organization has launched an emergency fundraising campaign and is issuing an urgent appeal for donations. Go to www.SalesianMissions.org/ebola to give.

Sources

Reuters – Sierra Leone to reopen schools in March as Ebola infections slow

WHO – Ebola Situation Report January 2015

The post SIERRA LEONE: Recent Food Aid Shipment is Nourishing Youth Affected by Ebola Thanks to Salesian Missions Partnership with Feed My Starving Children first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Salesian missionaries, already living and working in the country, are part of the National Catholic Task Force which has been responding to Ebola since it began with the first Liberian case in March 2014. By October, the virus had spread to all 15 counties of Liberia and since then, the number of cases reported have overwhelmed health facilities and workers forcing many hospitals to close down. According to WHO, Liberia has been hard-hit with more than 3,500 confirmed deaths of Ebola.

The Salesian-run Mother Patern College of Health Sciences, one of five colleges that make up the Stella Maris Polytechnic University in Monrovia, the capital city of Liberia, has been on the front lines of the Ebola crisis with all 63 of its staff reassigned to address the Ebola outbreak. The college administers programs in health education and HIV/AIDS, offers courses in primary health care and degrees in nursing, social work, laboratory technology and biology.

Salesian missionaries have been providing education about Ebola and preventative measures through various programs throughout Liberia. In addition, fortified rice-meals and boxes of hand soap have been donated to Salesian programs in the country thanks to an ongoing partnership between Salesian Missions and Stop Hunger Now, an international relief organization that provides food and life‐saving aid to the world’s most vulnerable.

The shipments of food aid and boxes of hand soap helped to provide emergency assistance to those affected by Ebola, particularly the young and the poor. The contents of the shipment are being shared among organizations that make up the National Catholic Task Force, including Salesian missionaries.

“Because of the Ebola epidemic, shops have closed, rice production is down and the price of food has risen in the affected countries leaving many at risk of starvation,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “The partnership with Stop Hunger Now allows us to feed those most in need while providing us necessary supplies to help prevent the further spread of Ebola. The donation also provided us with another avenue to reach people to educate them about Ebola, the risk factors and preventative measures, to help stop the spread of the disease.”

Now that the transmission of Ebola has slowed, Salesian missionaries are turning their attention to educating and preparing teachers for the re-opening of schools. School buildings and classrooms are being thoroughly cleaned and disinfected and educators are taking part in training about Ebola. So far, a team of educators with the National Catholic Task Force led by Sister Evelina of the St. Teresa’s Convent school, in collaboration with the Catholic Education Secretariat, has conducted two separate trainings for 528 teachers from 28 Catholic schools located in Montserrado, Bomi, Gbarpolu, Margibi and Grand Bassa Counties.

The first training, conducted during the emergency phase of the response, focused on basic facts and awareness surrounding Ebola prevention. The second training, happening now, is for select groups of teachers to become Ebola trainers who, once schools re-open in February, will provide Ebola prevention workshops and awareness programs for teachers and students. A guide on Ebola prevention will be circulated among Catholic schools, including Salesian schools, and will serve as a reference for Ebola prevention in schools.

Salesian missionaries have also turned their attention to helping Ebola orphans. Missionaries in Liberia report close to 530 children who have lost both of their parents to Ebola and another 153 who have lost either their father or mother to the virus across the three West African countries affected. Salesian programs are working to connect orphans with other relatives or with educational programs and orphanages that will help to provide ongoing care and education. Other Salesian programs are already in the process of providing for the basic needs of Ebola orphans including food, medical care and education.

Headquartered in New Rochelle, New York, Salesian Missions has launched an Ebola Emergency Fund to assist Salesian missionaries in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone who are working to help contain the deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa. To raise money for the fund, the Catholic nonprofit aid organization has launched an emergency fundraising campaign and is issuing an urgent appeal for donations. Go to www.SalesianMissions.org/ebola to give.

Sources

Reuters – Liberia aims to be Ebola-free by end-February as cases fall to 10

Salesians Response to Ebola (Video)

The post LIBERIA: Schools Planning to Re-Open in February, Salesian Missionaries are Preparing and Responding with Teacher Education first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the Ebola epidemic a global health emergency. Salesian missionaries already living and working in communities in Liberia have been providing food aid and education about Ebola while disseminating protective clothing including long-sleeve shirts and cleaning and disinfecting agents such as chlorine.

Recent figures indicate that awareness and prevention campaigns to combat the spread of the Ebola are showing some early signs of progress. According to the WHO, in recent days, there has been a slight decrease in the number of reported cases of Ebola in Liberia. However, the risk remains high with the most recent figures showing that there have been 13,676 cases of Ebola in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, the three hardest hit countries, and 4,910 deaths from the disease.

A recent Stop Hunger Now shipment of food aid and 48 boxes of hand soap is helping to provide emergency assistance to those affected by Ebola, particularly the young and the poor. The contents of the shipment are being shared among organizations that make up the National Catholic Task Force, including Salesian missionaries, which have come together to address the Ebola crisis.

“Because of the Ebola epidemic, shops have closed, rice production is down and the price of food has risen in the affected countries and many people are at risk of starvation,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “The partnership with Stop Hunger Now allows us to feed those most in need and provides us other necessary supplies to help prevent the further spread of Ebola.”

Education is an important step in stopping the spread of the disease. Salesian missionaries in Liberia have gone door to door providing education on Ebola and passing out prevention materials to over 5,000 people. They have also distributed 500 bags of rice and 5,000 liters of oil to families in need and people and entire communities in isolation or quarantine.

“People at risk are not properly informed,” added Fr. Hyde. “The Stop Hunger Now donation provides another avenue for us to reach people to educate them about Ebola, the risk factors and preventative measures, to help stop the spread of the disease.”

This is the second Stop Hunger Now shipment to Liberia coordinated by Salesian Missions. The first, in October, contained rice meals as well as medical protective gear including gloves, masks and gowns. Salesian missionaries in the country note the need for more medical supplies and assistance for those providing care. With recent aid arriving from countries like the United States, France and England, more medical centers are being built for people infected with Ebola and more beds are becoming available. However, the need is still great. The WHO estimates that Liberia needs about 3,000 beds for the treatment of Ebola but currently has only 620 beds. In addition, there is a shortage of doctors, health care workers and equipment to run the treatment centers. Health-care workers have been particularly hard hit by the disease with 521 infected and 272 dead.

Salesian missionaries in Liberia continue to focus on providing lifesaving emergency aid to those in need while working with community leaders to help with Ebola prevention and treatment efforts.

Headquartered in New Rochelle, New York, Salesian Missions has launched an Ebola Emergency Fund to assist Salesian missionaries in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone who are working to help contain the deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa. To raise money for the fund, the Catholic nonprofit aid organization has launched an emergency fundraising campaign and is issuing an urgent appeal for donations. Go to www.SalesianMissions.org/ebola to give.

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Sources:

ANS – Liberia – Update on situation in Monrovia 

WHO – Ebola Liberia

The post LIBERIA: Emergency Food Aid, Hand Soap Reaches Ebola-Affected Communities through Partnership Between Salesian Missions and Stop Hunger Now first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The rate of Ebola in Sierra Leone is on the rise with the number infected with the virus each day nine times higher than it was two months ago, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). WHO data in early November shows that there have been 4,862 cases of Ebola with 1,130 deaths in Sierra Leone alone. Transmission also appears to be increasing rapidly in Freetown, the capital city, where the average number of daily cases is six times higher than two months ago. The WHO says Ebola transmission remains widespread and intense across West Africa including Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. The virus has so far infected over 13,000 people and claimed at least 4,951 lives.

Starvation is a concern in the affected countries. A new bulletin on the economic impact of Ebola from the International Growth Centre (IGC) has warned that the number of rice traders in some areas of Sierra Leone affected by Ebola has fallen by almost 70 percent. According to reports from Salesian aid workers in the field, local markets have been shuttered and many farmers have died. Children who could previously count on at least one meal a day at Salesian schools are left hungry because schools have been ordered closed by the government in an attempt to contain the outbreak.

“Because of the Ebola health crisis, the price of food has risen in some areas and many people are at risk of starvation, especially orphaned children who are no longer in the care of their parents and other relatives” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “The partnership with Stop Hunger Now allows us to feed those most in need and provides us other necessary supplies to help prevent the further spread of Ebola.”

The most recent shipment of emergency food aid has allowed Salesian missionaries to provide meals for more than 150 poor youth three times a week. Many of the children relying on the food aid have few options to turn to for meals and are very hungry. The lack of proper nutrition has left them susceptible to getting sick and at a faster rate. Salesian missionaries are also providing education about Ebola and medicated soap for preventive measures.

The Salesian Missions partnership with Stop Hunger Now was developed in 2011 and since that time, 58 shipping containers, including more than 16 million rice meals, have been successfully delivered to 19 countries around the globe. Recent Stop Hunger Now shipments have provided food aid and emergency medical supplies to Salesian missionaries working to help Ebola victims and their families in Sierra Leone and Liberia. These donations provided an avenue for educational workshops about Ebola prevention and preparedness.

Salesian-run Don Bosco Fambul, one of Sierra Leone’s leading child-welfare organizations, has been on the forefront of the efforts to help prevent Ebola in local communities and provide care for those children left orphaned. Promoting the welfare of children has remained a top priority for staff at Don Bosco Fambul as they work to tackle issues affecting street children, in particular educating them on Ebola prevention. Social workers from the organization have been meeting with homeless children on the streets of Freetown in the evenings while other staff offer group counseling, mediation and family tracing services in an effort to return children to their relatives. Following the outbreak of the disease, Don Bosco Fambul has provided much-needed items for children affected, including those living in quarantined homes.

“There are more than 1,560 children in quarantine because they have lost their parents or because they have been rejected by their families,” says Father Crisafulli, provincial of the Salesian province of English-speaking West Africa. “They are children who have experienced trauma such as the loss of family members, have been discriminated against, separated from their families and in some cases, accused of being the cause of evil. Although Salesians remain focused, it has not been easy to start a center for children orphaned by Ebola.”

Headquartered in New Rochelle, New York, Salesian Missions has launched an Ebola Emergency Fund to assist Salesian missionaries in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone who are working to help contain the deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa. To raise money for the fund, the Catholic nonprofit aid organization has launched an emergency fundraising campaign and is issuing an urgent appeal for donations. Go to www.SalesianMissions.org/ebola to give.

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Sources

International Growth Centre – Economic Impact of Ebola

WHO – Sierra Leone Ebola Outbreak 

The post SIERRA LEONE: Food Aid Helps Ebola Orphans Thanks to Partnership between Salesian Missions and Stop Hunger Now first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Salesian missionaries already living and working in affected West African regions, including Sierra Leone, are working with local communities to provide food aid and education about Ebola while disseminating protective clothing including long-sleeve shirts and cleaning and disinfecting agents such as chlorine. Missionaries are also working to care for the children who have been affected by the outbreak, many of whom have lost parents to the disease.

Recently, Salesian-run Don Bosco Fambul, one of Sierra Leone’s leading child-welfare organizations, provided twenty mobile hand washing basins to Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs for use in Freetown. The mobile hand washing basins are fitted with taps and hygiene-related products. Brother Lothar Wagner, director of Don Bosco Fambul, noted that the mobile hand washing basins will be placed in strategic locations around Freetown to act as a reminder that good hygiene practices are some of the best methods to prevent the contraction of the Ebola virus.

Promoting the welfare of children is a top priority for staff at Don Bosco Fambul as they work to tackle issues affecting street children, in particular educating them on Ebola prevention. Social workers from the organization have been meeting with homeless children on the streets of Freetown in the evenings while other staff offer group counseling, mediation and family tracing services in an effort to return children to their relatives. Following the outbreak of the disease, Don Bosco Fambul provided much-needed items for children affected, including those living in quarantined homes.

“There are more than 1,560 children in quarantine because they have lost their parents or because they have been rejected by their families,” says Father Crisafulli, provincial of the Salesian province of English-speaking West Africa. “They are children who have experienced trauma such as the loss of family members, have been discriminated against, separated from their families and in some cases, accused of being the cause of evil. Although Salesians remain focused, it has not been easy to start a center for children orphaned by Ebola.”

