SOS Children in Bangladesh
Bangladesh is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Poverty is widespread and the number of abandoned children is extremely high due to years of political unrest and natural disasters such as hurricanes and floods which are a frequent occurrence. A third of children never attend school and the illiteracy rate is around 62 per cent.
The first community built by our charity opened in Dhaka in 1973. It has 15 family houses and two youth houses, as well as a kindergarten and a social centre which provides community education. A small mosque has been built as most of the children are Muslims. Primary and secondary education is provided by the SOS school which is ranked among the top schools in Bangladesh, taking in over 1000 pupils from the local community.
The SOS Children community Rajshahi is close to the Indian border in western Bangladesh. Many of the children are severely undernourished when they come here, and need special care at the village's medical centre before joining their new SOS families. The village has fifteen family houses and eight youth houses. An SOS Vocational Training Centre provides agricultural training for 32 young people.
SOS Children Khulna site is in the Ganges Delta. The village has sixteen family houses and two youth houses, as well as a kindergarten and a school providing both primary and secondary education. Both are open to children from the local community, who are also helped by the SOS clinic and day-care centre which provides medical treatment and a safe place for local mothers on low incomes to leave their children while they work.
Severe flooding in 1986, in which over 50,000 people died, led to our charity constructing a fourth community in Chittagong, the second largest city in Bangladesh. Virtually in the city centre, the village also has a primary school and kindergarten as well as a social centre and clinic. The centre and clinic provide medical care and a feeding programme for local people, as well as day care facilities for working mothers. After the cyclone in 1991, part of the social centre was adapted as a cyclone shelter for local people and the SOS Children families.
The charity's Bogra Village opened in 1996. About 225 km west of Dhaka, it is close to the historically famous site of Mahastangarh. The village has ten family houses and a youth house, as well as a kindergarten and primary/secondary school. A social centre and clinic provide day care facilities and medical treatment for local people.
Country Map
Local contacts
SOS Children's Village International in Bangladesh
1, Shamoli / Mirpur Road / Dhaka - 1207
Postal address: G.P.O. Box 546
Dhaka-1000 / Bangladesh
Tel +88/02/811 8189
Tel +88/02/811 4058
Fax +88/02/811 3217
e-mail soskdibd@bdcom.com
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