Child Sponsorship background from Isolo, Nigeria

SOS Children's Village Isolo

The SOS Children's Village Isolo was built on a site approximately 15 km outside the centre of Lagos. In addition to the 10 family houses (every house has a large veranda, where the children can play during the rainy season), it includes a Village Director's house, a guest house, a clinic, a community hall, service- and administration area and a small chicken farm.

Other SOS Projects in Isolo

The SOS Nursery comprises three classrooms: one classroom for Montessori education, one classroom for special education and ancillary rooms. It accommodates 65 children from the SOS Children's Village and its surroundings. As soon as youths reach the age of about 15, they move to one of the four SOS Youth Homes, where they are taken care of by a youth leader. Being admitted to an SOS Youth Home is tantamount to taking responsibility for one self. Being fully aware of this, SOS mothers, the Village Director and a psychologist prepare them carefully for that change. Usually, youths stay up to four years in an SOS Youth Home. They may stay longer, however, if they are looking for work, completing professional training or studying at a university.

The SOS Primary School, located next to the SOS Children's Village, offers education to roughly 210 pupils from the SOS Children's Village and its neighbourhood. It comprises six classrooms, one class for special education, five practical classrooms for home economics, arts and crafts, music, computer lessons and library, administration and ancillary rooms, and a school canteen.

Over 190 trainees benefit from the wide range of programmes offered by the SOS Vocational Centre at the moment. The centre includes seven classrooms and workshops for various handicrafts, design and dressmaking, commercial training with typing, computer and secretarial courses and industrial cooking courses with home economics.

Both SOS Social Centres were opened in August 2004 and both offer various social programmes for people in need. The first one focuses primarily on family strengthening programmes, assistance to children from families affected by HIV/AIDS (by covering their school fees, unpaid rent, donating cloth and food), counselling and medical care. The second SOS Social Centre includes a family health centre (consultation room, treatment room, pharmacy); a self-help training centre with kitchen/store, sewing/embroidery room, weaving room, open-air batik and basket making place, store room; a child day-care centre with playroom and roofed outdoor playground, rest room, sanitary facilities, small kitchen; a family assistance centre with two counselling rooms and various programmes for people affected by HIV/Aids.

Background to Isolo

Isolo is approximately 15 km outside the centre of Lagos. Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. It is currently the second most populous city in Africa, after Cairo, with a population of about 8 million. The city is the economic and financial capital of Nigeria.

Formerly the capital city of Nigeria, Lagos is a huge metropolis which originated on islands separated by creeks, such as Lagos Island, that fringe the southwest mouth of Lagos Lagoon, protected from the Atlantic Ocean by long sand spits such as Bar Beach which stretch up to 100 km east and west of the mouth. From the beginning Lagos has spread on the mainland west of the lagoon and the conurbation, including Ikeja and Agege, now reaches more than 40 km north-west of Lagos Island.