Being abused, exploited and endangered is something you’d never wish for any child. It’s a reality though.

Children in our global community ARE being exploited, leaving them without hope as they grow up hurt, abused and poor.

Children in Crisis – Children at Risk projects are changing the lives of these children – you can help!

Sign up to regularly support Children in Crisis – Children at Risk and you will be changing lives!

Location: Rwanda

One of the most painful memories of Rwanda’s history is the mass killing - on the basis of ethnicity – of hundreds of thousands of people in 1994. The Rwandan genocide created approximately two million refugees, and left more than 800,000 children as orphans.

The testing times for the country continue, as many of those imprisoned for their genocide crimes are being released back into the community.

World Vision Children in Crisis supporters are helping to bring healing to this situation, through the Rwanda Healing, Peace Building and Reconciliation project.

The project engages communities, especially groups of young people, in activities to help eliminate the ‘genocide ideology’ still present in Rwanda. By training leaders and by using drama and song to tackle themes such as equality and intermarriage, healing and reconciliation are coming.

In addition, Personal Development Workshops for community leaders, ex-prisoners and others struggling with the aftermath, are giving people the opportunity to grieve and work towards forgiveness and reconciliation in a formal setting.

This project is helping to bring healing to a nation of people that have endured horrendous trauma, and is offering them hope for a brighter future. It could not happen without the financial support of Children in Crisis donors.

Location: Cambodia

In recent years, there has been huge growth in tourists and businesspeople visiting Cambodia; well over a million foreigners each year. Unfortunately, there has also been an increase in those who visit Cambodia to exploit children. Working children are particularly at risk – they are expected to earn money for their families and are easily tricked by false promises from sexual predators and their agents.

The Child Exploitation Prevention Project aims to protect children from exploitation by deterring those who aim to abuse. The project uses rolling video at airports, billboards, magazines, brochures and other forms of advertising to spread the message that sexual exploitation of children is unacceptable and offenders will be prosecuted. It also sponsors a police phone hotline where people can report possible exploitation of children, and builds relationships with embassies and tourist operators to promote child-safe tour

Location: East Timor

The aftermath of the 1999 East Timor civil war continues to have an effect on the community today. Refugee camps, community division, and high unemployment especially amongst youth, are common issues for the young nation.

World Vision Children in Crisis helps to bring transformation to the country, by working with the 48 per cent of Dili youth who are unemployed.

One hundred and sixty young people a year, usually between 17 and 24 years old, are given training in hospitality, IT or accounting and finance. The six-month training programme takes promising youth, keen to take up opportunities to advance themselves, and offers them practical skills, as well as education about peacemaking.

In the final two months of the training, young people are engaged in work with local employers, through which about 60 per cent of graduates find long-term employment. A further 15 per cent of this group also go on to take up university education. World Vision continues to help the minority of graduates who do not find work immediately to secure a position over time.

The Dili Youth Skills Training project gives at risk East Timorese youth the opportunity to make a better future for themselves and their families. The project could not take place without the support of Children in Crisis supporters.

The New Hope Education Project works from within the Stung Meanchey community to improve attitudes and access to education. The project forms and trains parents’ associations to take responsibility for education. It forms youth clubs to teach teenagers life and job skills, and supports existing children’s clubs where children learn about their rights and responsibilities.

The project also establishes non-formal classes to prepare children who have never been to school, or have dropped out, to enter the government school system. It provides stationery, uniforms, transport and school meals so children from needy families can go to school.