Children and SOS mother in the garden - CV Sanankoroba,…
During a meeting between Mali's interior minister and representatives from the French SOS Children's Village association in 1984, SOS-Kinderdorf International was able to form first contacts with Mali and find out whether they were interested in building an SOS Children's Village there. A government agreement was signed in 1985 and SOS-Kinderdorf International was able to start realising Hermann Gmeiner's idea here. In August 1987, the first SOS Children's Village children and their mothers were able to move into the first SOS Children's Village, which is situated in Sanankoroba, 30 km from the capital, Bamako.
- Lisa
-
Children and SOS mother in the garden - CV Sanankoroba, Mali
During a meeting between Mali's interior minister and representatives from the French SOS Children's Village association in 1984, SOS-Kinderdorf International was able to form first contacts with Mali and find out whether they were interested in building an SOS Children's Village there. A government agreement was signed in 1985 and SOS-Kinderdorf International was able to start realising Hermann Gmeiner's idea here. In August 1987, the first SOS Children's Village children and their mothers were able to move into the first SOS Children's Village, which is situated in Sanankoroba, 30 km from the capital, Bamako.
Because the country is very poor and the state schools are inadequate, an SOS Kindergarten was added in October 1988 and an SOS Hermann Gmeiner School in October 1997. The first SOS Youth Facility was able to open its doors in July 1996. It is in Bamako, in the Torokorobougou district. Here the SOS youths are taught how to live on their own and they are able to complete their education at one of the schools here or learn a trade. Whilst they are here, SOS-Kinderdorf International is still caring them for. The need for care for orphaned and abandoned children in the country was still very great and so SOS-Kinderdorf International started construction on a second SOS Children's Village in June 1994. It is situated in Sévaré, in the Socoura district, about 20 km from the town Mopti.
As the region around Sanankoroba is marked with grinding poverty and the risk of child abandonment, is high, SOS Childrens Villages Mali decided to implement family strengthening programmes. The aim of these programmes is to enable children who are at risk of losing the care of their family to grow within a caring family environment. To achieve this, SOS Childrens Villages Mali works directly with families and communities to empower them to effectively protect and care for their children, in cooperation with local authorities and other service providers. Due to the long lasting drought and locust invasion, Mali faced poor crop yields and thus suffered of famine. The SOS Childrens Village Socoura reacted immediately with an emergency relief project and distributed basic foodstuff and other relief goods. The programme lasted from spring to summer 2005.
Education is the best way to overcome poverty! For this reason SOS Childrens Villages Mali decided to build a school in the vicinity of the SOS Childrens Village Socoura. Children (especially girls) of indigent families as well as SOS children will have the opportunity to obtain good education. The annexed canteen provides a balanced meal.
In the course of the planned third SOS Childrens Village in Kita, another Family Strengthening Programme was initiated at this location.
At present there are two SOS Children's Villages in Mali, one SOS Youth Facility, two SOS Kindergartens, one SOS Hermann Gmeiner School, and four SOS Social Centres (Family Strengthening Programmes). A SOS Hermann-Gmeiner School is under construction and a third SOS Childrens Village is planned.
sanankoroba SOS Children's Village Sanankoroba In operation since: 12 August 1987 Capacity: 150 children Official opening: 10 December 1988 Facility includes: 15 family houses, village director's house, aunts' house, clinic, administration and service area SOS Youth Facility Torokorobougou (located in Bamako) In operation since: 28 July 1996 Capacity: Youth house: 20 youths Youth counselling: according to needs Facility includes: 1 youth house with ten rooms, study, common room, kitchen, administration and service area SOS Kindergarten In operation since: October 1988 Capacity: 150 children Facility includes: 6 group rooms, kitchen, administration and service area SOS Hermann Gmeiner School (primary and secondary school) In operation since: 6 October 1997 Capacity: 800 pupils Facility includes: 12 classrooms for primary school, 6 classrooms for secondary school, workshops for practical lessons, library, kitchen and canteen (apatam), sports field, administration and service area SOS Social Centre (family strengthening programme) In operation since: June 2005 Capacity: 300 beneficiaries
Infrastructure / Focus of the programme: The programme offers a package of services designed to o1 Ensure that children have access to essential services (e.g. educational, nutritional, health support) for their healthy development o2 Support families to build their capacity to protect and care for their children (e.g. income generation, parental skills) o3 Strengthen support systems for vulnerable children and their families within the community and work in collaboration with local authorities SOS Social Centre (family strengthening programme, crèche) In operation since: 2007 Capacity: 100 beneficiaries Infrastructure / Focus of the programme: Nursery Day care for children in order to enable the mothers to go working; medical treatment, counseling.
- Mary
-
SOS-mother in front of her house - CV Assomada Cape Verde
It's sometimes just a matter of a couple of hundreds of US dollars and a family can start living instead of surviving! Read the story of this Cape Verdean mother, now a business woman who is able to care for her children.
I Am Now My Own Employer
34-year-old Linete is a mother of three. The family lives in Assomada, in a small house lent by another Cape Verdean family who lives out of the country, but Linette could hardly cope with providing the essential services for her twelve and five-year-old girls and eleven-year-old boy. However, since the family received support from the family strengthening programme of SOS Children's Villages Cape Verde, Linete is now her own employer and has regained confidence.
Before, Linete was struggling and had no real job. She did help her old aunt to sell vegetables and received a tiny commission that could provide a little bit of food for her and her children. However, it was definitely not enough to raise her three kids, especially when the father of the children who had left never contributes to any expenses
"Now its great!", says Linete. "With the 20,000 escudos (about USD 220) I received thanks to the family strengthening programme to start my own little business, I managed to get some goods, fruits and vegetables to sell in the market, and all the profit is for me! I really earn much more money than I ever earned in the past, and I am now able to buy food in bulk for my family, which is much cheaper!", explains Linete. "Once, I buy a 25 kg bag of rice, a crate of oil bottles...another time I buy a big bag of sugar. And like this, I manage to make our own stock and our family is no longer missing anything at home".
Luckily, Linete has business in the blood! Ever since she was a little girl, she used to sell. Her father left her and her siblings and mother when she was a little girl. "My mother having very little resources, my siblings and I only attended school until the fourth year of primary, as it was free of charge, but after that we stayed home", explains Linete. "When I saw my friends were always getting new things like clothes, body creams and other girls' stuffs, I decided I would start selling small things to be able to also buy my little own stuff!, she recalls with a smile.
Today, Linete's business skills have developed! The amount she received from SOS Children's Villages Cape Verde is indeed a zero interest loan. She'll start reimbursing in March, and plans to be done by July. "As I know I have to reimburse the loan, I only spend a bit of the profit I make and save the rest for the future!", explains Linete
Now a business woman, Linete does not put aside her role as a mother. Linete starts her day at seven. She prepares breakfast for her children who go to school at eight o'clock. Then, she goes to the market to sell and comes back only in the late afternoon. Sometimes, she eats lunch in the market; sometimes, she waits to go home to eat. Back home, it's time to cook dinner and make sure the children did their homework. When she goes to bed at night, Linete never forgets to pray to God to continue giving her strength and courage to keep her caring for her children the way she's now able to!
In addition to this loan support, the family strengthening programme in Assomada also paid for the school fees of her three children, to enable Linete to only concentrate on improving her business and getting progressively settled in her household expenditures management. Her youngest girl is attending the SOS Kindergarten in Assomada, while the two older ones are in primary school nearby. To get started, her family also received a first necessity package, including rice, sugar, powder milk, beans and soap, among other things .
Linete's three children are part of the first set of children to receive support from the family strengthening programme of Assomada.
Share: