(UNICEF) Two years ago, Eric N’Koue was nearly sold by his father to child traffickers. Fortunately, he was intercepted by police and brought to the UNICEF-supported Saint Joseph Center, a facility providing care and opportunities for vulnerable children in the eastern city of Parakou. Now seven
(UNICEF) The massive humanitarian response to the food crisis in the Horn of Africa has eased the suffering of thousands of people, but more resources are needed to save the lives of hundreds of thousands of children in famine-hit areas of Somalia, the United Nations
(MissionNewswire) The United Nations reports that more than 300,000 children in the Horn of Africa are severely malnourished and "at risk of dying." The region, also referred to as Northeast Africa, includes the countries of Eritrea, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Somalia – all severely affected by
(MissionNewswire) In many of the world’s poorest countries – where hunger and hopelessness is a daily reality for so many children – providing life-saving meals and educational opportunities is hampered by threats of violence. Security is one of the top concerns for non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
(MissionNewswire) The recent announcement of Ethiopia’s goal to expand its budget by 22 percent to fight poverty in its quickly growing economy caused critics to charge that growth has not filtered down to the poor, according to news reports from Reuters on June 11.
As politicians work to introduce plans for a better Ethiopia, a unique program is already addressing issues of hunger and education on the streets of Addis Ababa. Through Donato’s Children of the Beggars program founded by the Salesians of Don Bosco in Mekanissa, Ethiopia, parents who survive by begging on the street are able to send their children to school to receive basic education and skills training support services.
According to UNICEF, approximately 72 percent of school-age children in Ethiopia have no access to formal education, and while education is free, many families do not have the economic resources to send their children to school.
“For children whose parents are already begging on the street, education seems like a dream,” says Brother Cesare Bullo, director of the Project Development Office for the Salesians of Don Bosco in Ethiopia. “Our goal is to reach children who are living in dangerous situations. Our first step is to connect with the parents and guardians to introduce the value of education and how it can lead to a better life for their children – something every parent wants.”
The program staff includes social workers who do outreach to convince parents that an education will provide long-term benefits for the child and family, even though the family may rely on the child to work in the street to provide a portion of the family income.
Once enrolled in the program, children are tutored in basic literacy and math skills so that they may join the formal education system, while adolescents receive jobs training in marketable skills that will help provide for them and their families.
“Our program also includes meals to provide added incentive for the children to study and for parents to continue to encourage their children to attend classes,” says Br. Bullo. “We are committed to keeping the children in the program and by including meals, the program represents a daily benefit to the family.”
Currently, 513 children are enrolled in this program which began in 1998. The Salesians of Don Bosco in Ethiopia have been working with the most vulnerable children and youth since 1975 with a focus on primary and secondary educational services. Salesians also carry out development initiatives providing support in the areas of food security, access to water and illness prevention, health, emergency assistance and agriculture.
PHOTO: Adam Rudin / SALESIAN MISSIONS
(MissionNewswire) According to UNICEF, almost 50 percent of the developing world’s population – 2.5 billion people – lack improved sanitation facilities, and more than 884 million people still use unsafe drinking water sources. Inadequate access to safe water and sanitation services, coupled with poor hygiene practices, kills and sickens thousands of children every day, and leads to impoverishment and diminished opportunities for thousands more.
Poor sanitation, water and hygiene have many other serious repercussions. Children – and particularly girls – are denied their right to education because schools lack private and decent sanitation facilities. Women are forced to spend large parts of their day fetching water. Poor farmers and wage earners are less productive due to illness, health systems are overwhelmed and national economies suffer. Without WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene), sustainable development is impossible.
Reports published by the World Health Organization, UNICEF and others make it clear that this challenge should no longer be left primarily in the hands of just water management authorities or environmental ministries.
Non-governmental organizations must continue to play a major role in fighting the battle for access to clean water. Many such organizations around the globe have been doing just that, one project and one community at a time.
In a Bolivian community, for example, families now have access to safe drinking water in their homes through community water distribution projects, according to the Salesian Missions website.
In the town of “19 de Agosto” in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, the new distribution brings water directly to 106 families who previously had to carry potable water from the town well to their own homes, According to the Salesian Missions website. The distribution system greatly improves the sanitary conditions of the drinking water. In the town of Las Parabas, 50 families now have water distribution directly into their homes using this system.
Each community and each challenge to safe water access is different and customized solutions must be engineered, the website also points out. For example, to address serious water issues resulting from pesticide pollution in a remote area of western Brazil, Salesian Missions worked with members of the Xavante and Bororo Indian communities to obtain clean water from previously inaccessible areas.
To do so, the Salesians first created wells and designed a mobile drilling truck. Then, to create power, they invented and patented a seesaw pump that would draw water from the depths of the well as children were playing. Now, solar panels are used. The result – according to Salesian Missions – is reduced risk of disease, access to potable water, improved infrastructure and expanded farming.
“What began as an immediate response to a crisis in a community,” the website states, “has become a well-organized project to ensure the growth of the indigenous groups.”
(UNICEF) UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Angélique Kidjo made a two-day visit to Benin, her native country, to witness first-hand the UNICEF supported programs that are helping vulnerable children there. In Cotonou, Ms. Kidjo visited 99 children at the ‘Black Style’ hair dressing center, where