SOS Children in Romania
Romania, in south-eastern Europe on the Balkan Peninsula, is comparable in size to Great Britain. Since the overthrow of the Ceaucescu regime in 1990, Romania has had to struggle with enormous economic problems and even after thirteen years of transition, GDP and real wages are still less than their 1989 levels. Unemployment is high and as a result, 30 per cent of the population lives in poverty. It is estimated that over 40,000 children are living in institutions, mainly because of transition-related problems such as poverty, malnutrition, disabilities and HIV/AIDS.
The charity began working in Romania in 1990 when the downfall of Ceaucescu revealed to a horrified world the existence of thousands of handicapped and orphaned children living in appalling conditions. An agreement was signed between SOS Children and the Romanian government to build two SOS Children's communities which both opened in 1993.
SOS Children's Bucharest community is near the city centre on the edge of Lake Floreasca and has fifteen single- storey family houses built in the local style which are home to 90 children, as well as a youth house for the older children where they can take their first guided steps towards an independent life. The village also has a nursery for 60 children from the village and the neighbourhood.
The charity's Cisnadie community is near the city of Sibiu, about 300 km north-west of Bucharest, between the Transylvanian Alps and the Carpathians. The twelve family houses are built in natural stone and wood in the local style and are home to over 70 children. A youth house was opened in 2001. Cisnadie also has a nursery for local children and the SOS children.
Continuing poverty in Cisnadie, caused largely by the decline of the textile industry, led to the establishment of a community outreach programme in 2000 for state schools and nurseries, providing support in the form of writing materials and food parcels. In 2002, SOS Children’s Villages Romania set up a Play-Mobile-Project in Bucharest with the aim of helping to keep children of the streets.
In spring 2006 SOS Children’s Village Romania took over a children’s village which was initially founded by a Dutch children charity organisation. It is situated in Hemeiusi, near Bacau, and it is from now on the third SOS Children’s Village.
As prevention of abandonment and poverty is a high priority of SOS Children's Villages Romania, family strengthening programmes were initiated on all three SOS Children’s Village locations. The aim of these programmes is to enable children who are at risk of losing the care of their family to grow within a caring family environment. To achieve this, SOS Children’s Villages Romania works directly with families and communities to empower them to effectively protect and care for their children, in cooperation with local authorities and other service providers.
For more information about the work we do in Romania, see our page, Romanian Orphans.
Romania sponsorship location
SOS Children’s Villages in Romania SOS-Satele Copiilor Romania, Str. Alexandru Zagoritz No.3, Sector 2, RO-73284 Bucharest tel +40/1/321 70 76 e-mail sos@mail.kappa.ro
Sponsor a child in Romania or learn about child sponsorship
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