Child Champions Work Tirelessly to Support Children in Hard Places
Covering more than 30% of the earth’s land surface, Asia is the world’s largest continent and most populous region. It is a place where picturesque scenery like the Himalaya Mountains, distinct culinary traditions, diverse religious beliefs, and resilient, hospitable people combine to create one of the most remarkable places on earth.
But despite all it has to offer, South Asia struggles with growing poverty in the forms of rising food prices, unemployment, political turmoil, natural disasters, school dropout rates, and child trafficking. In impoverished rural and urban areas, kids and families often lack access to clean water, which leads to deadly illnesses like diarrhea, cholera, and giardia. Girls also drop out of school when they are married off early, and children often need to work to help financially support their families.
But local leaders and other Child Champions have been working together with OneChild in Asia since 1995 to bring hope and help to this hard place. They provide kids in poverty with access to Hope Centers. These are safe places where children in poverty are listened to, encouraged, and where they receive developmental support to help them succeed in life. Kids receive nutritious food and clean water, educational support like tutoring, and help with school fees and supplies. They also receive health care, income-generating training, and spiritual guidance that will help them to reach their God-given potential.
And in the Philippines, OneChild partners with Happy Horizons Children’s Ranch, which provides a safe place for healing for survivors of child sex abuse. Also in the Philippines, OneChild partners with Child Champions in Davao City to operate a Hope Center for Badjao children living in poverty to provide this marginalized community with advocates who help children obtain birth certificates, education, health care, and support for their families.
The kids who come to HHCR are mostly victims of Online Sexual Exploitation of Children (OSEC), and so they aren’t trafficked in the traditional sense. They are abused often by their parents, extended family, or neighbors who livestream the abuse on their computers.
Click on the countries below to explore Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, and the Philippines!
