Child Sponsorship Background from Manaus, Brazil

SOS Children's Village Manaus

SOS Children's Village Amazonas is located in Manaus, the capital of the province of Amazonas. The city has a population of about 850,000. Amazonas province is situated in the north of the country. Most of it is covered in rainforest, with many rivers running through it. Up to the early 19th century, the area was almost exclusively inhabited by descendents of Brazilian aborigines. From around 1840 onwards, descendents of Europeans attracted by the booming rubber industry started settling in the province. Since the region was the sole trader in natural rubber back then, Manaus became a rich and prosperous city. Its decline began several decades later when rubber trees were first planted in Asia, and Asian countries started producing rubber, too.

SOS Children's Village Amazonas is about six kilometres from the airport and seven kilometres from the city centre of Manaus. Well over a hundred children live with their new families at Manaus. The Village also contains the Village director's house, a training centre for SOS aunts (SOS mother trainees or family helpers who support the SOS mothers during their daily work and fill in for them when they are ill or on leave), a small theatre, a library, a volleyball field, and a service and administration area.

Other SOS Projects in Manaus

The SOS Children's Village also includes an SOS Vocational Training Centre for SOS mothers. The children from SOS Children's Village Amazonas attend the state-run schools nearby. Several supermarkets and hospitals can easily be reached by public means of transport.

At an SOS Youth Home in the city centre, young adults prepare for adult life as they undertake vocational training or higher education. The SOS Social Centre on the village site provides full day care for up to 680 pre-school children.

Background to Manaus

Founded in 1669, Manaus is a cosmopolitan city in the northern part of Brazil, and is the capital of Amazonas State with a population of around 850,000.  It is located on the Rio Negro river, near its confluence with the Rio Solimões (also known as the Amazon River).  It is the chief port and a hub for the region's extensive river system. It is also a common point of departure for tourists visiting the rest of the Amazon region.