(MissionNewswire) Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, joins humanitarian and international organizations around the globe in highlighting the plight of homeless children on the International Day for Street Children. The day provides organizations and the millions of street children in countries worldwide with an opportunity to have their voices heard while ensuring that their rights are not ignored.

Celebrated each year on April 12, the day was established by the United Nations to raise awareness of issues affecting youth forced to live on the streets. The Consortium for Street Children founded the International Day for Street Children in 2011 and is the leading international network dedicated to realizing the rights of street children worldwide.

“Salesian missionaries around the globe provide safety, shelter and education for street children,” said Father Gus Baek, director of Salesian Missions. “Salesian programs aim to help children live safely while getting the emotional support they need and the education that will help them live independently. It’s a second chance for these children to have hope for a better life.”

In honor of the International Day for Street Children 2022, Salesian Missions is proud to share programs around the globe that provide shelter, nutrition, education and hope for a better life for street children.

BENIN

In Benin, Mamma Margherita Salesian Center launches an introductory art course for street children from the Dantokpa open-air market.

The Mamma Margherita Salesian Center, operated by Daughters of Mary Help of Christians in Cotonou, Benin, has started an introductory art course for street children from the Dantokpa open-air market. The project is leading children to discover their hidden talents, increasing their self-esteem and teaching them to establish themselves in society. Educators provide support and teach children to stretch the canvas, prepare the necessary material and paint.

The Daughters of Mary Help of Christians have been active in the Dantokpa market since 2001, where they have been working to reintegrate youth known as “vidomegon” into society and their families of origin. Vidomegon is a legacy of colonial custom. In the past, young girls from rural households were entrusted to a tutor to ensure the girls had access to a better education.

Today, these young girls are often sold into slavery by the poorest families and employed as low-cost laborers in private homes and in markets. They are victims of psychological and physical violence of all kinds. These young girls spend their lives working day and night, sleeping under benches, and are often exploited and abused.

In 2017, Salesians launched a new center for girls known as the Maison de l’Esperance. The main objective of the initiative is to provide young girls with a place where they can sleep in total safety, but also to raise awareness and provide support activities. In addition to receiving comfortable mattresses to sleep on, the girls have access to a psychologist and an assistant who will help them to overcome the traumas they have suffered. They also have access to skills training, and many go on to become bakers, cooks and pastry makers.

COLOMBIA

Children in poverty have healthy nutrition thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions.

The Youth Services Organization, located in the headquarters of Bosconia, in the Los Martires area of Bogota, Colombia*, was able to provide food service for more than 60 children and older youth each day thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions.

The children and older youth, ages 5-18, live in extreme poverty with their families or are homeless. They are at a higher risk of facing child labor, sexual exploitation, constant homelessness, food insecurity, limited adult supervision, family violence, and illegal activities.

To help carry out the nutrition project, Salesians established an agreement with Bogota’s Archdiocese Food Bank to guarantee availability of the required food products. The health and nutrition team from Bosconia also monitored the children and assessed them for good health and malnutrition.

INDIA

In India, Don Bosco Navajeevan receives a donated ambulance for medical and emergency needs of street children.

Don Bosco Navajeevan, located in Hyderabad, India, received a donated ambulance for the medical and emergency needs of street children and orphaned and marginalized children thanks to General Insurance Corporation of India. The donation was made possible in collaboration with BoscoNet and Bosco Seva Kendra.

Don Bosco Navajeevan offers a range of vocational and technical training programs including electrical, carpentry and welding, tailoring, baking, garment making, and printing press skills. The organization works to ensure that poor youth have an opportunity to gain an education.

In addition to education, Don Bosco Navajeevan provides a youth center that places special emphasis on rescuing and rehabilitating children engaged in child labor. The program also offers shelter to child laborers and street children. Once a child arrives at the center, he or she receives shelter, food and clothing and is then eligible to participate in Salesian programs that focus on education and life skills training. The goal is to help the children break the cycle of poverty and go on to lead productive lives free from abuse and forced labor. Supplementary classes at Don Bosco Navajeevan cater to those who have missed school and have fallen behind academically.

RWANDA

The Salesian Center in Rango provides education, shelter and hope for street children.

Salesian programs in Rwanda are working to help at-risk youth who are often living on the streets. UNICEF estimates that there are about 7,000 street children in the country while close to 300,000 live in families where a minor is the head of the household. The economic challenges brought about by the pandemic have exacerbated many of these issues.

Street children face a life that is marked by uncertainty and a lack of education, food, protection and health care access. These children have no understanding of their rights and often fall prey to those who wish to do them harm. Street children have few prospects in life because they are not in school gaining an education and are on the streets begging or taking odd jobs to have enough food to eat. Most suffer from malnutrition and other diseases such as dysentery, malaria and scabies.

Salesian Brother Hubert Twagirayezu, economer of the St. Charles Lwanga Vice Province of Africa Great Lakes, which includes Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi, said, “In Rwanda, we carry out our mission among poor children and young people. In Rango, in the district of Huye, we help more than 120 street children, but at the national level there are many more.”

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Sources:

BENIN: Street children increase self-esteem through art course/ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)

COLOMBIA: Children in poverty have healthy nutrition thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions/Photo courtesy of Salesian Missions (contact for usage permissions)

INDIA: Ambulance to meet needs of street children/Photo courtesy of Don Bosco India

International Day for Street Children

RWANDA: Street children find education, shelter and hope/ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)

Salesian Missions

*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 INT’L DAY FOR STREET CHILDREN: Salesian programs support and educate street youth around the globe first appeared on MissionNewswire.

