An internationally-funded SOS Children’s Village, the 16th in Vietnam so far, made its debut in the northern province of Thai Binh on Wednesday.

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The provincial People’s Committee held an inauguration ceremony for the special village in Hoang Dieu Ward, Thai Binh City yesterday, according to the Vietnam News Agency.       Thai Binh City is the capital of Thai Binh Province.     The Thai Binh SOS Children’s Village has 14 family houses that can accommodate 120-140 orphans and abandoned children, who will be brought up based on four principles of the SOS Children’s Villages International: the SOS mother, the sisters and brothers, the family house, and the SOS Children's village. The foremost of these principles is the mother, or mother-centered care, according to the Children’s SOS Villages International. The Vietnamese village also has a primary school with six classrooms that can admit 200 students.    The total investment in the village is VND45.17 billion (US$2.15 million), which was sourced by the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs and the SOS Children’s Villages International. Fifty percent of the amount was contributed by the PetroVietnam Drilling and Well Services Corporation (PV Drilling) while the rest was provided by national SOS Children’s Village associations of the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland, and citizens in these three countries. Besides, Thai Binh Province authorities used VND20 billion ($937,000) from its coffers to pay for a number of expenses related to the building of the village.  

The village has put 12 out of its 14 family houses into operation and has received nearly 60 children. Present at the inauguration ceremony were Minister of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs Pham Thi Hai Chuyen and the representatives of the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) and PV Drilling. The event was also attended by invited guests from the SOS Children’s Villages International and the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland. Addressing the ceremony, Minister Chuyen lauded the valuable support from the SOS Children’s Villages International, organizations, and individuals both at home and abroad for the village, which will create good chances for disadvantaged children in Vietnam to have a better life and future. Pham Van Sinh, chairman of the Thai Binh Province People’sCommittee, said that the village is a humanitarian facility that helps orphans and other disadvantaged children have a sustainable and stable life in a safe environment where they are offered education that could lead to a bright future.

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