With a special focus on young offenders in juvenile detention centers, Salesian missionaries have been working with this population for 17 years. During the most recent academic year, Salesian Father Johnson Paulraj, rector of the community and director of reformatories, along with Mr. Fakreldeen, principal of the school, visited the juvenile detention centers at Kobar and Jeref and selected students to attend the program based on their interest and the intensity of their imprisonment.

“Gaining an education can provide new opportunities young people never even imagined were possible,” says Fr. Paulraj. “It’s more than just classroom training. Students have access to life skills that help them make better decisions and aid in later employment.”

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

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

Students are transported daily from the detention centers to the Salesian school. They are also provided breakfast before they attend classes. In addition to traditional classroom studies, students are also provided a chance to participate in recreation and sports programs. These activities provide these students to learn team building and problem solving skills while having the chance to release the stress and sadness of being incarcerated.

Through this program, students have an opportunity to use their time at the juvenile detention center wisely by gaining the skills and experience needed to find and retain employment once they are released. Instead of returning to a life of crime, they are able to positively contribute back to their communities.

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

School enrollment and retention is affected by weak curriculum in Sudanese schools and inadequate educational materials and teacher training (according to UNICEF, more than 40 percent of teachers are untrained). Ongoing conflict and the high cost of education, particularly in rural areas where parents have to pay school fees, also affect enrollment rates.

###

Sources:

Salesian Newsletter – Juvenile Delinquents Reformed through Don Bosco Ways

UNICEF – Poverty in Sudan 

The post SUDAN: Salesian Programs Offer a Second Chance to Youth Offenders by Providing Education, Path Out of Poverty first appeared on MissionNewswire.

“We decided to open one-year-courses in computer, English, art and tailoring at the Vocational Center in Kep because many students from the nearby provinces are unable to join our Don Bosco schools in Sihanoukville and Phnom Penh,” says Father Albeiro Rodas, who is in charge of Don Bosco Vocational Center Kep.

The students returned to find many of the construction projects almost completed including the Banteay Srei Women’s Hostel, Angkor Borei Center – a male student’s residence, Don Bosco Kep Radio Station and the Don Bosco Kep Farm.

The Banteay Srei Women’s Hostel, a house for female students and teachers, is almost completed. The gate and gathering place for the students is still under construction but on Sept. 29, 2012, the new residents moved into the house. The official opening of the Hostel is slated for Nov. 6, 2012.

While the facility is built, the students are in need of furniture.

“The first students are sleeping on mats,” says Fr. Rodas. “While we did receive a donation of some furniture from the Sawasdee Foundation, the public request for donations of beds and other items has not yielded any donations yet. Beds especially are needed for our students.”

The Angkor Borei Center is already a main feature on the school campus. The three story building’s main structure is finished and is slated to be fully operational beginning in December or January. The Salesians are in the process of working to acquire a license to operate the new radio station, which will be utilized as a method of education and cultural promotion.

Another significant new project of the Salesians in Cambodia is the Don Bosco Kep Farm. The farm itself is ready with the main farm house in place and the land for crops becoming more viable each day.

“Both the structures to grow animals and the pond to grow fish are still under construction,” reports Fr. Rodas. “But students are helping on the farm when they can. Most of the students come from rural areas and have a background that benefits the farm. What is grown on the farm will be used to feed the personnel and students at the school.”

The Salesians have a long history of teaching job skills to youth in Cambodia. Through the United Nations, they began providing technical vocational education to Cambodian refugees living in camps along the Thai-Cambodian border in the late 1980s. In 1993, at the invitation of the government of Cambodia, the technical School in Phnom Penh was established to republish, translate, and write books and educational documents that were destroyed during the Khmer Rouge regime. It contained the only working printing press in the country—and served as a model of hope through education.

“As more and more programs for youth are developed in Cambodia, donations are needed to help make the programs and facilities fully operational,” explains Fr. Rodas. “We are still in need of furniture for both our male and females residences, audiovisual and other radio equipment for our radio station as well as updated water and electrical systems at the facility.”

For more information, go to www.donboscokep.org.

The Salesians are widely regarded as the world’s largest provider of private vocational and technical training. To learn more, go to www.SalesianMissions.org.

###

See related article: CAMBODIA: U.S. Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Provides Assistance, Expertise to Salesian Trade School

Sources:

Salesian Missions – Work in Cambodia

Photo courtesy Don Bosco Vocational Center Kep

The post CAMBODIA: Construction Continues, Donations Needed at Don Bosco Vocational Center Kep first appeared on MissionNewswire.