Salesian missionaries are noting the spread of Ebola in places that were once free of the deadly disease and are recognizing the need for medical supplies and emergency food aid after having reported the deaths of 15 people in Tikonko, a village in the Bo District in the Southern Province of Sierra Leone. Residents of the village are poor and have no medical supplies or knowledge of the disease or how to prevent it.

Salesian Missions has launched an emergency fund to assist Salesian missionaries in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone who are working to help contain the deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa. To raise money for the fund, the Catholic nonprofit aid organization is issuing an urgent appeal for donations.

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Sources

ANS – Sierra Leone – Don Bosco donates mobile hand-wash basins to Children’s Ministry

ANS – Sierra Leone – Ebola out of control: 80 new cases a day

WHO – Sierra Leone Ebola Outbreak 

The post SIERRA LEONE: Don Bosco Fambul Donates Mobile Hand Washing Basins to Help Prevent Spread of Ebola first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Salesian missionaries already living and working in affected West African regions, including Sierra Leone, are working with local communities providing food aid and education about Ebola while disseminating protective clothing including long-sleeve shirts and cleaning and disinfecting agents such as chlorine. Salesians are also working to care for the children who have been affected by the outbreak, many who have lost their parents and must be placed with other relatives.

On Oct. 6, Don Bosco Fambul, in collaboration with Alhaji Moijue Kaikai, Sierra Leone’s Minister of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs, held a special ceremony to reunite 12 surviving children once held at a patient care facility called the Hasting Holding Center, back with their relatives and extended family members. It was an emotional occasion with many of the children having lost one or both of their parents as well as siblings and other relatives to the Ebola outbreak.

“This is a very scary and traumatic time for these children,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Overcoming this deadly disease only to find they have lost parents, siblings and other relatives is devastating for them.”

One of the surviving children, a 13 year old named Martha Mansaray, said she has lost her parents and brothers as well as other relatives. She explained that her entire residence at Kamajor Bush at Waterloo was infected with the Ebola disease and many people including her parents and brothers lost their lives. She requested Don Bosco Fambul take her to visit her remaining relatives but preferred to remain under the care of the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs and Don Bosco Fambul.

Another child, 6 year old Bintu Turay, was infected with Ebola from her late father at Josiah Drive in Freetown, according to an uncle who was reunited with her. Her uncle explained that the girl’s mother was alive but presently at a quarantined home.

The 12 children were among 49 others who survived the deadly Ebola disease at the Hastings Holding Center. Three of the 12 surviving children were immediately reunited with their relatives at the Hastings Center and the remaining nine were brought to Don Bosco Fambul under the supervision of the Ministry of Social Welfare.

Don Bosco Fambul is working to provide proper reunification for the children. Brother Lothar Wangler, director of Don Bosco Fambul, said the Salesians were asked by the Minister of Social Welfare to collect the surviving children from the Hastings Holding Center in order to avoid any possibility of child trafficking or harm to the children.

“There is a concern that Ebola could create more child trafficking, which happened during the civil war here,” says Bro. Wangler in a recent Aljazeera article about the stigma faced by Ebola’s youngest victims. “Children lost parents and ended up with strangers, and they were misused, went to the street and eventually came to Don Bosco. I have a fear this will continue for the next couple of years. We have to act now to prevent having those children again on the street.”

The West and Central African regional director for UNICEF, Manuel Fontaine, recently estimated the number of children orphaned by Ebola as of Sept. 30 to be at least 3,700. As of Oct, 10, according to Sierra Leone’s Ministry of Health and Sanitation there were approximately 1,450 children orphaned by Ebola in the country and the number is expected to keep rising along with the disease’s death toll. The ministry has set up 14 interim care centers across the country.

Bro. Wangler noted that Don Bosco Fambul, in collaboration with the Ministry of Social Welfare, will be providing specialized care for children who are traumatized or have lost their parents in addition to creating special homes for children who have been affected by the Ebola outbreak in the country.

“Salesians working in these communities see the devastating effects of Ebola first-hand,” adds Fr. Hyde. “In the coming weeks and months Salesians will be working to ensure proper shelter and care is provided to children now orphaned as a result of the Ebola outbreak.”

Salesian Missions has launched an emergency fund to assist Salesian missionaries in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone who are working to help contain the deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa. To raise money for the fund, the Catholic nonprofit aid organization has launched an emergency fundraising campaign and is issuing an urgent appeal for donations.

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Sources

Aljazeera – ‘I feel I have no future’: Thousands orphaned by Ebola face stigma

Sierra Leone News – Social Welfare & Don Bosco Reunite Ebola Child Survivors with Relatives

UNICEF – Thousands of children orphaned by Ebola

World Health Organization – Ebola Global Response

The post SIERRA LEONE: Amidst Ebola Crisis Salesian Missionaries Reuniting Children with Family, Providing Homes for Orphaned Children first appeared on MissionNewswire.

All too often, minors are detained for petty crimes and end up falling prey to prison violence, giving them little hope for the future upon their release. The population of the country’s largest detention facility, Pademba Road Prison in Freetown, was designed for 324 detainees but had over 1,300 inmates at the time of the report with the number continuing to grow.

According to UNICEF, almost two thirds of the population of Sierra Leone lives below the poverty line, and although recent violence has ended, the country is still recovering from a brutal 10-year civil war. More than 500,000 people were displaced during the conflict and more than 60,000 children were orphaned and are homeless.

Salesians in Sierra Leone are giving new hope to young prisoners of Pademba Prison. Recently, Don Bosco Fambul, a leading educational and vocational organization that serves disadvantaged youth in Freetown, in collaboration with Catholic Caritas and Sierra Leone Prisons Service, launched the Legal Support Project with the intention of helping the most disadvantaged inmates in Pademba Prison. The project will provide legal representation for poor inmates who would otherwise be unable to access legal services to ensure their rights are upheld.

Many of the prisoners who will be assisted through the project do not have family outside the prison to ensure that the court and prison system acts in a fair and balanced way. Don Bosco Fambul hopes the project will free up to 100 inmates who they believe no longer belong in the prison system.

Freeing inmates at Pademba Road prison is no small undertaking. According to a recent Sierra Leone Awareness Times article about the new project, Brother Lother Wagner, director of Don Bosco Fambul, noted that based on current information from the prison, some inmate files and documents are missing, and can no longer be accessed by the courts to ensure justice. Lawyers and paralegals, provided by Catholic Caritas, will be working on the project to assist these prisoners and others.

In addition to providing legal support, Don Bosco Fambul is expanding its education and counseling services to reach youth inside the prison. A new long-term partnership between the prison and Don Bosco Fambul was established to allow the opening of a new youth counseling center for the prisoners that will be staffed four hours each day with two social workers and three assistants. The goal of the center is to give youth and their families the necessary tools for rehabilitation and reintegration upon release.

Don Bosco Fambul is also providing food and water to more than 70 inmates of Pademba Road Prison each day while offering counseling services, medical assistance and stress therapy to ensure inmates are mentally fit when their prison terms have ended.

“Youth incarcerated in Sierra Leone must see hope for the future if we expect to deter them from crime and other dangerous behavior,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Our goal is for youth to use their time in prison constructively and through counseling, begin to address what brought them to the prison in order to prevent their return.”

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Sources:

Sierra Leone Awareness Times – Don Bosco & Caritas to Free 100 Inmates from Prisons

UNICEF – Sierra Leone

(File photo)

The post SIERRA LEONE: Don Bosco Fambul Starts New Project for Poor Inmates in Pademba Road Prison first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Salesian Missions is the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, which is widely considered the largest private provider of vocational and technical training in the world. Programs focus on helping vulnerable youth in some of the poorest places on the planet by providing access to educational opportunities that match the local workforce development needs. This work directly impacts that areas of need identified by Secretary U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

“I believe employment and decent work, particularly for young people, are the backbone of development. Yet we are facing a great test of our time—an epidemic of youth unemployment. In countries rich and poor, unemployment rates for young people are many times those of adults—and, of course, joblessness is the tip of the iceberg.”

In remarks to the UN International Labor Organizations in Geneva, UN Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon urged governments as well as trade unions, employers’ organizations and the private sector at large to invest more in youth employment initiatives and engage with youth-led organizations. He also called for organizations to empower youth to obtain the skills necessary for employment and stressed the need for more gender equality in the workforce.

Working in more than 130 countries around the globe, Salesian missionaries focus on education and workforce development at more than 850 Salesian-run vocational, technical, professional and agricultural schools and programs. Youth are given the practical skills to prepare for meaningful employment while learning how to lead productive lives and become contributing adults in their communities.

In response to the UN Secretary General’s call-to-action, Salesian Missions has highlighted some of its programs dedicated to youth workforce development.

EL SALVADOR 

Salesian-run Don Bosco University in San Salvador, El Salvador, made significant strides in its aircraft maintenance program. For the first time in the company’s history, FedEx donated a Boeing 727 aircraft to the university last July. The donated plane is providing hands-on training tool for hundreds of aviation students at Don Bosco University. Students will have the opportunity to take skills learned in the classroom and apply them while learning about the mechanical aspects of large aircraft. Don Bosco University has also has entered into a cooperative agreement with Broward College in Davie, Florida that will further the aviation program at the university.

INDIA

Located in eastern India, the Don Bosco Self Employment Research Institute in West Bengal is helping poor youth break the cycle of poverty by educating and rehabilitating school dropouts and providing them with access to livable wage employment and self-employment opportunities.

The Institute offers several vocational training programs including electrical house wiring, fabrication and welding, garment making, refrigeration and air conditioning, construction and information and communication technology. These programs are offered to both new students and those who have been working in their trades for years but have never received a formal education. Many are in need of updated training and additional certification in order to receive promotions or advance their own businesses.

SIERRA LEONE

Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown, Sierra Leone, have been running a Girls Shelter for the past two years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been the victims of sexual assault. Girls that access services at the shelter are also able to enroll in educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network. These educational programs train young women in the skills necessary to find and retain employment. As part of their rehabilitation at the Girls Shelter, the young women take coursework in hotel management, hairdressing and tailoring. The training helps to empower them to overcome the discrimination they have faced and gain a greater awareness of their rights. It also helps to build character while allowing the young women the freedom to make decisions that affect their lives, improve their health and boost their work prospects.

SUDAN

To meet the needs of the millions of out-of-school youth, Salesians in the Sudan are working to educate poor youth and provide them a path out of poverty. The Salesian-run Don Bosco Technical School in El Obeid, the capital of the state of North Kordofan in southern Sudan, has been providing services and educational opportunities for poor youth since 2001. Since its inception, more than 1000 youth have received education, training and workforce development services. Don Bosco Technical School offers a variety of programs to best meet the needs of the youth it serves. Soon after the school opened, one-year intensive training programs began in auto mechanics, general mechanics, welding, electricity, building, carpentry and plumbing. These programs trained students to become qualified professionals, ready to join the workforce. And with career counseling and job placement services provided once students complete their studies, close to 70 percent of the more than 600 graduates of these programs have found stable employment in their chosen fields.

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Sources:

UN – Ban urges greater investment to tackle global epidemic of youth unemployment

UN – Weak global economy strangling job employment creation, UN reports

The post GLOBAL: Salesian Missions Responds to UN Statement On Importance of Youth Workforce Development first appeared on MissionNewswire.

All too often, minors are detained for petty crimes and end up falling prey to prison violence, giving them little hope for the future upon their release. The country’s largest detention facility, Pademba Road Prison in Freetown, was designed for 324 detainees but had over 1,300 inmates at the time of the report with the number continuing to grow.

Once released, many youth feel they have no choice but to continue a life of crime given the lack of opportunities for legitimate means of earning a living in the country. According to UNICEF, almost two thirds of the population lives below the poverty line, and although the violence has ended, Sierra Leone is still recovering from a brutal 10-year civil war. More than 500,000 people were displaced and more than 60,000 children were orphaned and are homeless.

Salesians in the country are giving new hope to young prisoners of Pademba Prison. Don Bosco Fambul, a leading educational and vocational program for disadvantaged youth in Freetown, is expanding its services to reach youth inside the prison. A new long-term partnership between the prison and Don Bosco Fambul has recently been established and formalized.

This partnership includes the opening of a new youth counseling center for the prisoners that will be staffed four hours each day with two social workers and three assistants. The goal of the center is to give youth and their families the necessary tools for rehabilitation and reintegration upon release.

