Nearly all of Port-au-Prince has to be rebuilt.  Child protection and child care have to be carefully considered in the reconstruction process. - Photo: Georg Willeit

February 26, 2010: SOS Children's Villages-Santo, near Port-au-Prince, is now providing temporary care for 357 unaccompanied children and those whose families are unable to care for them. The number of children arriving is growing daily, despite SOS-Santo's limited capacity. Some of the children clearly are disaster orphans; some were brought into the SOS Children's Village by their relatives, because they cannot provide adequate care for them in the growing tent cities.

SOS mothers and family helpers are looking after up to 20 children rather than the usual nine. In the future, newly arriving children will be housed in stable, lightweight prefabricated houses that are now being built on the SOS Children's Village soccer field.

SOS staff are feeding and clothing the children, getting them medical attention as needed, and running activities to distract them from the trauma they have suffered. In light of all the work to be done, SOS is working hard to find qualified local individuals it can hire to expand its current staff.

In the meantime, SOS is working hard to track down the children's families with the goal of reunification. SOS will develop mechanisms to conduct mediation with these families. Based on the principle of SOS's long-established family strengthening program, SOS plans to support the households in ways that will bolster their ability to care for their children.

Guaranteeing Basic Supplies for up to 40,000 Children

Relief items are received at the SOS Children's Village in Santo - Photo: Georg Willeit

Within the wider community, SOS is reaching some 14,000 children at 88 food distribution points. In addition, SOS is supporting 66 community centers (up from the 16 centers it supported before the earthquake) that are supplying 9,000 children with daily food and medical treatment as needed. The aim in the coming weeks is to meet the basic needs of 40,000 children through 266 centers.

How SOS Works with Community Centers to Help Children

The community centers through which SOS distributes food are run by local committees that sign contracts with SOS that spell out the responsibilities of both parties. SOS assumes responsibility for supplying food. It provides advice and support, and networks with other organizations when, for example, a child needs medical attention. The community centers feed the children, ensure safety and hygienic conditions, and keep records on the children's age and family status.

SOS staff monitor food distribution at the centers everyday. After food is given out, SOS teams stay on to play with the children. By spending time at the community centers, SOS workers are able to learn which children have medical or other dire needs. In SOS's past experience working in disaster areas around the world, this participatory approach has proved successful. It ensures that the aid goes directly to children, that relief goods aren't used elsewhere, and that communities develop a structure and shared responsibility for children's care.

Cooperating with Other Organizations

SOS Children's Villages is providing for many Haitian children every day. - Photo: Georg Willeit

In Haiti, as elsewhere during emergencies, SOS Children's Villages is participating in countless partnerships with aid groups such as UNICEF and the Red Cross and with local authorities. SOS Children's Villages regularly takes part in United Nations cluster meetings, where the large aid organizations coordinate their activities. SOS Children's Villages receives from other groups donations in kind such as food, water, tents, and medical help.

SOS's Reconstruction Plan in Haiti

SOS Children's Villages' efforts in Haiti constitute a two-year emergency aid program to meet children's basic needs. The next phase of assistance, to occur in the next 10 to 12 years, will be a comprehensive reconstruction program that will focus on building family houses and playgrounds, schools (including developing education sector expertise), and health care centers. The plan will also focus on strengthening the field of children's rights and child protection inside Haiti.

You can help support SOS Children's Villages disaster relief efforts in Haiti and around the world. Help SOS with a monthly disaster orphans sponsorship.