Sponsor's update from Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil

Child sponsorship update from the SOS Children's Village Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil from Winter 2008.

Dear sponsors

SOS Children’s Village Rio Grande do Norte, based in Caicó city, has strengthening its work within an integrated approach on Children and Adolescents Rights. Family-base care assists children and adolescents who had their rights violated, offering them a family-based-environment aiming to reduce family bonds break impact. Currently we have 15 SOS homes housing 117 children and adolescents. During this year we reintegrated 25 children who are now assisted within their biological families. Supportive work with biological families through home calls and meetings where several issues and themes can be discussed is vital to strengthen family bonds and promote children and adolescents reintegration and a family-based approach.

Youth Community, based in Natal city, keeps on supporting 09 adolescents who are been prepared to enter into the job market. We highlight Jéferson Caio, attending Biomedical School at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte after underwent to a very difficult entrance exam; and Renato, Thyago, and Cássia who are taking technical secondary school.

We continue on investing in education for our children and adolescents, thus 44% these children are studying in private schools, where they find a higher quality education, and taking part in socio-cultural, sportive, and artistic extra class activities.

Through a partnership with a Municipal programme named Meninos de Ofício Project, we got some vacancies for our adolescents. In the project they are prepared to enter into the job market as apprentices. Ornelle was succeeded and after a period working as an apprentice in a clothes store she was hired as a regular employee as part of the Federal Government Programme First Job.

Good results have come from Scout Group in which some of our children and adolescents are taking part in. They are very thrilled with the community, solidary activities and camping. On Independence Day there was a parade to celebrate this important date for all of us.

SOS mothers are been supported and qualified to improve their work within each SOS family, seeking for a better approach and environment for children and adolescents under their responsibilities. Each SOS mother did an assessment based on competencies, development, and results. Also we are remodelling SOS houses, which need enlarge kitchens, for example, to offer a better quality of services for children and adolescents.

Working with children and communities at Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil

Community and Family Strengthening Programme has developed daily activities in several districts of our city to empower families and prevent infantile abandonment. We can find a high vulnerability rate in these districts.

Currently we are working in the following districts: Itans, Samanaú, Paulo VI, Castelo Branco, João Paulo II, and starting to enlarge to other communities as Paraíba and Soledade. Daily we assist 503 children from 399 families that live in these communities. Through some activities, we try to improve self-esteem of children, teenagers, and families and to make them aware of their social rights. Such preventive-educational proposal aims to give opportunities to them on community and family-based participation, supporting local initiatives that promote social skills. On the other hand, workshops are offered for children and teenagers in which are worked pedagogical activities, ludic games, and cultural expression, inside this activity we have a project to reactivate our Hermann Gmeiner Philharmonic.

Our social educators plan the activities and are supported to develop each child skills in an autonomous way.

For families we develop projects to stimulate income-generating and productive inclusion, socio-educative activities, community-based workshops, and social network. Marli Félix, an instructor, in her testimonial says: "I’ve taught several courses, however this one was different. I’ve build a strong bond with this class, included I gave them some tips to improve their attitude". Due to the huge success of this action, we are planning to offer hairdresser’s course to Itans and Samanaú districts in October. Educative actions of orientation are constantly done in all communities that we work; these actions are lectures on self-esteem and violation within family, for instance.

Herewith we are achieving to participate and promote actions and discussions with the community co-operating to improve their quality of life. A very important participation is on Social Service Groups in which ones are offered space for discussion and questioning public policy, trying to make vulnerable communities aware of their rights. Also we take part in the State and Municipal Councils on Children’s and Adolescents’ Rights and on the Municipal Council of Social Assistance. Besides, we are an active participant as a representative entity on State Forum on Children’s and Adolescents’ Rights, articulating actions in Seridó region through I Seminar on Children’s and Adolescents’ Rights of Regional-Seridó. We expect that 26 cities from this region join us. Seminar main theme is “Advancements and challenges of Children and Adolescents Act after 18 years” (ECA - Children’s and Adolescents’ Act).

Concluding we would like to reaffirm our deeply gratefulness in behalf of all children and families beneficiaries of our programmes to whom we continue on promoting their social rights.

Francisco de Assis Santiago Júnior, Director for both Programmes & Márcia Bertoletti, Sponsorship Department