Africa-Press – Lesotho. Joy clouded SOS Children’s Village when the orphanage development partners arrived at the premises on Sunday. A line up of surprises included traditional attire, songs, plays and entertainment at the SOS gate. All this was performed by the children as the beneficiaries and caretakers.
All this prevailed in the hall and front where traditional songs and dances took stage to the satisfaction of Swiss International Airline representatives, who are the main donors, and SOS Switzerland, whose work is to source donors for SOS Villages in the African region.
The Village Programmes Director Mr Tšeliso Ncheke, told Informative Newspaper that their partners will see for themselves how their funds are impacting the lives of the beneficiaries and give some of them gifts today.
The gifts will be in the form of school uniforms to over 100 orphans and vulnerable children in Mauteng at Masabiella Primary School and sewing machines at Quthing to youth trained on vocational techniques.
He said they will also visit communities within which some beneficiaries reside, as well as community based organisations SOS works collaboratively with. The donations tour is scheduled to end on Wednesday.
The Village National Director Mr Molopo Morosi, told the visitors that amongst others, they are transiting from educating communities and beneficiaries on sustained survival means instead of the long-time hand-outs that have been prevailing over the years.
He however informed the visitors that, that on its own posed a challenge, having realized how the people have gotten accustomed to donations, “the new method is quite a strange language to them,” he concluded.
One way of working around this, he disclosed, was to create awareness of services within the government such that they are aware of their rights in terms of demand boundaries and limitations likewise.
He said this was very relevant in the rural areas where vital information is scarce. For the children’s quality education heightening, parents are encouraged to go an extra mile to check and be part of their children’s schoolwork.
In Lesotho, he disclosed, it is normal for parents to neglect their children, handing them completely to teachers and play no meaningful part. In turn, he further encourage teachers as well to check on the children’s welfare status at home because it inevitably has impact on the child’s academic performance.
