  |
 |
  |
|
|
By the side of the excluded ìstreet-dwellersî
and the makeshift houses of Ho Chi Minh City
Like many large cities in developing countries,
Ho Chi Minh City has seen its population explode in the past few years,
a phenomenon primarily related to massive rural exodus. The new arrivals,
mostly poor, tend to find themselves in extremely unstable situations,
detached from their traditional ideal of solidarity. Out of an overall
population of 7.5 million, an estimated 500,000 are considered homeless
or partially homeless and need assistance tailored to their needs.
The presence of some ten thousand children, who are particularly vulnerable,
is a factor that makes samusocialInternational
determined to remain mobilized.
The actions of samusocialInternational
can be understood as a close partnership with Médecins du
Monde (MdM), which focuses its worldwide intervention on the care
of people affected by and infected with HIV/AIDS.
A project in the process of refinement
After two exploratory missions that took place in Vietnam in 2005
in collaboration with Médecins du Monde, samusocialInternational
was able to evaluate the situation and establish a way to proceed with intervention.
Samusocial in Ho Chi Minh City brings aid to vulnerable
people who live on the street, that have no access to any social or medical aid.
|
|
In Ho Chi Minh City, entire families live on the street.
|
A center of specifically tailored medical, psychological, and social aid
The center is expected to send mobile teams to circulate the city
streets on motorbikes. They will bring medical, psychological, and
social aid to people in distress, either directly on the street or
in their makeshift houses located in shantytowns. Thanks to the network
of professional partners coordinated by samusocialInternational
before activities even began, these mobile teams will have the possibility
to direct those in the most danger towards medical or social institutions,
notably Médecins du Monde's clinic in An Hoa..
A dynamic refinement of the project
This strategic approach was defined by samusocialInternational,
in cooperation with a coordinator sent on-site to set up the project.
Since October 2005, this person has been working on samusocialInternational's
registration process with the Vietnam legal authorities and towards
the acquisition of a permit of operations. Furthermore, this individual
meets with different partners who might also be considered part of
the fight against exclusion, initiates fundraising plans, and elaborates
the project with more precision.
A specific status
Different from other structures, the samusocialInternational
in Ho Chi Minh City will not be created in the form of a local association,
seeing that this status does not exactly exist in Vietnam. Instead,
this center will officially be run jointly by the office of samusocialInternational
in Ho Chi Minh City and by the city’s health authorities.
|
|
  |
|
