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Empowering families in Venezuela

Since 1983, CFCA has worked with children, families and the aging in Venezuela through our Barquisimeto project. The Hope for a Family sponsorship program is helping more than 6,000 children, youth and the aging—along with their families—to improve their quality of life by providing the resources, opportunities and community support they need to build a path out of poverty.

Hope for a Family sponsorship offers a community of compassion in which the local CFCA staff works alongside families to offer the benefits and services your sponsored friend needs. In Venezuela, benefits often focus on assistance with health care and education needs.

Inflation creates high cost of living

Venezuela differs from most of its South American neighbors. As one of the world’s leading producers and exporters of petroleum, it has become one of the most rapidly developing countries on the continent. High inflation rates, however, make it nearly impossible for the families CFCA serves to afford basic goods and services such as health care and transportation.

Poverty remains a major problem in rural areas and cities alike.

Opportunities are scarce in rural communities, so families turn to the cities for work. But they often cannot afford the high costs to live there, and they end up living on the outskirts in poor conditions.

Let the games begin

One of the most exciting CFCA events held each year in Venezuela is Juegos ACRINAVE. Juegos means sports in Spanish, and ACRINAVE is the acronym for CFCA-Venezuela in Spanish. The Olympic-style games bring all the CFCA communities together to participate in sporting events.

Juegos ACRINAVE allows sponsored children and youth to participate in organized sports/activities. Helping sponsored children build character and self-esteem through sports and cultural activities are vital components to Hope for a Family sponsorship.

The games are held over a two-week period in the summer. Communities put teams together in sports such as soccer, and in traditional cultural activities like dancing. The teams compete against one another in spirited contests. A grand-champion community is crowned at the end of the festivities.

Empowering communities

Many CFCA communities in Venezuela have committees that are focused in nine areas: education, nutrition, health, correspondence (with sponsors), finance, fundraising, recreation, sports and culture. The committees are comprised of mothers of sponsored children, and they work closely with local CFCA staff.

By actively participating in the design of the Hope for a Family program, the families are empowered with ownership in determining what is best for them and their communities. The committees also develop their own savings initiatives, income-generating activities, and come up with creative ideas to bring their respective communities together through recreation and cultural activities.

Dedicated scholars

In most countries, affording higher education is the biggest obstacle to youth continuing their schooling. But in Venezuela, the biggest obstacle for many students is how to get to class.

The universities in Venezuela are located in the major cities, which can be dangerous and expensive to live in. Many of the families served through the Hope for a Family sponsorship program live in rural areas. The only option for these students is to commute from their homes outside the cities, which oftentimes are hours away.

Commuting every day creates additional costs that are unaffordable for many. With the help of CFCA scholarships, students like Julia (above) are able to afford the transportation they need to get to school so they can complete their education and help their families create a path out of poverty.

The community where Julia lives is about a two-hour drive southwest of Barquisimeto. Julia gets up each weekday at 4 a.m. and leaves by 5 a.m. She can usually be in Barquisimeto by 7 a.m.

Julia attends a half day of school, and she doesn’t return home until between 4 and 5 p.m. She spends her evenings studying and preparing to do it all again the next day.

Read a letter from the Barquisimeto project coordinator.

Become a sponsor

You can now select your sponsored friend on our Walk2gether site.
View photos and read profiles of children, youth and aging who are waiting for a sponsor.

 

Sources:

World Factbook