A terrible natural disaster and its consequences
As one of the main towns in the province, even today people continue to move to Medan. As many do not have any training or education, they end up doing informal jobs such as selling small goods on the streets. As parents struggle to eke out a living, families often fall apart. Most of the children in our care only have one parent; single mothers in particular find it hard to get a job and care for their children. A lot of children are also forced to go out to earn some money; they have no time to attend school because they are concentrating on surviving.
Providing relief to areas hit by the tsunami
After the tsunami, SOS Children's Villages provided immediate emergency relief to traumatised children and homeless families. We tried to take care of as many children as possible and find their relatives in order to reunite the families. In addition, we reached out to the local community by re-constructing more than 500 private homes and community centres near Banda Aceh and Meulaboh. Generous donations and close cooperation with the local authorities finally made it possible for our organisation to set up three new SOS Children's Villages in Banda Aceh, Medan and Meulaboh. As people have continued to move to Medan, our activities in the area have grown and adjusted to the new needs of the local population.
What we do in Medan
For children whose families can no longer take care of them SOS Children's Villages provides a loving home in one of the SOS families in Medan. These children can attend the SOS Kindergarten, where they are taught together with children from local families. Later they attend schools in the area, which helps them become part of the local community.
Young people who are ready to move out of the SOS families join our SOS Youth Programme when they start vocational training or go on to higher education. With the support of qualified professionals, the young people develop perspectives for their future, learn to shoulder responsibility and increasingly make their own decisions.