AFRICA-Projects and centers for boys and girls in difficulty

Rome (Fides Service) – For decades in many African countries, village communities have provided aid and protection to children, especially in rural areas, where children, in the absence of parents, were entrusted to elder members or relatives. The current situation which sees the emergence of the uncontrolled urbanization problems, the bloody civil wars and AIDS, exposes children and young people to difficult realities. The Salesians and the Salesian Daughters of Mary Help of Christians work tirelessly for them. As announced by the agency Ans, in Uganda, Kampala-Namugongo, since 2007 the Salesians have taken care of a center which houses about 150 children and street children. The project’s aim is the social promotion of these disadvantaged young children, to whom are offered meals, clothing, access to health care and education. The Prosecutor of Turin, together with the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, have also developed other projects in support to children abandoned in Africa. Among these works we have those of Kasama, in Zambia, and Namaacha, in Mozambique.
In the work in Kasama, the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians welcomed girls victims of violence and sexual abuse, orphans or poor children, but the structure in which they lived was in terrible condition . The necessary funds were collected in order to buy and renovate a building adjacent to the structure of the nuns, which has become a safe house for girls. Here the nuns support the girls in the education and development of individuals and feelings, helping them to become responsible and to emancipate from the dominant cultural archetypes. In Namaacha, instead, given the scarcity of schools in the area and the difficulties for young people to attend them, the Daughters of Mary help of Christians decided to refurbish an old building, where currently about 30 girls between 11 and 18 have a safe place to live and the possibility of going to school. The spread of infectious diseases have significantly been reduced, such as malaria, and pulmonary diseases have almost disappeared, with benefits for the whole community. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 06/27/2011)