"We don't want to see any child alone in Nepal" - SOS Children's Villages pledges child protection and assistance to unaccompanied children as well as child-friendly spaces

OTTAWA, April 25, 2015 In the wake of the devastating earthquake in Nepal, children's charity SOS Children's Villages has pledged urgent help to children directly impacted by the disaster, focusing on children who are unaccompanied, those who have lost their homes and those whose families are struggling to care for them because of the tragedy.

"SOS Children's Villages exists to ensure that no child is ever left alone." explains SOS Children's Villages President and CEO Boyd McBride. "There will be many children separated from their parents in the wake of today's tragic circumstances in Nepal.  They are our focus."

"SOS will do all in its means to see children in Nepal cared for while we, and other agencies, reconnect them with their families.  We will also ensure that families are supported in the immediate aftermath of the quake." 

SOS Children's Villages has been in Nepal for over 40 years and is widely-recognized there for its work in child protection. SOS Children's Villages' emergency work in Nepal will be in two areas:

• Helping unaccompanied children who have been separated from their families: this involves assisting children to find their families, identifying them and registering them with state authorities and providing care for them.
• Offering child-friendly spaces: these spaces provide places for children to be taken care of in local communities that are safe, and that offer food, clothing and health care if necessary. Child-friendly spaces enable parents to focus on tasks that will help them find stability in the aftermath of this disaster, while ensuring their children are kept safe.

Said McBride, "We don't want to see any child alone in Nepal as a result of this tragedy. SOS Children's Villages is here in Nepal to see that children are cared for and reunited with their families: that's what we intend to do."

To help support SOS Children's Villages emergency work in Nepal, visit www.soschildrensvillages.ca/NepalEarthquake

OPPORTUNITY FOR INTERVIEWS:

SOS Children's Villages will have spokespeople from the organization available for interviews from Ottawa and Katmandu.

ABOUT SOS CHILDREN'S VILLAGES
SOS Children's Villages provides long-term, family-based care for over 75,000 orphaned or abandoned children in 134 countries. It reaches out to another 1,000,000 children and their families through its kindergartens, schools, medical centres, and family strengthening programs.
SOS has been operating in Nepal since it first responded to the Tibetan refugee crisis in 1975. It now operates nine programs serving thousands of children there.
For more information visit www.soschildrensvillages.ca

SOURCE SOS Children's Villages Canada

For further information: Graeme Burk, Director of Communications, SOS Children's Villages, 613-282-1476, [e-mail]; B-Roll, video and photos are also available.