Shanto H.O.P.E. Center
The Shanto H.O.P.E. Center is located in the village of Shanto of Damot Pulassa district in Wolayta Zone, SNNPRS, Ethiopia. 150 children participate in this program. Most children, grades pre-K through 8th grade, attend the Kamfourd School of Excellence, which is a private school offering full-day classes. Kamfourd School works in partnership with the Shanto H.O.P.E. Center by serving lunch six days a week and allowing the SHAPEthiopia staff to visit daily. Children 9th grade through 12th grade attend the local Shanto High School and receive a monthly stipend of food.
In the summer months when school is not in session, the children come to the Shanto H.O.P.E. Center every day for lunch and to continue their learning. The children also receive school supplies, school uniforms, supplementary clothes, shoes, school fees, hygiene care materials, and medical care through this program.
How is our Shanto H.O.P.E. Center managed?
The Shanto H.O.P.E. Center is staffed by a Shanto Area Program Coordinator, Social Worker, Health Officer (Nurse), an Accountant, two guards, and several cooks. The staff plays a significant role as mentors in the children’s lives.
Learn more about our Shanto Area Program Management Unit here.
What do we do in Shanto?
Our activities in Shanto H.O.P.E Center through our H.O.P.E. Child Development Program are:
- Educational material support (provision of school uniforms, clothes and shoes , exercise books pens and pencils),
- Provision of hot nutritious meals in schools or food items for home take,
- Medical support (medical care) and annual medical screening by Pediatrician,
- Personal hygiene care material supply (Soap, lotion & hair food, Sanitary pads), and
- Training of community workers, leaders & health extension workers at community level to enable them provide the professional support needed to OVCs with in their districts (Woredas).
Background about Shanto: What is it like?
Shanto is the administrative center of Damot Pulassa district (woreda) of Wolayta Zone in Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Regional State (SNNPRS). Based on the 2007 census report of CSA, the woreda has a total population 105,157 out of which 51,554 are men and 53,603 women. Moreover, the total population residing in the town of Shanto is 5,346 that accounts for 5.08% of Damot Pulassa woreda population. Among that population of Shanto, most of the children are under poverty and significant number of women is widows leading the household without father who died from pandemics of HIV/AIDS and other communicable diseases which could have been prevented by proper hygiene and sanitation.
According to the studies made by UNICEF and Save the Children Fund (UK) on “Child Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa”, the situations of poverty worsen children and women which is the common arena in Wolayta Zone and Shanto. To alleviate this, SHAPEthiopia has been striving in collaboration with local administration and community (religious) leaders. Although SHAPEthiopia has been striving with utmost effort to change the situation of vulnerable children in Shanto, only 150 children and few widowed women are benefiting from our service in the area, much has been left to go on to end hunger and poverty.
Like that of Child and Youth Development Program – Women Empowerment and Community Development Programs are part of our organization’s areas of intervention. However, everyone can understand that the support of local and international donors is invaluable and we are working for such collaborative efforts. This is because, the nature of poverty in Shanto (like any other part of Ethiopia) involves food shortage (hunger), unable to send children to school, poor health, lack of access to clean water, poor hygiene and sanitation as well as environmental degradation. These all are the outcome of poverty for which SHAPEthiopia developed innovative and holistic approach to fight against them. And still we are requesting and campaigning for grant makers and donors for partnership funding to change the lives of people in poverty.
To sponsor Shanto child, please go to shanto.pwesponsorship.org to see the waiting children. Your gift of $38 a month will change the life of a deserving child whose greatest dream is just to go to school.
Our U.S.-based partner, Partners with Ethiopia, is managing the Shanto H.O.P.E. Child Sponsorship Program. All donations are tax-deductible. To learn more about our U.S.-based partner, please go to www.partnerswithethiopia.org.