There’s hope for children from urban poor communities who want to go to school.
The Children of Asia, or Enfants d’Asie in French, puts urban poor children through school, from day care to college.
The group, a non-profit organization that originated from Paris, is seeking donations to support its operations which also include providing shelter to children and empowering women, said Children of Asia sponsorship coordinator Clara Charapambakis.
In the Philippines, the group operates solely in Cebu.
Training center manager Marione Bacalso said they want to provide children from the slums access to quality education in the hope of bringing them out of poverty.
“In the slums, you have people doing drugs, or other bad things, and sometimes children are in a bad environment. If you don’t have a good education, you might end up being a drug pusher or drug addict or something like that,” he said.
The beneficiaries are from slum areas in Cebu City, such as Carreta cemetery, Hipodromo, Lorega, Ermita, Carbon, Pier, Mabolo, Labangon, Taboan and Laray. Several beneficiaries are from Alegria in the south and Daanbantayan in the north.
The group sponsors the beneficiaries’ educational needs, including tuition, tutorial fees, board review and board exam fee (if needed), and school supplies. It also continues to help graduates three months after graduation with employment necessities such as formal attire, and transportation fees if needed.
“Here in the Philippines, we are really working toward offering them (beneficiaries) the possibility to access quality education and later on better employment opportunities,” Charalambakis added.
To qualify for the sponsorship, the children must be from families with a monthly gross income of not more than P7,000.
Beneficiaries are also given trainings on financial literacy and job employment. In their last year in college, they are given mock interviews and professional mentoring from specialists in their chosen course, Bacalso said.
“It’s good to have an education but you have to be able to translate that into employment,” he added.
Donors can help by either sponsoring a child, sponsoring a program, sponsoring a celebration or event, or volunteering to facilitate talks or training sessions for students.
This year, the organization’s annual budget is P10 million, 90 percent of which came from donor organizations and individual sponsors overseas. The organization recently received a check worth P120,000 from Sun Life Financial, Inc., as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility.
Each beneficiary receives roughly P22,000 for his or her educational needs.
Now on its sixth year, the organization is supporting 450 children for school year 2015-2016. Of the number, 80 are in day care, 60 in grade school, 215 in high school and 95 in college.
The organization was accredited by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in June 2014, and is a member of the Cebu City task force on street children.
For the last 25 years, the group has supported some 10,000 children through school. It operates in Cambodia, Laos, Philippines and Vietnam.
The group holds office in Cardoc Building on Gen. Maxilom Ave. and may be reached through email, local.pd.ph@gmail.com, or its website at www.en.enfantsdasie.com.