Specifically, the aim of the project is to create a home and provide specialized care for street children aged between 8 and 15 with addiction problems or mental disorders. The project involves the construction of the house, the purchase of necessary equipment and the provision of food and assistance to at least 10 minors, 24 hours a day, with individual psychological therapy and psychiatric treatment.
The construction of a residential building, bathrooms and a water well is also foreseen. Furthermore, the house will also be used to welcome the children who wander the alleys of the neighborhood of the nearby slums of Kabwe.
“This place will be the first stage of a process of adaptation and recovery of the children, in view of their reintegration into society,” explain the Salesians of the Don Bosco Salesian Missionary Foundation in Warsaw, Poland, which sponsors the project. “The children will be examined by a psychologist and psychiatrist and, depending on their needs, the necessary treatments and therapies will be implemented. The expected length of stay will be 3 to 6 months. Depending on their progress, the children will then be transferred to the existing 'Ciloto' house where social reintegration will continue.”
The children who already attend "Ciloto" today - 40 residents in the orphanage and about 35 who attend the center during the day - are minors who have been rejected by their families, who were unable to cope with their problems. The children were thrown out of their homes due to problems with the law, addictions, or mental disorders. The actions taken so far are bearing fruit: eight of them have returned to their families. But not all problematic minors can enter directly into “Ciloto” programs. Those coming straight from the street face a number of problems that pose a threat to children who have already faced them. And it is for this reason that now they want to erect this new "House of Hope" that can prepare the most needy minors to reach their "dream".
The Don Bosco Salesian Missionary Foundation has given itself a year to collect the funds and build everything. “I believe that together we will be able to carry out this project for the good of the poor young people in Zambia,” the Polish Salesians conclude.
For more information, visit https://fundacjadonbosco.org or write to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
