Child Sponsorship background from Tiquipaya, Cochabamba, Bolivia

SOS Children's Village Tiquipaya, Cochabamba

In 1970, Bolivia's first SOS Children's Village opened in Cochabamba, Bolivia's second largest city. However, the SOS Children's Village Jordán soon became overcrowded, so SOS Children's Village Tiquipaya was built on a 12 hectare plot of land in Cochabamba's outskirts, and opened in 1995 as an extension of the more central SOS Village Jordán.

SOS Children's Village Tiquipaya consists of 10 family houses with a capacities of up to 90 children, a village director’s house, an administrative building with offices, a multi-purpose hall for festivals and other events, a work shop, a playground, a sports ground and an SOS aunts’ house (SOS Children's Village mothers in training, who assist current SOS mothers in their everyday jobs, and stand in for them if they are ill or on holiday).

Other SOS Projects in Tiquipaya, Cochabamba

There has been an SOS Social Centre on this plot of land since 1988. It is a valuable source of healthcare for many low income families. Health services include a paediatrician, a dentist, first aid, and a small dispensary. A day-care centre with places for the supervision of 160 preschool children complements the services of the SOS Social Centre.

Two SOS Youth Homes for boys were launched in Cochabamba for young people form the SOS Children's Village. There, up to 32 adolescents can share flats for the duration of their secondary education or training. This is a steady preparation towards an independent life.

The SOS Training and Production Centre Tiquipaya is part of the SOS Children's Village, and is only a few kilometres away from it. It has a total of 48.6 hectares of useable land that was gained from recent extensions and adaptations to a farm that had opened 15 years previously. Towards the end of 1989, construction work began on new stables, work shops, classrooms and the boarding school and was completed in July 1991. Education and training schemes were launched just a month later in August 1991. The official opening ceremony took place on 11 May 1992.

The vast range of education and training incorporates dairy farming, poultry and pig breeding, vegetable cultivation, green fodder and silo management, agricultural mechanics and food processing, as well as business studies, oral and written expression and leadership skills which should enable the young people to take over leading roles in agriculture, public administration and training. The scheme is recognised by the state, lasts two years and ends in a degree in agricultural technology. Since the optimum cultivation periods are taken into account, the academic year lasts from August to July. The boarding school provides accommodation for non locals over the weekend (students are taught from Monday to Saturday). Furthermore, the SOS Vocational Training Centre offers further education courses for small groups and a database of agricultural organisations throughout Bolivia. It is a member of the Holstein cattle breeders of Bolivia and a founding member of the Tiquipayan pig breeding and irrigation association. Numerous prizes and awards, along with the fact that the majority of graduates find good jobs, show the importance of this institution, and the broad recognition it receives.