This project will help: 150 children
Child development centre: BO0481, Irpawi Fundacion Child Development Centre
Many boys and girls growing up in the rural community of Santa Maria I, Bolivia, have little hope for the future. Parents struggle to meet their children’s needs, working informal, second jobs such as raising sheep, planting potatoes in solar tents or driving taxis. With four in ten unemployed, many fathers leave the country in search of work. In this patriarchal society, typical families here consist of a single mom raising three to six children.
Since parents can’t afford school fees, most children earn only a basic education. Other children drop out of school to work and help support the family. The pandemic caused further barriers to education since families did not have the necessary tools to attend virtual classes. In addition, the community lacks sewage and sanitation, which leads to high risk of diarrheal infection, respiratory illness and acute malnutrition. Instead of seeking treatment at the health centre, parents often turn to traditional remedies and rituals. Without help, children in Santa Maria I will remain stuck in the cycle of poverty.
But the local church in Santa Maria I has a deep desire to reach out to their community with the transforming gospel of Christ and respond to some of the most pressing needs of children.
By opening a child development centre, children will have access to health care and will receive supplementary food as needed. Through your support they will also have the opportunity to go to school and receive vocational training, age-appropriate Christian teaching and discipleship, as well as education on important topics like health, hygiene and how to form healthy relationships. Along the way, they will also receive personal attention, guidance and love from caring members of the Christian community.
Real and lasting change happens when children are developed to become the adults who will create change in their community. In Compassion’s program, children learn they are loved, develop hope for their future and realize that God wants to use them to help others. These children grow up to be givers and leaders in their community.
Help children build a new future free from poverty and full of promise by launching a holistic children’s ministry!
Children’s ministry launch
Help a church in Bolivia open a holistic child development ministry.
Church name: Iglesia del Nazareno de Santa Maria I
Community information: Santa Maria I is a community in Bolivia of about 10,000 people. The closest major city is Viacha. Most people work as animal herders, day labourers, factory workers or street vendors. Most families make about $344 a month, but 40 per cent of the population is unemployed. Homes are made of corrugated iron or tin roofs, cement walls and cement floors. The main diet is bananas, beans, beef, bread, cereal, chicken, egg, maize and potato. Most people are Catholic but still follow animistic rituals. There is an openness to the gospel.
What is provided through this gift:
- Centre staffing
- Staff training and recruitment
- Child registration and caregiver orientation
- Initial caregiver meeting
- Registration day items
- Camera
- Administrative equipment and supplies
- Office computer and printer
- Office filing cabinets and shelves
- Office desk and chair
- Office supplies
- Staff uniforms and backpacks
- Classroom furnishings and supplies
- Tables, chairs, cabinets
- Toys, games, minor sports equipment
- Teaching resources and supplies
- Curriculum printing
- Health checkups and supplies
- Initial health screenings
- Height and weight measurement tools