Recently, Don Bosco Fambul, in collaboration with Brunnenbau Conrad Ltd, a German drilling company, started construction of a new water well at the prison. The well will provide 60,000 liters of water each day and new storage facilities to house the water supply will allow for 40 liters of water per prisoner each day. Because of overcrowding and compromised infrastructure, the prison has had a serious water crisis. There is a lack of clean drinking water available as well as water for healthy sanitation and hygiene.

“The construction of the water well is a significant move as it will help the prison department to maintain hygiene in the prison,” says Brother Lother Wagner, director of Don Bosco Fambul. “Water is life and prisoners deserve better sanitation despite their being prisoners. Our goal is for inmates to rehabilitate and engage in basic training and education to learn the skills that enable them to be better citizens.”

To date, 50,000 euros have been raised through donor partners for the first phase of the project but it is expected that the cost will increase as the project continues.

In addition to providing food and water to more than 70 inmates of Pademba Road Prison each day, Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul offer counseling services, medical assistance and stress therapy to ensure inmates are mentally fit when released.

“Youth incarcerated in Sierra Leone must see hope for the future if we expect to deter them from crime and other dangerous behavior,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Our goal is for youth to use their time in prison constructively and through counseling, begin to address what brought them to the prison in order to prevent their return.”

The new water well is the result of a renewed focus on clean water initiatives by Salesian Missions. According to Water.org, more than 750 million people do not have access to clean water and almost 2.5 billion do not have access to adequate sanitation. The lack of clean water causes more than 3.4 million deaths each year from water, sanitation and hygiene-related causes.

In response to this crisis, Salesian Missions has made building wells and supplying fresh, clean water a top priority for every community in every country in which Salesian missionaries work.

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PHOTO: Stock photo (Shutterstock)

Sources:

ANS – Sierra Leone – Don Bosco Fambul continues to care for young prisoners

UNICEF – Sierra Leone

Water.org

The post SIERRA LEONE: New Water Well Provides Clean Water, Sanitation for 1,300 in Pademba Road Prison first appeared on MissionNewswire.

This year’s annual theme, “Inspiring Change,” focuses on overcoming women’s inequality, encouraging more women to take on leadership roles and pursue careers in the fields of science, engineering and technology, promoting women-owned businesses and supporting financial independence for women.

It is also a day for celebrating the organizations and people who work year round to empower women and girls in an effort to make the world a better place—including nearly 30,000 Salesian missionaries working in more than 130 countries around the globe. Their programs strive to empower young women and girls through educational and social programs. All Salesian-run programs promote gender equality and work to break down barriers young women face, especially in accessing education and obtaining livable wage employment.

“Women and young girls face many barriers and disadvantages to accessing education and achieving financial independence,” says Diana Del Castillo, a program officer at the Salesian Missions Office for International Programs and an expert on gender equality. “Because Salesian missionaries are already living and working directly in many communities they are able to effect change from the inside rather than being viewed as outsiders. They are able to educate community leaders about the importance of gender equality and the benefits of girls’ education for the whole community.”

“There may be many barriers to overcome in providing young girls the same educational and workforce advantages as boys, but there is also huge potential. It is very important for girls to attend school and gain an education. Young girls that are able to are empowered and can lead a life of financial independence, marry at an older age and tend to make better and healthier choices that affect not only their lives but their family and community as well,” adds Del Castillo.

In honor of International Women’s Day, Salesian Missions is sharing information on some of its programs around the globe that empower young women and girls.

MEXICO

Salesians working in Mexico City are directing their efforts toward the country’s at-risk population, including girls and mothers living on the streets. Innovative programs are preventing poor youth from dropping out of school and are providing them important educational and training opportunities.

Through the “Yolia” program, girls and young women are able to spend their days at a Salesian center in the city where they can have meals, receive tutoring, obtain therapy and learn job skills such as jewelry making and hair styling. Some girls choose to live in the residential area where they receive additional education and services while gaining a renewed sense of dignity and self-worth.

Learn more: MEXICO: Salesian Program Brings Hope to Young Girls at Risk of Exploitation

SENEGAL

Salesians in Senegal have been providing vocational and technical training programs to local youth for many years. The Vocational Training Center of Tambacounda, one of three Salesian programs in the country, recently announced the opening of a center of excellence in information technology and communication. One of the primary goals of the center is to provide young girls access to traditional professional courses. To date, only six out of 137 students are female.

A pioneer program in technical education and vocational training in Tambacounda, the center has trained over 2280 students in automobile mechanics and electrical work, both traditionally non-female dominated fields. Expansion of the program expects to attract more female students, granting women and girls further access to professional training.

Learn more: SENEGAL: New Vocational Training Program Brings Opportunities to Girls

SIERRA LEONE

Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown, Sierra Leone, have been running a Girls Shelter for the past two years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been the victims of sexual assault. Girls that access services at the shelter are also able to enroll in educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network. These educational programs train young women in the skills necessary to find and retain employment.

As part of their rehabilitation at the Girls Shelter, the young women take coursework in hotel management, hairdressing and tailoring. The training helps to empower them to overcome the discrimination they have faced and gain a greater awareness of their rights. It also helps to build character while allowing the young women the freedom to make decisions that affect their lives, improve their health and boost their work prospects. Recently, both the trainers and the students in these programs were able to present their skills and products to the general public at an exhibition in Freetown.

Learn more: SIERRA LEONE: Girls Education Helps Young Women Break the Cycle of Violence and Poverty

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

In the Dominican Republic, women striving for a better life can access support services through the “Madres Project” in Santo Domingo. This project addresses the root causes that force children to live on the streets. By teaching mothers skills that enable them to earn a living wage and improve their living conditions, their children become more likely to stay at home and off the streets.

Made possible through a partnership between Salesian Missions and the International Volunteer Movement for Development, the program offers women complete courses in literacy, post-literacy, health care and computer skills as well as includes lessons in human rights as part of each training module. Salesians in Santo Domingo also operate a training program for youth in the poorest areas of the city called “Boys and Girls with Don Bosco.”

INDIA

In the state of Tamil Nadu, India, the Salesian “New Beginnings” program helps to educate Sri Lankan refugees while giving their families the chance to achieve stability and the opportunity to send their children to school. The program offers technical and vocational courses and skill training as well as job placement support to aid refugees in finding employment.

For women with children who are unable to leave the refugee camp and attend traditional classes, a special program has been developed within the camp. Through it, women receive training in skills such as jewelry-making and sewing and are also provided entrepreneurial workshops. In addition, they are eligible for financial assistance to start up new businesses where they can use their new skills while continuing to take care of their families, such as the business cooperative created with sewing machines and equipment financed through a micro-credit program. Today, there are close to 400 women taking advantage of this program.

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ABOUT SALESIAN MISSIONS

Salesian Missions is headquartered in New Rochelle, NY, and is part of the Don Bosco Network—a worldwide federation of Salesian NGOs. The mission of the U.S.-based nonprofit Catholic organization is to raise funds for international programs that serve youth and families in poor communities around the globe. The Salesian missionaries are made up of priests, brothers and sisters, as well as laypeople—all dedicated to caring for poor children throughout the world in more than 130 countries and helping young people become self-sufficient by learning a trade that will help them gain employment. To date, more than 3 million youth have received services funded by Salesian Missions. These services and programs are provided to children regardless of race or religion.

The post INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY: Salesian Missionaries Inspire Change for Young Women through Education, Workforce Development first appeared on MissionNewswire.

In response to this crisis, the Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown have been running a Girls Shelter for the past two years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been victims of sexual assault. Girls that access the shelter services are also able to attend educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network of programs. These educational programs give young women the skills necessary to find and retain employment.

“Education helps break the cycle of violence and poverty,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “These young women have been so courageous in their fight against violence and oppression, and now they are able to live safely while getting the emotional support they need and the education that will help them live independently.”

After taking part in an 18-month skills training program, more than 60 former residents of the Girls Shelter were able to exhibit their skills and talents for the residents of Freetown. As part of their rehabilitation, these young women took coursework in hotel management, hairdressing and tailoring. Both the trainers in these programs and the students were able to present their skills and products to the general public.

Trainers were able to highlight their small businesses and entrepreneurship showing off their skills and reinforcing their expertise as educators. It also helped the young women see what they can attain after graduation. Preparation for the community exhibit was also part of the young women’s training and helped foster a renewed sense of confidence in their skills and talents.

In addition, the training has helped to empower the young women to overcome the discrimination they have faced and gain greater awareness of their rights. It has also helped to build character while allowing them the freedom to make decisions that affect their lives, improve their health and boost their work prospects. After having suffered tremendous disadvantages and violence in their past, these opportunities for a brighter and more stable future have been welcomed.

“Girls education is important to the overall community,” adds Fr. Hyde. “Through education, these young women can change their lives. They can help bring their families out of poverty and contribute back to the communities in which they live. Many have already given back by helping other young women free themselves from poverty and violence.”

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Sources

ANS – Sierra Leone – Exhibition of skills and talents at Don Bosco Fambul

UNICEF – Sierra Leone

Salesian Missions – Sierra Leone

The post SIERRA LEONE: Girls Education Helps Young Women Break the Cycle of Violence and Poverty first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Babies born in sub-Saharan Africa are more than seven times as likely to die on the day they are born as babies in industrialized countries. An estimated 397,000 babies die each year in sub-Saharan Africa on the day they are born, and while the region accounts for 12 percent of the world’s population, 38 percent of the world’s first-day deaths occur here.

Save the Children’s first-ever Birth Day Risk Index compared first-day death rates for 186 countries and found that babies in Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali and Sierra Leone have the highest rates of first day deaths. Mothers in these countries are also at higher risk on this day. The Democratic Republic of the Congo ranked 176 of 186 countries and scored in the bottom ten on all indicators. One in 30 women is likely to die from problems related to maternity in the country.

Salesians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are working to find ways to reduce newborn deaths and lower the risk to mothers. One of the primary preventive measures the report focuses on is for countries to invest in health care workers, especially those working on the front lines, to reach the most vulnerable mothers and babies.

Last year, in collaboration with the National Program of Reproductive Health and the Provincial Medical Inspector of North Kivu, the Don Bosco Center in Goma-Ngangi launched new training sessions for medical staff that focus on newborn and maternal health. This new program is also supported by Salesian Volunteers for International Development.

“Newborn and maternal deaths are preventable during childbirth and in the days that follow,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “This program is providing important training to new health care workers and those who are already practicing that need opportunities to update and improve their skills. Medical staff are on the front lines for reducing the incidence of newborn and maternal death, and they must have access to specialized training that will provide them information on the latest medical practices and technologies.”

The program’s training course has provided six sessions for over 100 doctors and nurses in Goma who are maternity specialists. Participants have explored issues related to prenatal consultation, support for pregnant women, childbirth and neonatal care. A focus of the training is working with medical staff to put the patient at the center of the medical system and to focus on the mother’s needs throughout the pregnancy and birth.

For more than 10 years the Don Bosco Center has also run an orphanage for infants and children up to the age of three. If a mother dies in childbirth and the family does not have the means to feed and care for the baby, the father can bring the infant to the Don Bosco Center. Social workers there decide what is best for the child, providing milk if the family is able to care for the child at home or accepting the child at the orphanage where they can stay up to three years before being returned to the family.

“Salesians are working directly with families in Goma. The more we can do to prevent these deaths, the better. But if the mother dies during childbirth, the Salesians work with the family and provide them the support to get through the most challenging and difficult time,” adds Fr. Hyde.

Sources

ANS – Democratic Republic of the Congo – A woman must not lose her life while giving birth

Save the Children – 14th annual State of the World’s Mothers report

*Any goods, services, or funds provided by Salesian Missions to programs located in this country were administered in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control.

The post DR CONGO: New Training Program Helps Reduce Newborn and Maternal Mortality at Birth first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Once released, many youth feel they have no choice but to continue a life of crime given the lack of opportunities in the country for legitimate means of earning a living. According to UNICEF, almost two thirds of the population lives below the poverty line. And although the violence has ended, Sierra Leone is still recovering from a brutal 10-year civil war. More than 500,000 people were displaced and more than 60,000 children were orphaned and are homeless. The Human Development Index ranks Sierra Leone last out of 179 countries for the well-being of its people.

