Frequently
Asked Questions About Project Peru
What does Project Peru do in Peru?
The focal point of the Project in Peru is at Zapallal near Lima,
where we have established a children’s refuge. We regularly
provide food, shelter and support for children and families in need.
We also distribute a variety of material goods send from the UK,
both in the refuge, to the families, the immediate community and
in the interior of Peru.
What does Project Peru do in the UK?
We raise funds and send financial support to Peru; we also send
material assistance (including clothing, educational materials,
toys, tools, bikes etc.), for distribution to our refuge and elsewhere
in Peru through the Project's network of contacts in Lima and elsewhere
in the country. We raise awareness in the UK about Latin America
in general, about Peru in particular, and especially about Project
Peru.
How did it all start?
The organisation's principal objective is to relieve poverty, sickness
and distress, in particular amongst the inhabitants of Peru. Project
Peru evolved over a number of years through the voluntary activity
of a group of people in Guildford who had been concerned with raising
awareness about Latin America and alleviating poverty and distress
there. Project Peru became a registered charity in 1995 (Charity
Number 1049413).
Who provides the money?
Almost all of the money needed to run our refuge in Peru and all
our other activities is generated from the UK through voluntary
effort; there are no paid staff in the UK. Activities include concerts
and other musical events, sponsored activities, catering, craft
sales, donations by Giftaid etc.
What does the money provide?
Funds to pay staff, and to maintain a residential children’s
refuge and appropriate services for over 30 children who are unable
to live with their families; to provide funds to construct appropriate
buildings.
Where do the children come from?
They come from a variety of backgrounds and environments and are
identified as children at risk who come not only from poverty but
from family or social situations where they are unable to live at
home; new clients are referred both by word of mouth and through
referrals from appropriate services in the vicinity of the refuge,
or from further afield. Some are spontaneous or emergency cases.
They can be longer-term residents, but others we help on a temporary
or transitional basis. The criterion we use is that they have needs
that we can address.
What about their families?
We keep in close touch with the families and the children stay with
them from time to time, they visit the refuge and we have developed
programmes of social and educational support for their families,
workshops etc.
Are they street children?
The children are not specifically "street children" in
the current popular understanding of the phrase, though some may
be, and some might be if we did not help. Many do have relatives
who for different reasons cannot care for them.
What happens about their education?
All the children at the refuge go to the El Dorado School, the neighbouring
school (attending either for the morning or the afternoon sessions
depending on their age) and have been supported by Project Peru
in the purchase or provision of educational materials, buying school
uniforms, paying the obligatory annual matriculation fee for each
child. This is a considerable expense at the start of each school
year in March. We give the children additional educational support
by employing one of the teachers part time to do educational support
work with us, and by keeping links with the school teachers through
the house parents.
What happens when the children grow older?
We are developing new buildings so as to enable the children to
learn to live more independently while they are with us, and are
seeking funds to enable us to have a half-way /student house for
the young people, as they become adults. We ensure that the older
children are trained in their preferred career. Of our two older
children one is following training as a chef for another we have
secured funding for her to follow nursing or child care studies.
We plan to follow up all opportunities for further education, training
and work opportunities in the world outside.
Who works at the project in Peru?
We have created paid employment for a full time administrator; two
couples work as house-parents, one couple in the week, the other
at weekends; a cook, a laundry person, a maintenance person, a part
time psychologist, and support teachers.
Is Peru / Latin America really so poor that it needs this
type of help?
If compared to Africa, Latin America is not so poor: one result
is that as a Middle Income Country Peru is not the recipient of
debt relief or of aid. For example, all UK aid to Peru was stopped
in 2004 and switched to support reconstruction work in Iraq. Latin
America has the biggest income gulf between rich and poor of all
continents in the world. And half the population of Peru lives on
less than $1 dollar a day.
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