(MissionNewswire) Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, joins humanitarian and international organizations around the globe in highlighting the plight of homeless children on the International Day for Street Children. The day provides organizations and the millions of street children in countries worldwide an opportunity to have their voices heard while ensuring that their rights are not ignored.

Celebrated each year on April 12, the day was established by the United Nations to raise awareness of issues affecting youth forced to live on the streets. The Consortium for Street Children founded the International Day for Street Children in 2011 and is the leading international network dedicated to realizing the rights of street children worldwide.

This year the focus is on “The Four Steps to Equality” and calls on governments to have equality for street children. The four steps are a commitment to equality, protection for every child, access to services, and creating new solutions through specialized services and new opportunities that are specific to the needs and challenges of street children.

“Youth who are able to access programs that help them come in off the streets where they face poverty and are at risk for exploitation have a chance at a better life,” said Father Gus Baek, director of Salesian Missions. “Salesian programs aim to help children live safely while getting the emotional support they need and the education that will help them live independently. It’s a second chance for these children to have hope for a better life.”

In honor of the International Day for Street Children 2021, Salesian Missions is proud to share some of its programs around the globe that provide shelter, nutrition, education and hope for a better life for street children.

ANGOLA

In Angola, Salesian VIS volunteers launched a new center to help support street children.

As Angola faces the coronavirus pandemic, the most vulnerable in society are street children who have nowhere to turn and no one to care for them. Among the street children most at risk and most exposed are those in Luanda, the capital and largest city in Angola. These youth are supported by the Salesian International Volunteering for Development (VIS) and Salesian missionaries in the region.

To address some of the challenges, the Salesian “Let’s go together” project, which has been supported by the European Union and other benefactors, has opened a new emergency center where street children are offered a place live far from the dangers of street life.

In the center, boys and girls receive protection, nutrition, hygiene products and the attention of many social educators and volunteers who dedicate themselves to helping youth organize their daily lives, learn and respect the rules, and take responsibility for their futures.

DR CONGO

At the Don Bosco Center in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, street children have access to shelter, nutrition, education and a literacy program.

The Don Bosco Center, located in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo,* is changing the lives of street youth through education and social programs. One example is Daniel, who lived with his family in Goma. When M23 rebels occupied the city in November 2012, Daniel was just 10 years old. His family fled north, but when they were near the Virunga park, his parents decided to go back. Daniel lost contact with his family. He searched for them far and wide but did not find them.

Daniel ended up at the Don Bosco Center and was part of the first group of 20 young people welcomed into a family reunification project. The project, which started in April 2019, runs for three years and aims to reunify 20 street children with their families each year.

At the Don Bosco Center, Daniel had access to shelter, nutrition, education and a literacy program. Daniel adapted well and showed his desire to leave the street behind. A social worker from the Don Bosco Center searched for information about Daniel’s family. In time, they found people who knew of Daniel’s parents as well as a phone number. Daniel’s father had emigrated with his family to Nairobi, Kenya.

His father thought that Daniel was dead, but as soon as he learned he was alive, he asked Daniel to join them. After completing all of the paperwork, Daniel left for a long journey to Kenya, crossing Rwanda and Uganda. In Nairobi, he was warmly welcomed by his parents and brothers and sisters.

INDIA

Don Bosco Ashalayam in India has provided support and rehabilitation for more than 80,000 street children over the last 30 years.

Don Bosco Ashalayam provides support and rehabilitation for street children in India. More than 500 children currently reside in the 23 shelters in Ashalayam and benefit from educational and recreational opportunities. Through its presence on the streets and with courses and programs offered in slums and railway stations, Don Bosco Ashalayam assists thousands of street children every year. More than 80,000 children have benefited in three decades.

Don Bosco Ashalayam also provides the Childline hotline, a free telephone line that works 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Street children can call anonymously to seek support and ask for assistance. Bosco Delhi, through the Don Bosco Ashalayam Center, operates Childline.

Salesian staff members work tirelessly every day of the year to ensure the rights of the children in need and give them special care and protection. They work collaboratively with law enforcement, and health care, juvenile justice, transportation and legal providers, along with the media, to create awareness on child rights and provide child protection services.

NIGERIA

Salesian Missions provides funding to help support ongoing work at the Don Bosco Child Protection Center in Lagos, Nigeria.

The Don Bosco Child Protection Center in Lagos, Nigeria, is able to provide ongoing support for 25 boys thanks to funding received from Salesian Missions. The center provides care for boys, ages 7-15, who were living on the streets, had faced physical abuse in their homes or were rescued from child trafficking.

The funding from Salesian Missions provided tuition and skills training, counseling and psychological care, medical care, and clothing for the boys. Some funding also went to support the operational expenses of the center for such items as fuel, internet access, stationery and toiletries.

With the high rate of domestic violence, child abuse, poverty and negative environmental influences, many youth are living on the streets in Lagos and fighting to survive. Many have turned to crime, drug abuse and other risky behavior. These youth have been denied the opportunity of proper parental training, family love andeven education. The Don Bosco Child Protection Center supports these youth, bringing them off the streets, giving them access to education and skills training, and instilling hope for a brighter future.

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Sources:

ANGOLA: Salesian VIS volunteers launch new center to help support street children

ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)

DR CONGO: Don Bosco Center is working to reunify street children with their families

ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)

INDIA: Don Bosco Ashalayam has provided support and rehabilitation for more than 80,000 street children over the last 30 years

ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)

NIGERIA: Salesian Missions funds care for former street children

Photo courtesy of Salesian Missions (contact for usage permissions)

International Day for Street Children 2021

Salesian Missions

*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 INT’L DAY FOR STREET CHILDREN: Salesian programs focus on giving street children hope for a better life first appeared on MissionNewswire.