Salesians in the country are giving new hope to young prisoners of Pademba Prison. Don Bosco Fambul, a leading educational and vocational program for disadvantaged youth in Freetown, is expanding its services to reach youth inside the prison. A new long-term partnership between the prison and Don Bosco Fambul has recently been established and formalized.

This partnership includes the opening of a new youth counseling center for the prisoners that will be staffed four hours each day with two social workers and three assistants. The goal of the counseling is to give youth and their families the necessary tools for rehabilitation and reintegration upon release.

“Youth incarcerated in Sierra Leone must see hope for the future if we expect to deter them from crime and other dangerous behavior,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Our goal is for youth to use their time in prison constructively and, through counseling, begin to address what brought them to the prison in order to prevent their return.”

Long-term, the goal is for the Salesians of Don Bosco Fambul to assist with the construction of a water supply for 1,500 people as well as sanitation facilities at the prison. In addition, plans are underway to establish a school and training center as well as a fully equipped library.

The Salesians in Sierra Leone hope that with a mixture of counseling services and educational opportunities, youth will be able to leave prison with skills that enable them to become productive members of society, breaking the cycle of poverty and crime in their lives.

“The Salesians saw a great need here in Sierra Leone and because they have been working in these communities for many years, they know what is needed to help rehabilitate the local youth. We want to give these youth hope and show them that there are opportunities in life despite what they have experienced in their young lives,” adds Fr. Hyde.

Sources

ANS – Sierra Leone – A new Alliance in Freetown: The Salesians and Young Prisoners

UNICEF – Sierra Leone

The post SIERRA LEONE: New Salesian Program Brings Rehabilitation and Hope to Young Prisoners first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Close to 823 million people do not have enough to eat and nearly half of them are children, according to Stop Hunger Now, an international relief organization that provides food and life‐saving aid to the world’s most vulnerable. Of those who go hungry daily, 98 percent reside in developing countries where there is not only a shortage of food, but major challenges for aid to reach its destination. Working with Salesian Missions to ensure delivery and distribution, more than 10 countries have already received shipments of food this year, and will receive several more in the coming months.

Stop Hunger Now provides more than just food aid. It also provides significant in-kind aid (such as food, medicines and other supplies) that support education and vocational training programs which are proven to have long-term sustainability—like those run by Salesian Missions. These programs promote education, encourage children to attend school, improve the health and nutrition of students, address gender inequalities, combat child labor, spur economic growth and create a platform to address global issues.

“Salesian programs are a good match for our mission to end hunger in our lifetime by providing food and life-saving aid while creating a global commitment to mobilize the necessary resources,” says Chessney Barrick, director of communications and cause marketing at Stop Hunger Now.

The Stop Hunger Now meal packaging program was created to give dedicated individuals the opportunity to participate in a hands-on international hunger relief program and to become educated, engaged advocates for the world’s poor and hungry. It is volunteer-based and coordinates the streamlined packaging of highly nutritious dehydrated meals comprised of rice, soy, vegetables, flavoring, and 21 essential vitamins and minerals.

Founded in 1998, Stop Hunger Now has delivered aid and disaster relief supplies in the form of food, medicines, medical supplies, medical equipment, clothing, school supplies and more to thousands of disaster victims and other hungry and vulnerable people in 65 countries.

More than 300,000 volunteers have participated in the organization’s fun, exciting and rewarding activites. Stop Hunger Now meal packaging provides volunteers the opportunity to have an exponential and sustainable international impact right from their own communities.

The organization operates meal packaging locations in 17 cities throughout the U.S. and international locations in South Africa and Malaysia. Late in 2013, it plans to initiate the meal packaging program in new locations including Houston, Dallas/Fort Worth and Bologna, Italy.

This year Stop Hunger Now shipments have already reached the Salesian Society of St. John Bosco in the Philippines. Here, more than 28 Salesian programs shared 660 boxes of fortified rice-soy meals. More than 3,100 poor children and families benefitted from this food assistance.

“The shipment of packaged meals helps us to improve the nutrition of orphans and other vulnerable children and operate feeding programs for children in Salesian schools whose families cannot afford to feed them,” explains Jessica O’Connor, property and logistics officer at the Salesian Missions Office for International Programs.

Other Stop Hunger Now shipments have been received in Haiti, South Africa, Zambia and Sierra Leone where the meals will be shared among various Salesian programs located in those countries.

“The partnership with Stop Hunger Now allows Salesian Missions to expand its scope of services to youth in need,” adds O’Connor. “Stop Hunger Now is one of our favorite partners to work with because they are very flexible. They actively seek out opportunities to enhance shipments with additional donated items that the beneficiaries need, and they go the extra mile to help Salesian Missions meet any additional emergency requests for food that we receive.”

Partnerships, like those with Salesian Missions, drive Stop Hunger Now’s major distribution channels. According to Barrick, the organization looks for those who are able to work with Stop Hunger Now effectively and efficiently while adding value to each other’s work. Partners are chosen based on the quality of their programs, the need in their country, their ability to ensure the food is used as intended and the expected impact of the partner’s programs.

With programs in more than 130 countries around the globe, Salesian Missions has one of the largest networks that Stop Hunger Now works with and they have extensive knowledge and experience when it comes to aid shipments. The Salesians are an integral part of the existing infrastructure in many countries and Salesian Missions plays an important role in making sure aid from the United States reaches its destination country and gets into the hands of those who need it most.

“Partnering with Salesian Missions has been a great experience and their vast network around the globe provides an opportunity to extend our partnership beyond just one country,” says Barrick. “Their experience in logistics, communications and program facilitation has proven to be a huge asset in effectively donating Stop Hunger Now meals to their organization.”

Barrick also praises Salesian Missions’ staff who she says are very thorough, responsive and excellent at communicating the progress of projects and the state of the beneficiaries. She notes that receiving letters, photos and videos from those who actually receive the food has tremendous impact on the donors they rely on to package the food.

“Feeding hungry children is often the first step in providing an education,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Hungry and malnourished youth cannot focus on learning. Our programs work to educate and meet the basic needs of poor youth.”

At every Salesian program serving youth around the globe, children receive educational opportunities and the support of caring adults. Humanitarian partnerships like the one with Stop Hunger Now make a real difference.

“In order to build the movement to end hunger in our lifetime,” says Barrick. “We will have to work together as partners to share the stories from the field that create champions for our causes.”

ABOUT STOP HUNGER NOW

This year, Stop Hunger Now is celebrating its 15^th anniversary in its ongoing work to create a movement to end hunger. More than 100,000,000 meals have been packaged and distributed with other life-saving aid to 65 countries, impacting millions of lives. The organization is driven by a vision of a world without hunger and a mission to end hunger in our lifetime by providing food and life-saving aid to the world’s most vulnerable and by creating a global commitment to mobilize the necessary resources.

In its efforts to respond to emergency needs around the world Stop Hunger Now receives and distributes significant donations of in-kind aid. These donations are large quantities of food, medicines, medical supplies and other such items as may be of use in fighting hunger and providing relief in a crisis. For more information visit www.stophungernow.org.

ABOUT SALESIAN MISSIONS

Salesian Missions is headquartered in New Rochelle, NY, and is part of the Don Bosco Network—a worldwide federation of Salesian NGOs. The mission of the U.S.-based nonprofit Catholic organization is to raise funds for international programs that serve youth and families in poor communities around the globe. The Salesian missionaries are made up of priests, brothers and sisters, as well as laypeople—all dedicated to caring for poor children throughout the world in more than 130 countries and helping young people become self-sufficient by learning a trade that will help them gain employment. To date, more than 3 million youth have received services funded by Salesian Missions. These services and programs are provided to children regardless of race or religion. For more information, go to SalesianMissions.org.

The post Stop Hunger Now, Salesian Missions Partnership Feeds Poor Youth around the Globe first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Shipments are already on the ground in Haiti, Guatemala, Madagascar, Philippines, Sierra Leone and Zambia. Salesian-run orphanages and youth centers are able to utilize the aid for the homeless children and at-risk youth they serve. From primary and secondary schools to vocational and technical training centers, students are able to get more out of the educational opportunities the Salesians provide, knowing they will not go hungry.

Stop Hunger Now operates meal packaging locations in 17 cities throughout the U.S. and in international locations in South Africa and Malaysia. Later this year, the organization plans to initiate the meal packaging program in new locations including Houston, Dallas/Fort Worth and Bologna, Italy.

Stop Hunger Now helps break the cycle of poverty for meal recipients through education, skills development and health care, while providing much-needed nutrition. The majority of meals go to support school feeding, vocational training, early childhood development programs, orphanages and medical clinics.

Stop Hunger Now’s goals are to provide food and life-saving aid to support sustainable education and development programs and to create a movement of educated volunteer advocates that are actively involved in poverty and hunger related issues.

“Salesian Missions is a good match for our mission to end hunger in our lifetime by providing food and life-saving aid while creating a global commitment to mobilize the necessary resources,” says Chessney Barrick, director of marketing and communications at Stop Hunger Now.

Salesian programs operate in more than 130 countries around the globe. Salesian Missions helps support programs that promote education, encourage children to attend school, improve the health and nutrition of students, address gender inequalities, combat child labor, spur economic growth and create a platform to address global issues.

Because of the partnership and its resulting shipments, Salesians in the Philippines were able to help feed 3,155 poor youth and their families with the 660 boxes of fortified rice-soy meals they received. The shipment also included shampoo and eyeglasses, helping close to 700 people in need. Twenty-eight Salesian organizations throughout the Philippines were supported through the shipment which was coordinated by Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco.

The fortified rice-soy meals not only feed hungry children, they give them the energy to participate fully in educational programs and activities.

“Feeding hungry children is often the first step in providing an education,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions. “When children have their most basic needs met, they are then able to concentrate on their studies and further their education.”

For Keisha Mae, a wood and furniture technology trainee in the Philippines, the fortified meals make a significant difference to the quality of her educational experience.

“I often go to school with an empty stomach as there is no food available in the house. During snack time some of my classmates share whatever they have,” explains Keisha Mae, “But since this Rice-Soy Casserole was donated, the training center served it to the trainees during snack time. Its vegetable ingredients make it look so nutritious and satisfy our starving stomachs.”

For parents of those enrolled in programs run by the Salesians of Don Bosco in Freetown, Sierra Leone, this critical food aid gives them peace of mind knowing that despite living in poverty, they are able to give a nutritious meal to their children. Many parents allow their children to attend school simply because they know they will be fed there. Offering just one plate of food, Salesian staff managed to persuade one mother living in poverty to allow her young son to attend activities at the informal school in the youth center and enter the first level of pre-school. Nineteen pallets of rice meals were delivered to programs in Sierra Leone, benefitting close to 1,200 youth.

In another shipment, the City of Hope in Zambia was able to provide for 4,320 people ranging from infants to the elderly. The Salesian center there includes an orphanage and vocational training programs as well as a primary and secondary school. The meals provided by Stop Hunger Now allow the organization to divert money previously used on food to other critical program needs. Money saved was also used to increase the size of the programs provided and number of students admitted.

The Salesian Sisters who run the City of Hope reported that the children receiving the meals are much healthier and have less headaches and hunger pains. In addition, they are better able to focus on their school work and their grades are improving.

“Stop Hunger Now is one of our favorite partners to work with because they are very flexible. They actively seek out opportunities to enhance shipments with additional donated items that the beneficiaries need, and they go the extra mile to help Salesian Missions meet any additional emergency requests for food that we receive,” explains Jessica O’Connor, property and logistics officer at the Salesian Missions Office for International Programs.

With programs in more than 130 countries around the globe, Salesian Missions has one of the largest networks that Stop Hunger Now works with. They also have extensive knowledge and experience when it comes to aid shipments. The Salesians are an integral part of the existing infrastructure in many countries and Salesian Missions plays an important role in making sure aid from the United States reaches its destination country and gets into the hands of those who need it most.

“The partnership with Stop Hunger Now allows Salesian Missions to expand its scope of services to youth in need,” adds O’Connor. “The shipment of packaged meals helps us to improve the nutrition of orphans and other vulnerable children. 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.”

ABOUT STOP HUNGER NOW

This year, Stop Hunger Now is celebrating its 15^th anniversary in its ongoing work to create a movement to end hunger. More than 100,000,000 meals have been packaged and distributed with other life-saving aid to 65 countries, impacting millions of lives. The organization is driven by a vision of a world without hunger and a mission to end hunger in our lifetime by providing food and life-saving aid to the world’s most vulnerable and by creating a global commitment to mobilize the necessary resources.

