At SOSUIBEN we believe every child can learn and every child must learn. We also believe that every child has the right to education. Children and youths whether they still have their families or are orphans and who are under our shelter are cared for. They receive materials for school (stationaries), food, clothings, and are involved in our organised sports activities.
It pains to face the reality that many children in Africa are very impoverished and find it very difficult to really survive. It can be said that most of them have no future without us. They therefore are our priority. Most of them suffer from hunger because they do not have the source to get food. Lack of health care results in lack of education because it is said life before anything else.
To help these children we plan to move from our current rented accommodation and construct a permanent orphanage centre to properly care for them. With this shelter they will have space and access to better attention, resulting in more accessibility to education. While they are in this present shelter they will continue to be educated, knowing that they have access to better and more opportunities than out there on the streets.
Our Children feel safe with us and they are be open-minded and ready to learn and take in content and technical courses. With us they not only learn alphabetics, reading and writing but they also learn to do practical work, such as carpentry, plumbing, mason work and even welding.
We emphasize on good education, and believe that these children should have a good future, and so we ensure that those who have reached the age threshold of attending regular Schools we enrol them formally. This way they can be more appreciative of the teaching and learning processes in a regulated setting and ultimately mix up with children of diverse backgrounds. Since we are accountable for these Students we strive to see their tuition fees are paid for as well as any additional costs. We also ensure that their tunics are done and ready to be worn to school. Certainly it is not always easy to help and care for these children, since they are over 200 of them; still we are committed to doing our uttermost best to help them to take hold of a brighter and better future. Where are not able to enrol the Children in private facilities, we enrol them in the public school system so they can learn just the same like normal children. Our children are making progress because they can say the letters of the alphabet which they couldn’t recite when we first accepted them into our Centre. Moreso, some of them are also being trained in singing, dancing and playing soccer. At SOSUIBEN we continue to have more and more children being enrolled in Schools in order to improve their educational skills and also for their holistic development.
During and after the Civil War in 2013-2017, some children were distorted and some of their classes were cancelled for several months. We didn’t allow this to stop the children from learning, instead we resolved to hire local teachers to teach the children at specific times in our Centre, while some were able to go to other Schools regularly if not even every day, due to in part the donations given by some goodwill individuals and entities. In 2017, we were able to enrol another 25 Students in School mainly from the Founder’s personal expenses and hard earned salaries. We must not fail to appreciate the material supplies, sports equipment and monetary donations we received from Switzerland, especially from FC Basel Football Club and other organisations. They have immensely helped our Children and reinforced hope in them. In view of these, our Children now believe that act of kindness still exist out there in the world and that come rain, come shine, someone will always be there for them. We will continue to help make these children’s future bright and their lives worth living.