“I witness” Save the Children’s works

From November 10-15, Save the Children in Vietnam hosted an IWitness field visit, where representatives from IKEA, Save the Children Switzerland, and Save the Children Sweden were visiting special project locations in Ho Chi Minh City. 12 000 children will benefit from Save the Children in Vietnam’s and IKEA Foundation’s joint project during a two year period and it will change the lives and the future of children as well as communities in HCM City.   

 Every year, the IKEA Foundation donates €1 for every soft toy sold in participating IKEA stores in November and December, the Soft Toy for Education campaign. The donation goes to Save the Children and UNICEF, and is spent on children’s educational projects in Europe and Asia. Vietnam is one of the chosen countries to receive donations since early 2000s.

 Since 2003, the Soft Toys for Education campaign has raised nearly € 67 million, supported 99 projects in 46 countries and helped more than 11 million children receive a better education.

 The IKEA co-workers across the world work hard to sell as many soft toys as possible during the Soft Toy for Education campaign. The aim of IWitness field visits is for IKEA co-workers to see with their own eyes where the donations go and see how the Save the Children together with the IKEA Foundation change the lives of vulnerable children. 

 Save the Children in Vietnam, with the support of IKEA Foundation, is implementing a two year project ‘Improved Protection and Quality Education for Migrant and other Marginalised and Vulnerable Children in Ho Chi Minh City”, protecting marginalized children, supporting children’s access to a safe and secure school environment with functioning protection mechanisms, and promoting awareness on children’s rights and participation among duty-bearers at municipal and communal level as well as the civil society.

The project is being implemented in 18 schools in two districts of Cu Chi and Go Vap under Ho Chi Minh City administration, whereby as a result of the support of IKEA foundation jointly with Save the Children, 12,000 children will benefit by the end of 2016, including 2,000 marginalized children, out of which 500 are children living in shelters under the Buddhism Association in the city.

 According to Vietnam’s Government, about 70,000 children in HCM City living  in special circumstances including those with disabilities, orphans and abandoned children, street children, children affected by HIV/AIDS and children in conflict with the law. These figures exclude an estimated 300,000 migrant children, who without proper registration are incredibly vulnerable to discrimination, neglect and lack access to quality education and protection services. Currently, there are about 4,000 those children living in more than 60 child care shelters run by local NGOs/ CSOs.