In its efforts to respond to emergency needs around the world Stop Hunger Now receives and distributes significant donations of in-kind aid. These donations are large quantities of food, medicines, medical supplies and other such items as may be of use in fighting hunger and providing relief in a crisis. For more information visit www.stophungernow.org.

ABOUT SALESIAN MISSIONS

Salesian Missions is headquartered in New Rochelle, NY, and is part of the Don Bosco Network—a worldwide federation of Salesian NGOs. The mission of the U.S.-based nonprofit Catholic organization is to raise funds for international programs that serve youth and families in poor communities around the globe. The Salesian missionaries are made up of priests, brothers and sisters, as well as laypeople—all dedicated to caring for poor children throughout the world in more than 130 countries and helping young people become self-sufficient by learning a trade that will help them gain employment. To date, more than 3 million youth have received services funded by Salesian Missions. These services and programs are provided to children regardless of race or religion. For more information, go to SalesianMissions.org.

The post Salesian Missions, Stop Hunger Now Partner to Deliver Critical Food Aid in More Than 10 Countries first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Recently, a new socio-sports program was introduced at the Salesian Youth Center in the town of Niterói, near Rio de Janeiro. The program, the third of its kind in Brazil, is made possible through a collaboration between the Salesian Missions office in Madrid and the Real Madrid Foundation and will benefit close to 200 youth from the most disadvantaged areas of the city.

The program’s motto is, “They play, we educate” and participants receive nutritional, family and psychological support, regular health check ups and the opportunity to participate in social and educational workshops in activities such as gymnastics, crafts, reading and citizenship. Training sessions on topics such as health, hygiene, values and the prevention of alcohol, tobacco and drug abuse will also be provided.

Outside of normal school hours, participants in the program will receive sports training by coaches specifically qualified by the Real Madrid Foundation.

“Sports programs teach youth both on and off the field,” says Father Mark Hyde, the executive director of Salesians Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Learning and playing team sports encourages leadership skills as well as teaches youth to work as part of a team. Students also learn important social skills and have opportunities for growth and maturity.”

At the program’s inauguration, the biggest surprise for the 200 youth in attendance was the participation of Marcelo Vieira da Silva Júnior, a player from Real Madrid and the Brazilian national team, who recently won the Confederations Cup.

The collaboration between the Salesians and the Real Madrid Foundation has been very successful, granting more than 2,000 youth and vulnerable children the opportunity to participate in similar programs around the globe. This new socio-sports program in Brazil is operating alongside 13 other socio-sporting schools in nine countries including Togo, Benin, Congo*, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Portugal, Senegal and the Dominican Republic.

Sports programs are a few among many programs helping disadvantaged youth in Brazil.

At the Don Bosco Youth Center in Cabana, youth from the slums take part in socio-educational opportunities to help close educational gaps. At the Salesian-run Community Center in Porto Alegre, street children receive three nutritious meals a day, clean clothing, medical care, schooling and a safe place to get much needed rest. And at a new Salesian-run Center in Abaetetuba, abandoned and at-risk youth take part in a wide variety of healthy and educational activities. The Center includes a recreation facility where children are able to participate on sports teams, make friends and gain a sense of accomplishment. All of the programs work with youth to help them lead productive lives and break the cycle of poverty.

Brazil is one of more than 130 countries around the globe where Salesians work to give hope and provide opportunity to vulnerable youth through education and skills training. Salesian Missions is the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, working to raise funds and develop programs to aid youth and families in some of the poorest places on earth. Learn more about where the Salesians work and the programs they provide at www.salesianmissions.org.

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Sources:

ANS – Brazil – Niterói socio-sports school inaugurated, with soccer star Marcelo

UNICEF – Brazil Statistics

Real Madrid Foundation – Website

*Any goods, services, or funds provided by Salesian Missions to programs located in this country were administered in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control.

The post BRAZIL: New Socio-Sports Program is Teaching Youth Teamwork and Social Skills first appeared on MissionNewswire.

In honor of Day of the African Child—celebrated by the Salesians on June 16 at Don Bosco Fambul in Sierra Leone—organized a youth festival with more than 700 in attendance, including youth and staff from the organization.

Each year, Day of the African Child focuses on a particular theme. This year was dedicated to “Eliminating harmful social and cultural practices affecting children: Our collective responsibility.” The theme is an important one given the rate at which young women are at risk for sexual violence, trafficking and forced pregnancy, among other atrocities. In addition, almost ninety percent of girls are subjected to female genital mutilation.

“Nothing is as powerful as a community itself seeing the harm being done to its own children and deciding collectively to end that practice,” says Nicholas Alipui, UNICEF’s director of programs, in a statement marking the Day of the African Child. “Communities are key to the health and well-being of African children subjected to harsh practices.”

In addition to advocating to protect and care for child victims, the Salesian event brought together hundreds of young people who denounced their abusers and the abuse they suffered. At a session of the Don Bosco Children’s Parliament and a subsequent press conference, a number of the girls reported sexual assaults committed by teachers, neighbors and even family members. Many of the cases remain un-investigated by the police.

But it’s not just young girls that are victims. Many boys are victims as well. Speaking at the event, one boy detailed his victimization at the hands of several police in Freetown-Kissy. He and his friends were robbed and assaulted. He was forced to stay in a police cell for three days before the social workers of Don Bosco Fambul were able to free him.

And although the incident was investigated by an internal disciplinary proceeding within the police department, the accused officers remain on duty.

“Policemen will always protect criminal policemen,” reflected one nine-year-old girl. She is one of several street children who spoke about their lives on the street, lives that are shaped by the violence and exploitation they experience every day.

Youth in Sierra Leone urged the government to take the appropriate measures to protect victims of violence and especially to prevent youth from ending up on the streets where they are at an even higher risk of violence and exploitation. They also focused attention on a failing educational and health care system that is often overrun with corrupt individuals victimizing youth. Advocates and youth also urged that the investigating authorities and the judiciary system ensure the establishment of an efficient penalty system against child abusers.

“It is not only on the 16th of June each year that children deserve the appreciation of parents, relatives, teachers, and even the President, it is every single day,” says Salesian Brother Lothar Wagner, social worker and director of the Girls Shelter at Don Bosco Fambul.

In addition to the youth festival, the Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul have been running a Girls Shelter for the past two years. The Shelter was created in direct response to this ongoing crisis. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been victims of sexual assault. According to a recently published Girls Shelter annual report, staff at the shelter provided crisis intervention services 521 times over the last two years.

The Girls Shelter is one of many programs provided for youth by Don Bosco Fambul. To learn more about Salesian programs in Sierra Leone visit SalesianMissions.org.

More articles about Sierra Leone >

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Sources:

ANS – Sierra Leone – Don Bosco Children’s Parliament Meets in Freetown

UNICEF – Sierra Leone

Day of the African Child

UN – Day of the African Child: Communities are key to ending customs that harm children, says UNICEF

Salesian Missions – Sierra Leone

African Union

The post SIERRA LEONE: 700 Youth Gather, Bring Awareness of Sexual Violence to Mark Day of the African Child first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Young women are at risk for sexual violence, trafficking and forced pregnancy among other atrocities. Today, one third of girls are forced into marriage and are often sexually assaulted by their husbands before their 15th birthdays. In addition, 90 percent of girls are subjected to female genital mutilation.

In response to this crisis, for the past two years the Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul have been running a Girls Shelter. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been victims of sexual assault. According to a recently published Girls Shelter annual report, staff at the shelter provided crisis intervention services 521 times over the last two years.

The annual report also reveals causes of great concern; the brutality of the violence against the young women and the rising number of sexual offenses against girls under 14 years of age. Among the perpetrators are teachers and religious leaders as well as men who are active in child trafficking.

“Some of the girls were kept like slaves by their tormentors, often for years,” says Salesian Brother Lothar Wagner, social worker and director of the Girls Shelter. “The boldness that characterizes the way the perpetrators act against the girls and young women bears testimony to their grave moral void. Often they do not even regard themselves as criminals but present themselves instead as benefactors.”

In addition, the annual report criticized the investigating authorities and spoke of a “culture of impunity.” One recent case handled at the Girls Shelter was the rape of a 13-year-old girl by five male youth. After five days of intensive medical care the victim died from her injuries. The police have never investigated the case despite repeated demands by Don Bosco Fambul.

Equally alarming was the finding that in 37 separate rape cases the investigation files were demonstrably manipulated by the police or investigations were deliberately delayed. Perpetrators were released from custody and disappeared without a trace, in spite of the incriminating evidence against them. Only a fraction of the accused made it to court to be punished.

Given the lack of police protection, investigation and justice, only four of the 37 rape victims in these cases plan to proceed despite the fact that many of the girls are severely traumatized.

“In addition to the crisis work we do, we also work with girls to focus on safety to help them find ways to try to protect themselves in the hope the trauma is not repeated,” adds Brother Wagner.

The head of the department that oversees a crisis line for children and youth at Don Bosco Fambul reported that anonymous counseling interviews on sexual abuse and rape have skyrocketed in the past year. Close to 745 girls and 34 boys have reported sexual violence and most of the victims do not wish to report the crimes to the police.

In the upcoming years, Don Bosco Fambul plans to intensify both the services at the Girls Shelter and its outreach to victims in Sierra Leone.

The Girls Shelter is one of many programs provided for youth by Don Bosco Fambul. To learn more about Salesian programs in Sierra Leone visit SalesianMissions.org.

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Sources

ANS – Sierra Leone – Don Bosco Fambul: Stop Sexual Abuse and Rape

UNICEF – Sierra Leone

Salesian Missions – Sierra Leone

The post SIERRA LEONE: Salesian Girls Shelter Provides Crisis Support and Care for Sexual Assault Victims first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The theme for this year’s Human Rights Day is My Voice Counts. This 2012 theme focuses on the rights of all people, particularly those whose voices are often marginalized — women, youth, minorities, persons with disabilities, indigenous people and the poor. The goal is to make sure everyone’s voice is heard in public life and is included in political decision-making.

“Everyone has the right to be heard and to shape the decisions that affect their community,” says Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General in a recent statement on Human Rights Day. “Over the past century, we have made undeniable progress along the path of inclusion. Yet far too many groups and individuals face far too many obstacles.”

“No country has succeeded in ensuring that all its inhabitants are able to participate fully in public affairs, including the right to be elected to public office and to have equal access to public services,” adds Ban Ki-moon. “Enacting new rights or removing unjust laws is not always sufficient. Too often, discrimination persists in practice, creating barriers and mindsets that can be hard to overcome. International law is clear. No matter who you are, or where you live, your voice counts. On this Day, let us unite to defend your right to make it heard.”

Through educational programming, the Salesians fight tirelessly each day to make sure the voices of marginalized youth are heard and accounted for. In honor of Human Rights Day, Salesian Missions highlights their unique educational programs that are helping poor youth receive an education and find a path out of poverty, bringing them hope for the future.

COLOMBIA

For more than 30 years, homeless children have received support at Don Bosco City in Medellin, Colombia, one of the oldest and largest programs for street children in Latin America. The program serves both boys and girls and goes beyond traditional homeless shelters by providing a three-stage program which culminates in vocational training. First, youth are given safety and shelter, along with food and clothing. Next, youth move into a special house where they receive remedial education and learn to live with others. In the final stage, youth receive jobs skills training or attend local schools. Through this model of education and rehabilitation, youth are able to learn the skills needed to support themselves and break the cycle of poverty. Learn more about Salesian Missions programs in Colombia >

INDIA

Children’s Parliaments in India are some of the projects in which the Salesians have pledged to ensure that the voices of children are heard. Over 7,600 children participate in the Andhra Region Parliament, part of the Tsunami Project which aims to improve education for the most vulnerable children. The objective of this Parliament is to educate young people to know their rights and to work to reduce inequalities and injustices. Learn more about Salesian Missions programs in India >

PHILIPPINES

In the Philippines, drop-out rates double as children reach secondary school, according to UNICEF, and there are more than 11 million out-of-school youth. Salesian Missions’ Tuloy Foundation provides a second chance for at-risk youth to succeed in school. Street children are able to take part in an alternative learning module with five levels of instruction in six subjects. Children progress from first grade through high school. Older youth pursue vocational training in a variety of technologies, including automotive, electrical, welding and woodworking. Learn more about Salesian Missions programs in the Philippines >

SIERRA LEONE

The Don Bosco Fambul program in Sierra Leone aims to change the lives of children. It directly addresses issues facing street children – including emotional trauma from the war and lost family. With the goal of reuniting with their families, youth participate in a 10-month program which includes counseling and medical care – as well as education. Youth attend classes during the day according to their level of ability and any previous schooling. In the evening, they are responsible for helping each other with homework. Youth are tested each month and receive encouragement for progress – building self-esteem and motivation – and hope for the future. Learn more about Salesian Missions programs in Sierra Leone >

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Sources:

ANS – Over 7,000 children make their voices heard

United Nations – Human Rights Day

United Nations – Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Salesian Missions – Our Work

The post HUMAN RIGHTS DAY: Salesians Highlight Programs that Provide Education for Marginalized Youth first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The two new schools—the Don Bosco Educational Plaza in Hainamosa and the Dominic Savio School House in Santo Domingo—use football as a tool for social integration, improving the quality of life for boys and girls who are at risk of social exclusion. Alongside the sports, schools provide various support services to children and their families, such as tutoring, classroom space for homework, vocational training, healthcare, nutrition education and cultural and recreational activities.

