Rajshahi

Country information

The SOS Children's Village is in the new part of the town, near the railway station. It consists of 15 family houses, a community house, an SOS Kindergarten and a village shop with a library. The sick and undernourished children are given special care at a medical centre before their admission into an SOS family. An SOS Social Centre for Mother and Child is affiliated to this clinic. At this centre, mothers and children from the neighbourhood are given medical aid and advice; sewing and embroidery classes are held for the local women, and regular vaccination programmes are carried out in co-operation with the local authorities. A workshop and an SOS Youth House are also part of the Village. The SOS Youth House is the residence of the grown-up boys who are still undergoing vocational training and are preparing to become independent. In 1991, a school was established on the premises of the SOS Children's Village. This school can be attended free of charge by 60 children from the poorest families of the neighbourhood. The SOS Children's Village has been very successful in growing tropical fruit, such as mangoes, which is mainly due to the very long and hot summers. A small dairy farm provides the children with fresh milk every day.