The secret of this rehabilitation at Don Bosco Fambul is always its holistic approach: attending to basic needs (food, clothing, a safe place to sleep) as well as personalized medical, psychological, pedagogical, social and spiritual care of the children. This gradual process includes formal classes, daily games, sports, music, singing, drama, dancing, counselling, prayers etc. Their parents and extended families are contacted several times by social workers before final reunification.
During reunification day an agreement is signed between parents and Don Bosco in order to secure a safe environment for the child to continue his personal growth (proper feeding, schooling, no use of physical punishments, etc.) Social workers will continue to visit the children until they finish secondary school.
During this month of September, 5 Salesians and 25 social workers and junior staff of Don Bosco Fambul are also visiting the streets of Freetown in 5 different areas of the capital city from 8 pm to 3 am in the morning to contact street boys and girls. Special questionnaires have been prepared to make a deeper assessment of the reality of street kids exactly one year after the Ebola pandemic ended.
From October to December a pilot experience of rehabilitation will be carried out with a group of 30 street kids who are at high risk on the streets. They will be reunited with their families on the 30th of December 2016 after an intensive rehabilitation programme. The aim of the pilot project is to speed up the process of reintegration of the children with their biological or extended families.