“We want young people to be integrated and develop healthy activities. They play, we educate,” said Emilio Butragueño, explaining the importance of the initiative.

The partnership between Salesian Missions and the Real Madrid Foundation is well underway and allows more than 2,000 youth and vulnerable children to participate in similar programs today. There are currently 13 operational socio-sporting schools in nine countries: Togo, Benin, Congo*, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Brazil, Portugal, Senegal and now the Dominican Republic.

“In the Dominican Republic, sports help youth to grow and develop into healthy, caring members of society,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “And they pass on their knowledge for generations to come,” he adds.

ABOUT SALESIAN MISSIONS IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC:

Salesian Missions is paving the path toward a better future for young people, where half of youth ages 13 to 18 suffer in poverty and lack needed skills to compete in the job market. The Salesians are using innovative approaches to prevent children from life on the streets and the lure of gangs. And they are instilling knowledge and values that will carry forward in the generations to come.

After finishing his studies, Edward stayed involved in the program – working with youth in the same situation he had been.  He later graduated from the university with a degree in public relations and now is in charge of the graphic design department at the Salesian Technical Institute, where he also teaches.

“There are only three of my childhood friends that are alive since most of them got into gangs.  This project saved my life from the personal perspective to the professional development.  I don’t know what would have happened to me if it wasn’t for this project,” said Edward.  “I still play basketball with the boys & girls in the project.  This is the best way to discover their personalities and different ways I can help them.”

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*Any goods, services, or funds provided by Salesian Missions to programs located in this country were administered in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control.

The post DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: New Socio-Sporting Schools Give Hope to Street Children first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Each year focuses on a particular theme. This year the United Nations chose Ending the Violence of Extreme Poverty: Promoting Empowerment and Building Peace, which was chosen to highlight the link between poverty and social unrest. It also focuses on the need to provide people with the necessary skills to contribute to society.

“Poverty is easy to denounce but difficult to combat,” says Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a recent UN article highlighting International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. “Those suffering from hunger, want and indignity need more than sympathetic words; they need concrete support.”

Ban further stressed in the article that that during times of economic austerity it is even more crucial to put policies in place that will protect the most vulnerable.

“As governments struggle to balance budgets, funding for anti-poverty measures is under threat. But this is precisely the time to provide the poor with access to social services, income security, decent work and social protection,” he says in the UN article. “Only then can we build stronger and more prosperous societies—not by balancing budgets at the expense of the poor.”

The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty has been observed annually since 1993. The UN General Assembly designated this day to promote awareness of the need to eradicate poverty and destitution in every country.

During the last decade, millions have overcome extreme poverty and have improved access to health care and education. Extreme poverty rates have decreased in every region of the world. More than 39 million children attend primary school and access to clean water has increased to 89 percent. But in spite of these important gains, several critical gaps remain.

Poverty alleviation, education, gender equality, child and maternal health, environmental stability, HIV/AIDS reduction, and a ‘Global Partnership for Development’ were further noted in the UN article as the eight Millennium Development Goals selected by world leaders at the UN summit in 2000.

The Salesians working at the ground level within communities ravaged by poverty see their efforts and these improvements first hand.

“Whether giving food and shelter to street children or building schools and teaching job skills to youth in poverty, the Salesians are giving youth hope for a new future,” says Fr. Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Our work gives youth the access to learn employable skills and provides the opportunity for them to break the cycle of poverty in their lives.”

Here are some highlights of Salesian programs around the globe that fight extreme poverty by providing hope and opportunity to youth and their communities:

CAMBODIA:

In Cambodia—through the Don Bosco Children’s Fund—the Salesians provide assistance to children ages six to fifteen who are at risk of dropping out of school due to extreme poverty. Each year approximately 5,000 children receive assistance in the form of medicine, nutritional meals, clothing and personal items. Many children have lost one or both parents to HIV and are currently living with extended family members with elderly grandparents or neighbors. Often they receive little direct supervision, leaving them extremely vulnerable to outside influences. Without support from the Don Bosco Children’s Fund, many children would be forced to beg or turn to street crime in order to support themselves.

COLOMBIA:

In Colombia, 18 percent of school age children have no access to education. One town that previously lacked access is Condoto, a remote village nestled in the middle of a tropical rainforest in western Colombia. Most of the 30,000 inhabitants are descendents of Africans who escaped the slave trade. Mining is the main source of income – with low pay and harsh working conditions. There, Salesian Missions has built the first and only schools in the area which are improving the lives of the students and all members of the communities – and will continue to do so for generations to come.

ECUADOR:

In Ecuador, at Salesian “Project for Street Children” sites throughout the country, vulnerable and at-risk children gain an all-around education that allows them to take the lead in developing their own skills and potential. The project uses an active presence on the streets, technical training and schools and the support of families and communities that care for the boys and their rehabilitation. Specialized programs for youth in need include: prevention of addiction and care for addicts, rehabilitation of youth gang members and hostels that provide an alternative to living on the street. Thousands of children and adolescents are supported each year.

ETHIOPIA:

More than 150 street children in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia have a place to call home. And 750 more at-risk children benefit from a variety of programs designed to instill confidence and self-respect. That’s because exciting plans are underway for a new Salesian Center that will feature dormitories, classrooms, a recreation hall and cafeteria. When it opens, the Center will serve hundreds of needy children by providing the immediate basics of food and shelter.

GUATEMALA:

In Guatemala, more than 21 percent of the population had an income of less than $1 a day in 2004 – no improvement since 1989 according to the Pan American Health Organization. Extreme poverty is often associated with rural life. Rural Q’echi (Mayans) are among the rural populations looking to improve their lives.  Through Salesian Missions programs, they are focusing on increasing the capacity of their communities. With the assistance of the Q’echi promoters, community groups are educated in self management for projects benefiting family and community. Salesians also work through the Foundation for Advancement of Indigenous Women in Guatemala (Talita Kumi) to raise the status of women and empower them to become household and community decision-makers.

KENYA:

In Kenya, homeless youth join “Bosco Boys” programs dedicated to creating positive change. Three centers provide services for youth at different stages. Bosco Boys Kariua runs a nursery school and weekend program where street children gather for sporting events and to wash their clothes. Bosco Boys Langata is a rehabilitation center where new boys can overcome addictions and behaviors learned on the street. Bosco Boys Kuwinda provides education and training opportunities for street children, as well as poor children from the neighborhood.

MEXICO:

In Mexico City, girls and mothers face severe dangers living on the streets. Through the “Yolia” program, girls and women become regulars at the day center. There, they have meals, receive tutoring, obtain therapy, and learn job skills such as jewelry making and hair styling. Some girls may also choose to live in the residential area, where they receive additional education and services while building a sense of dignity and self worth.

SIERRA LEONE:

Sierra Leone is still recovering from a brutal 10-year civil war.  More than 500,000 people were displaced and more than 60,000 children were orphaned and homeless. In the 2008 Human Development Index, Sierra Leone ranks last among 179 countries for the well-being of its people. The Don Bosco Fambul program aims to change the lives of children. It directly addresses issues facing street children – including emotional trauma from the war and lost family. With the goal of reuniting with their families, youth participate in a 10-month program which includes counseling and medical care – as well as education. These young people attend classes during the day, according to their level of ability and any previous schooling. In the evening, they are responsible for helping each other with homework.  The youth are tested each month and receive encouragement for progress — building self esteem and motivation – and hope for the future.

TANZANIA:

For more than 20 years, Tanzanian children and youth have had access to education through Salesian Mission facilities. Programs are developed based on the most critical needs of the community. For example, AIDS orphans who have dropped out of regular school learn a trade at a vocational school, and girls attend secondary school in Didia, where previously there had been no secondary school within 40 miles. Schools and other facilities are providing new opportunities to children, youth and families in communities throughout Tanzania where nearly one million children have been orphaned due to AIDS, according to UNICEF. Many of these children are forced to leave school due to poverty or to care for their families. At Salesian technical and secondary schools and youth centers, youth develop skills to overcome obstacles. They learn a trade of their choice and to stand on their own to create a productive life. For more than 20 years, Salesian Missions has been a leader for vocational training and currently provides education and leadership opportunities to youth in communities throughout Tanzania.

UGANDA:

Uganda ranks 157 out of 182 countries in the 2007 Human Development Index. The people of Uganda are working to rebuild after decades of war which left many displaced, as well as to combat the serious increase of HIV/AIDS, which has left millions of children orphaned. The Don Bosco Children & Life Mission offers hope to at risk boys, ages 8-17, through a variety of programs. As they grow and develop, boys move through different stages until they reach the final goal of an independent, productive life.

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Sources

UN News – On Day for Eradication of Poverty, UN highlights needs for a holistic approach to helping word’s poor

ANS – International Day for the Eradication of Poverty: Ending the Violence of Extreme Poverty

The post WORLD POVERTY DAY: Salesian Missions Reports on Programs that Fight Extreme Poverty first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The Salesians of Don Bosco in Sierra Leone have used the donation to provide a balanced lunch for children from very poor families in the Salesian preschool and primary schools. For some of the students, this is the only balanced meal received a day. Many families work each day selling things in the market and on the streets and are only able to provide their families the basics of daily survival.

“Many of the youth who participate in Salesian programs in Sierra Leone are malnourished,” says Fr. Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions—the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “When youth receive nutritious meals through our programs, they are better prepared to take part in the counseling and education offered—as well as to face their future.”

The Salesian programs in Sierra Leone also assist youth who work in the markets with their parents. Many of the children have to work because their parents do not see school as a necessity. The Mama Margaret program offers parents a plate of food for their children in exchange for two or three hours of classes given by local youth volunteers.

One of the youth who benefited from the donation at the Mama Margaret program is Joseph, who has been attending the program for the last three years. Joseph does not know his parents, who abandoned the family many years ago. He lives with his grandmother who once sold condiments and onions in the market before an illness left her paralyzed. No longer able to care for Joseph and his siblings, the children took on the responsibility of caring for her.

As a result the siblings left school and were found begging on the streets or carrying things for strangers to earn money to bring home. Joseph, the youngest of the siblings, spends almost all day in the Mama Margaret Center. There he is able to bathe, have help washing his clothing, and is fed a plate of fortified rice. Through the Numana donation, the program is also feeding the grandmother and the other siblings.

Other programs that have benefited by the donation include the Sisters of Mother Theresa of Calcutta—a center for youth and adults who have been abandoned by their families, mainly due to health problems—and the Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny who provide education and residential programs for those on the streets and those with mental illness. The Sisters use the rice to feed the poor and the sick in their programs and when able, share the rice with some of the very poor families that live nearby.

“They use the rice-meals to share a daily meal with those in need in their programs,” says Fr. Hyde. “Donations like these are critical as sometimes the donated meals we provide are the only food a person will receive all day.”

To make a donation to support feeding programs around the globe go to SalesianMissions.org.

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Sources:

Salesian Missions – Sierra Leone

The post SIERRA LEONE: Fortified Rice-Meal Donation from Numana Feeds More than 1,400 first appeared on MissionNewswire.

According to UNICEF, it is estimated that as many as 250,000 child soldiers – some as young as eight years old – are involved in more than 20 conflicts around the world. It notes that children are too frequently used as combatants, messengers, spies and cooks, and girls in particular are forced to perform sexual services. Some youth are forcibly recruited or abducted while others are driven to join by poverty, abuse and discrimination.

Millions of children, according to UNICEF, will be injured and face life long disabilities caused by armed conflicts and political violence. More will be added to their number because of the risks of landmines in areas where armed conflict has ceased. Children in war torn areas are exposed to and involved in acts of extreme violence.

The Salesians provide services to youth in war torn localities, particularly to child soldiers, bringing them hope and healing through rehabilitation programs, education and job training.

“Childhood should be a time of innocence and education,” says Fr. Mark Hyde, director of Salesian Missions – the U.S. arm of Salesians of Don Bosco. “But that’s not the reality for many youth around the globe living with war and recruited as child soldiers. We provide a foundation of education for them to have better lives and a productive future.”

The Salesians have a long history of making an impact in the lives of children living in war torn areas. The emotional support, education and job placement services provided play a large role in helping youth come to terms with their circumstances while preparing them for a brighter future.

Liberia: Don Bosco Rehabilitation & Skills Training Program provides youth with rehabilitative skills training and counseling. Through classes, youth can make up for the years lost as a result of the war by gaining marketable skills enabling them to contribute to rebuilding the country. Teenagers to young adults in their mid-twenties train in carpentry, masonry, agriculture, plumbing, auto mechanics, metal works, and electricity. The program was founded in 1991 through a joint initiative with UNICEF.

Sierra Leone: More than 60,000 children were orphaned or left homeless during Sierra Leone’s civil war. Don Bosco Fambul was one of the first organizations during the war to offer shelter and food to street children and continues its work today to help reverse the effects of war. Boys ages 8-15 years are invited to become part of the program, which includes food, shelter, education and counseling – all with the goal of being reunited with their families.

Uganda: Don Bosco Children & Life Mission offers hope to at risk boys, ages 8-17, through a variety of programs. Boys attend primary schools and technical education courses to learn job skills, engage in different sports activities to keep them fit and well balanced and take part in Youth Alive Club to learn about HIV/AIDS awareness and sexuality. As they grow and develop, boys move through different stages until they reach the final of goal of an independent, productive life.

Sri Lanka: Mary Help of Christians in Sri Lanka is home to 173 girls who were soldiers during the country’s civil war. They are the innocent victims of a 25-year civil war that ended in 2009 and generated more than 200,000 young refugees. Today, these girls are safe and headed on the long path to recovery. Few people realize that 40 percent of the children kidnapped by guerrilla fighters and forced to fight in the war were girls. The youngest were enslaved as maids to cook and clean for the soldiers. As they got older, the girls were forced to act as spies and informers. By the time they reached puberty, many of the girls were trapped into abusive and humiliating marriages with guerrilla leaders.

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Photo: Students of Don Bosco Fambul in Sierra Leone.

Sources:

ANS – Education, a means for peace

Salesian Missions – Our Work

UNICEF – Child Soldiers

UN – Secretary-General’s Message on the International Day of Peace

The post INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PEACE: Salesians Provide Education as a Means of Peace for Youth first appeared on MissionNewswire.

The Child Hotline 116 is an around-the-clock counseling hotline staffed by social workers—along with other trained professionals—offering hope and prospects for the future for children suffering from the ravages of war. Many of the children live on the streets of Sierra Leone’s largest cities and unable to read or write, they struggle to survive. Sierra Leone‘s brutal civil war has resulted in 500,000 displaced families, 60,000 orphans and thousands of street children. Two-thirds of the population is impoverished and unemployment rates are at crisis levels.

The counseling hotline was launched by Don Bosco Fambul, in partnership with Sierra Leone’s telecommunications providers, Airtel, Africell, and Comium, who have guaranteed that every call will be free of charge. With cell phone use surging in Sierra Leone, the hotline is a perfect vehicle for connecting children to the many vital services provided by Don Bosco Fambul. It is the outgrowth of an initial pilot known as the Basics Mobil, initiated after it was found that many street children, especially girls in the slums, were unable to reach the Don Bosco Fambul or family home in Freetown.

Don Bosco Fambul, a Salesian-run center in Freetown, is committed to providing street children prospects for a better future, along with helping to strengthen families and enable youth to become responsible citizens.

“By means of all our projects, we want to be there for children and youths facing personal crisis,” says Brother Lothar Wager, director of Don Bosco Fambul. “We devote our time to them. and we do so without exception—24 hours a day, weekdays and weekends, working days and holidays, day and night.”

The hotline creates an essential link in connecting children in need to the variety of life-changing programs offered by Don Bosco Fambul. All of the programming directly addresses issues facing street children—including emotional trauma from the war and lost family. With the goal of reuniting with their families, youth participate in a 10-month program which includes counseling, medical care and education.

The brutal civil war in Sierra Leone not only caused death and destruction, it destroyed the economic fabric and infrastructure of the country and made rebuilding difficult. Families were torn apart, with many children recruited as soldiers and worse, as slaves. Nearly a decade after the war’s end, Sierra Leone is still struggling to rebuild schools, train teachers and reach children who have never seen the inside of a classroom. Coupled with the aftermath resulting in harsh child labor, rape, child trafficking and sexual abuse, the Child Hotline 116 is working to resolve many resulting issues. Other agencies, like UNICEF and its partners are working to improve education and bring opportunities for schooling to all the country’s children.

“We want to prevent children from ending up on the streets,” Bro. Wagner adds. “We want to strengthen them and provide possible solutions to enable them to regain control of their lives within a short period of time.”

Education is one of those solutions—and the focus of the work of the Salesians in Sierra Leone and around the globe in more than 130 countries.

Don Bosco Fambul has been helping street children and unemployed youth as well as their families in Freetown for more than 10 years. Apart from working with street children, the organization offers a 10-month rehabilitation program for 70 street children and 1,500 former street boys and girls—supported by the Family Tracing Department, whose goal is the reunification of families separated by conflict and war.

Additionally, scholarships and training programs are available and a youth center is open daily, offering support for families. This center and a number of shelters provide food and drinks, showers and laundry, a place to retreat and sleep, and the opportunity to connect with other children in similar circumstances.

Don Bosco Fambul is a member of the Child Helpline International, an organization whose work is grounded in a firm belief in the rights of children—as explicitly laid out in such internationally recognized and binding documents as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.

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Sources:

Salesian Missions

Don Bosco Fambul

ANS (Salesian Info Agency)

The post SIERRA LEONE: New Child Hotline Offers Hope to Children Affected by Civil War first appeared on MissionNewswire.

Up to 300,000 children are still involved in more than 30 conflicts worldwide, according to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

In April 2011, the UN listed dozens of groups that continued to recruit or use children in its annual report on children and armed conflict. This bid to “name and shame” countries into cooperating with the law has only a limited effect, however. While fewer children are being used as child soldiers today, it is thanks to conflicts having ended, not the practice of recruiting and using children.

“Despite some examples of progress, the bigger picture remains essentially unaltered: the recruitment and use of boys and girls by armed groups remains widespread,” according to the latest report by the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers in 2008.

Gender is no protection, as girls are recruited into armed groups or abducted for forced labour or sex. Age also proved no barrier; in Columbia, the FARC militia announced it would recruit all children over the age of eight, reported the UN Secretary-General in April 2011: “In one characteristic use of children, a child was used by FARC-EP to carry out an attack against a police station using explosives. The explosives were attached to the child and activated as he approached the police station, killing him instantly.”

Defenseless

“Many children have few alternatives to, or defenses against, joining armed groups,” states the 2008 Coalition report. It cited poverty, discrimination and social exclusion, lack of access to education, and limited job prospects as some of the factors pushing minors to join armed groups.

Not all children associated with armed forces are used as fighters. Minors have been seen manning checkpoints, acting as scouts and guides in battles, running errands, cooking and cleaning for forces during the Côte d’Ivoire election conflict,  according to government social workers, UN agency and NGO staff, as well as direct testimonies from children. Social workers in Duékoué, in the west, told NGO Save the Children they saw children involved whom they estimated to be as young as 11.

Suicide bombers

Children have also been made to carry explosives between Afghanistan and Pakistan, conduct military operations in the DRC, Philippines, Myanmar and Somalia, carry out arson attacks and collect kidnap ransoms in Haiti; they were used as suicide bombers in Iraq, according to the Secretary-General’s 2010 report, as well as Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Photo: Guy Oliver/IRIN Augustin Habyaremye was forcibly recruited into one of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) armed groups, the Mai-Mai PARECO, at 15, and tasked with quizzing local villagers about the movements of militia forces because of his knowledge of Kinyarwanda, an official language of Rwanda. He cannot remember how many skirmishes and battles he was involved in during his six years with them, but in July 2011 he managed to slip away and was brought to the demobilization camp in the eastern DRC city of Goma, in search of “a normal life”.

According to a Foreign Policy Association blog: “The use of child suicide bombers appears to be increasing, and while many children are educated and reared into this deadly fate, many are thankfully saved or removed before their actions have deadly consequences. Many have seen the images of infants and toddlers dressed in mock suicide bomber outfits in Palestine, and while they may not commit such acts when they grow up, their fate is one undoubtedly leaning towards violence.”

Laws not applied

There are various instruments outlawing the recruitment and use of children for combat in human rights law, humanitarian law, labour law and criminal law – but a chasm exists between these standards and their application. The Coalition report cites ineffective government and a lack of enforcement mechanisms as reasons why armed groups continued to operate with relative impunity.

Although child soldiers are used all over the world, the largest numbers are in Africa, despite the 1999 African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, the only regional treaty in the world that prohibits the use of child soldiers.

Most observers agree that the practice continues because children make for cheap and obedient fighters, easily frightened or brainwashed into compliance. The accessibility of light weaponry has also fed into the problem, making it possible for very young children to bear and use arms.

“Any country that has an active armed conflict can expect that troop-hungry commanders will use children to fill their ranks,” said professor, author and psychologist Michael Wessells in a United States Department of State webchat in June 2008.

But all agree that the most obvious reason armed forces take on children is because they can. Despite the regulations outlawing the practice, most of those who violate the conventions and international agreements are not prosecuted.

Children who have been displaced or separated from their parents, have limited access to education, or who have suffered an injustice or emotional abuse, are more vulnerable to recruitment, according to UNICEF.

Among other things, protection involves addressing these vulnerabilities, and identifying non-violent ways for them to contribute to their families and communities. Resources and capacity are particularly needed to extend education and vocational training, as well as to revive agriculture and provide other economic opportunities, according to the UN.

Demobilizing, reintegrating and rehabilitating children who have already participated in armed conflict is as difficult as protecting them. “Children who transition successfully into civilian life are less likely to continue the life of the gun, with its inherent dangers. However, instability in the post-conflict environment can put children at grave risk of re-recruitment and thwart their reintegration,” Wessells wrote in his 2006 book, Child Soldiers: from violence to protection.

The effects on children

Child soldiers are subject to ill-treatment and sexual exploitation. They are often forced to commit terrible atrocities, and beaten or killed if they try to escape. They are subjected to brutal initiation and punishment rituals, hard labour, cruel training regimes and torture. Many are given drugs and alcohol to agitate them and make it easier to break down their psychological barriers to fighting or committing atrocities.

Some speak of having been forced to witness or commit atrocities, including rape and murder. Others speak of seeing friends and family killed. Susan, 16, captures the brutalization children suffered at the hands of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in northern Uganda in the following testimony:

“One boy tried to escape but he was caught. His hands were tied and then they made us, the other new captives, kill him with a stick. I felt sick. I knew this boy from before; we were from the same village. I refused to do it and they told me they would shoot me. They pointed a gun at me, so I had to do it… I see him in my dreams and he is saying I killed him for nothing, and I am crying.”

“Fighting groups have developed brutal and sophisticated techniques to separate and isolate children from their communities. Children are often terrorized into obedience, consistently made to fear for their lives and well-being,” wrote the UN’s Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict. “Sometimes they are compelled to participate in the killing of other children or family members, because it is understood by these groups that there is ‘no way back home’ for children after they have committed such crimes.”

Many child soldiers report psycho-social disturbances – from nightmares and aggression that is difficult to control to strongly anti-social behavior and substance abuse – both during their involvement in war and after their return to civilian life. Others, who held high ranks and were feared and respected by other children, find it difficult to go back to classrooms or family dwellings where they are expected to be subservient.

For that reason, according to UNICEF, successful demobilization and rehabilitation programs not only involve taking the guns out of children’s hands but finding ways to reunite and resettle the children with their families and communities, and provide for their psycho-social care and recovery.

In Burundi, for example, the lucky ones among the country’s 3,421 former child soldiers who went through a demobilization, disarmament and reintegration (DDR) process returned to school but most languish in poverty, with little to do, officials told IRIN.

Cyprien Ndayishimiye, supervisor of former child soldiers in Bubanza province, said the situation for many former child soldiers was “dangerous” as even those who underwent vocational training during reintegration had yet to find gainful employment or set up income-generating activities.

“Many have even sold the materials they got from the DDR program, such as sewing machines for those who learned sewing, and planes for those who hoped carpentry would help them,” Ndayishimiye said.

Photo: ICRC/W. Lembryk/cd-e-00562 Female combatants are especially stigmatized upon their return from war, especially if they have children by their captors

Tougher for girls

Girls – especially orphans or unaccompanied girls – are especially vulnerable because they are often sexually exploited, raped or otherwise abused, subjected to human trafficking and prostitution, and forced to be “wives” by other combatants. This, in turn, can result in physical and psychological trauma, unwanted pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases (including HIV/AIDS) and social stigmatization.

“Girls are mostly used by armed opposition groups, paramilitaries and militias, but they are also used by government forces,” wrote Dyan Mazurana and Khristopher Carlson in a paper for the UN. “Worldwide estimates suggest girls may account for between 10 to 30 percent of children in fighting forces.”

Girls returning from war are often stigmatized and ostracized by their communities, especially if they return with children.

“Girl soldiers are exploited in all the ways that boys are and carry the added burden of gender-based violence,” wrote Wessells.

Girls in particular continue to be excluded from official demobilization, disarmament, repatriation, resettlement and reintegration (DDRRR) programs, despite their special post-conflict needs.

For example, some 3,000 girl soldiers in Liberia were officially demobilized while as many as 8,000 were excluded or did not register, according to the 2008 Coalition report. In the DRC, only about 15 percent of the girls believed to have been involved in the conflict were officially demobilized as the national programme drew to a close.

For the girls who do not go through the official programs, there is no formal support at all.

Society pays a high price

Military recruitment is not only harmful to the children themselves but to societies as a whole. Children’s lost years of schooling reduce societies’ human and economic development potential. The educational system is further damaged when violent attacks are aimed at schools. The UN reported in 2010 that such attacks are becoming a “significant and a growing trend”.

Tensions may also be high between children returning from combat and those who stayed behind, especially when social support and reintegration programmes are aimed at ex-combatants, seeming to reward participation in violence.

Though child soldiers have committed and continue to commit some terrible crimes in wartime, they are still entitled, as children, to special provision and protection.

Besides criminal proceedings, “other, more age- and culturally-appropriate options exist, including truth and reconciliation commissions, community-based rehabilitation and reintegration programmes and the traditional practice of cleansing rituals”, wrote Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative to the UN Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict.

There is no international consensus on the minimum legal age for criminal responsibility, said Coomaraswamy. International Criminal Court (ICC) Article 26 prevents the court from prosecuting anyone under the age of 18, but not because it believes children should be exempt from prosecution for international crimes, “but rather that the decision on whether to prosecute should be left to states”, says Coomaraswamy’s office   [ Working Paper Number 3: Children and Justice During and in the Aftermath of Armed Conflict, September 2011  ]. “[The] exclusion of children from the ICC jurisdiction avoided an argument between States on the minimum age for international crimes,” it noted.

There are substantial challenges in healing and reintegrating children into their communities when they have been instruments of brutality and atrocities, and whole societies must sometimes be involved in communal healing and acceptance of the returnees.

Somehow, the differing needs for justice and the reintegration in society of former child soldiers have to be accommodated.

Progress update

The past decade has seen a steady commitment to ending the use and abuse of children in conflict, and a strengthened framework to protect minors and bring perpetrators to justice.

By 2010, 129 countries had signed up to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict while 143 had also ratified it.

The Protocol outlaws recruitment of children under 18 years of age, obliges states to ensure that members of their armed forces under age 18 do not take direct part in combat, raises the minimum age for voluntary enlistment into armed forces to 16 years and includes specific measures requiring proof of a wish to enlist.

In 2006, integrated disarmament, demobilization and reintegration standards were created, and the Paris Principles and Guidelines on children associated with armed forces or armed groups were created in 2007 to protect children from being recruited, and helping those who already were. A 2009 policy directive mainstreamed the protection, rights and well-being of children affected by armed conflict within peacekeeping operations.

Photo: Tim Freccia/ENOUGH Project The UN’s Zero Under 18 Campaign seeks universal ratification of the convention protecting children from armed conflict by end-2012

Local approaches to justice and reconciliation are increasingly playing a role in transitional justice strategies, building upon traditional norms to strengthen the protection of children in communities.

In addition, the UN says more attention is being paid to understanding the root causes of child soldiering in an effort to provide more insight into children’s vulnerability and decision-making. There is, for example, increasing recognition of the role that notions of masculinity play in enticing or coercing children into armed groups.

The UN Security Council passed resolutions 1539 in 2004; 1612 in 2005; and 1882 in 2009, which together created a working group and a monitoring and reporting mechanism to systematically monitor, document and report on the recruitment, abduction, killing or maiming of children, rape and sexual violence, attacks on schools and hospitals, and the denial of humanitarian access. It also led to systematic listing of parties that recruited or used child soldiers, in the Secretary-General’s annual report.

This public humiliation may be effective:  in the last two years, five armed groups have signed special Action Plans with the UN, the first step in being de-listed from the annual report.

“However, the gap between what governments say and what they do remains wide,” says the 2008 Coalition report.

The UN does not monitor and report on every country where children are being used in fighting or these grave violations occur. For example, Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) is not on the official list of countries monitored by the UN Security Council task force for recruitment of children, yet, as cited earlier, social workers told Save the Children they saw children involved with armed groups who they estimated to be as young as 11.

Other parties pledge to change but do not, despite the “naming and shaming” of the annual report. “More must be done to systematize and activate the full range of options available to the international community to ensure more robust action against recalcitrant violators,” said the Office for the Special Representative for the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict. “There are, for instance, 16 such persistent violators who have been explicitly named and listed by the Secretary-General for five years or more and the lack of action against them undermines accountability initiatives.”

And of course, national governments are only part of the problem. The Optional Protocol outlaws the recruitment or participation of anyone under 18 in insurgency groups and rebel forces, but “a wide array of armed groups – with diverse aims, methods and constituencies – continue to use children as soldiers and they have proved resistant to pressure or persuasion to stop the practice”, says the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers.

“Despite progress, the overall picture is one of armed groups that have ignored international law and standards, that renege on commitments, are resistant to pressure and persuasion, or have so far proved to be beyond the reach of efforts to end the involvement of children in conflict and political violence,” said the Coalition’s 2008 report.

Higher political profile

The UN said national and international tribunals were setting important precedents in the fight to end impunity for grave child rights violations, serving as a deterrent for commanders and warlords all over the world and creating leverage for their compliance with international norms.

Of the 12 individuals publicly indicted by the International Criminal Court at The Hague, seven have been charged with war crimes against children such as using child soldiers. They include Lord’s Resistance Army leaders Joseph Kony, Vincent Otti (since deceased) and Okot Odhiambo. Also on trial or in the pre-trial stage are cases against Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, a militia leader from the Democratic Republic of Congo, who is on trial for recruiting children under 15. The ICC also has open cases on DRC commanders Bosco Ntaganda, Germain Katanga and Matthieu Ngudjolo Chui for their crimes against children.

The Special Court for Sierra Leone is nearly finished trying a case in The Hague against Liberia’s Charles Taylor for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including conscripting or enlisting children into armed forces or groups and using them to participate actively in hostilities. The trial of a former president is a strong message to the world that even leaders of nations are not beyond the reach of international law when it comes to protecting the rights of children.

Photo: Cornelia Walther/UNICEF Felix, 15, a demobilized child soldier in Bukavu, DRC, wants to become a lawyer “to defend those who can’t defend themselves”

Calls for future action

Tackling impunity remains a key priority for the international community. “Concerted emphasis must be maintained on fighting the impunity of perpetrators,” said Coomaraswamy’s office.

It is also strengthening the data collection and reporting on sexual violence, in the hope it will allow for better identification of perpetrators and better analysis of trends on sexual violence against children. The proliferation of small arms is another issue that the UN would like to see addressed in order to make sure weapons do not end up in the hands of children.

In 2010, Coomaraswamy, with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, UNICEF and the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, launched the Zero Under 18 Campaign: a two-year initiative to achieve universal ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict by 2012. The push is premised on the belief that the strongest defence against impunity for child rights violators is to have an international moral consensus that no child should take part in armed conflict – and a strong enforcement mechanism to back it up.

“I think the political will is there. What is lacking is the momentum, and that is what we hope to achieve in this campaign,” said Coomaraswamy.

Ending child soldiering remains a daunting challenge. “The military imperatives of the group and the political, economic and social factors that drive conflicts and cause children to enlist – often underpinned by local cultural attitudes towards the age of majority – can outweigh legal and moral arguments,” said the 2008 Coalition report.

The report analyzed 21 conflicts where children were used or deployed and found that children will “almost inevitably” become involved when armed conflict breaks out.

And no matter how strongly the international community pushes for stronger protection and decreased impunity, national laws have to reflect the same in order for change to take place.

Governments must also remember that the problem has deeper and more human roots than the conflict du jour. Because children are more likely to be drawn to armed groups if they have experienced human rights violations or other forms of violence, “governments and societies that fail to prioritize the promotion and protection of children’s rights – economic, social and cultural, as well as civil and political – share responsibility for driving children into the ranks of armed groups”, says the Coalition report. Understanding these deep-seated drivers of child involvement in conflict will be essential in devising a plan to protect them, and punish those who do not.

For more, visit IRIN’s in-depth on child soldiers

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This report does not necessarily reflect the views of Salesian Missions (the sponsor of this newswire).

The post (IRIN) GLOBAL: Fighting for the Rights of Child Soldiers first appeared on MissionNewswire.

To respond to its street children in crisis, Don Bosco Fambul of Sierra Leone has developed two unique programs which reach children wherever they are – an outreach bus and a 24-hour crisis line.

The brightly colored bus, known by some as “Hope on Wheels,” provides much needed protection to street children like Edward, a 14-year-old youth who recently told how he and other Sierra Leone street children have been threatened, beaten and jailed by police for no apparent reason. A recently released investigative report titled, “Children of the Street,” published by Fambul, reveals how street children are unfairly targeted for abuse by law enforcement agencies responsible for looking after these vulnerable members of society.

The outreach bus operates as a full-service support center where children can receive basic health care and counseling services as well as play games with friends and watch educational movies. Each day, staff members work for and with 1,500 disadvantaged street children and youth.

“Don Bosco Fambul reaches out to an estimated 2,500 street children living in the region – 500 of whom are girls. The Don Bosco bus will help those who have been abandoned by their parents, the government and unfortunately even those who are supposed to protect them.  They are facing emotional trauma from the war, family separation and poverty,” says Fr. Mark Hyde, director of Salesian Missions (the U.S.-based fund-raising arm for Salesian programs around the globe, including this one).

Another program – the 24-hour crisis line for emergency and advisory services – extends Don Bosco Fambul’s ability to reach youth in need far outside the borders of Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown.

“The phone line allows youth closeness and distance at the same time. They hear a voice talking to them and feel safe – and are therefore able to speak about their problems confidentially. This is especially important in cases of sexual abuse of girls and young women,” says Fr. Hyde.

“The crisis line is an important addition to our services, as we have found in the last few years that the communication behavior of young people in Sierra Leone has changed. Nearly everyone, male or female, owns or has access to a mobile phone,” says Fr. Hyde.  “Our missions have to be constantly adapting to the real-life situations of street youth. Both the crisis line and the outreach bus are allowing us to reach children and youth who otherwise would not have access to Don Bosco Fambul’s services.”

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