Plan Brazil: what we do

Plan Brazil’s work covers 4 core areas:

• Healthy Childhood (0 to 6 years)
• Learning and Life Skills for girls, Boys and Adolescents (7-17 years of age)
• Economic empowerment of youth and women
• Children’s rights to Protection from Violence and Disaster Risks

Currently we are implementing over 20 projects within these areas.

This program will contribute to the strengthening of the competencies of fathers, mothers, caregivers and community organizations to offer adequate care and attention to pregnant women and children aged 0 to 6 years of age. Additionally, the competencies of State and municipal governments to elaborate and implement rights-based, gender-equal public policies for integral early childhood development (ECD) will be strengthened.

Læs resten her!

Plan Brazil

Plan has been working in Brazil since 1997, mainly in the states of Maranhão and Pernambuco.

More than 70,000 children and adolescents participate in about 50 Plan projects focused on ensuring that children access their right to education, protection against violence. health, participation, and economic empowerment.

Læs mere her!

Saying “No!” to child exploitation

Every 4 years, the FIFA World Cup captivates audiences across the globe. This year, all eyes are on Brazil, which is hosting this year’s World Cup.
While the World Cup is an exciting month-long event, the influx of tourists from around the world can also expose vulnerable children to violence and exploitation. The facts speak for themselves:

• It’s estimated that there are 500,000 children in the sex industry in Brazil
• Sexual violence is the second most reported crime against children in Brazil, with most victims aged 10 to 14.
• Child sexual exploitation during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa increased by 63% and by 87% at the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

Læs mere her!

Goals for a better life

Brazil is a country particularly vulnerable to child sexual exploitation, it is in fact the second most reported crime against children in Brazil. Latest Unicef statistics recently reported 250,000 child victims of commercial sexual exploitation in the country, with the majority of victims aged between 10 and 14.

This is a cause for particular concern during global sporting events where there is often a short-term spike in demand for prostitution.  In response to this, child protection charities have seen a direct impact on exploitation of vulnerable children.  Plan International’s National Director in Brazil, Annette Trompeter commented: “Unfortunately tourism is often linked with the sexual exploitation of children, due to an increasingly permissive atmosphere and the use of hotels.
 
Læs mere her!

Kicking goals: Girls, football and gearing up for the FIFA World Cup

With less than three months until the 2014 FIFA World Cup kicks off, we shine a light on a young woman from Brazil who found inspiration through football, and turned her life around.

When Beatriz turned 14 she went through a dark patch. “I just wanted to be out on the streets or at parties. Then, I started doing drugs,” she says.
Beatriz didn’t know where her life was heading, so when she heard about Plan’s Empowering Girls Through Football program, she saw it as an opportunity to make a change and learn about her rights. “Had I continued with that lifestyle, where would I be today?” she asks.

The program works with girls in the community to enable them to fight for their rights through participation, learning, team work and self-esteem. Beatriz has enjoyed taking part in the program and has gone on to inspire change in her community by becoming a Plan volunteer. Now she’s looking forward to the World Cup in Brazil later this year.

Læs mere her!

Young people trained as World Cup stewards

More than a hundred young people from one of the most deprived parts of Brazil have been trained to become football stewards at the World Cup.
Plan has already trained 150 young men and women in host city Natal to work at the Arenas das Dunas during the event and will train hundreds more after the tournament to ensure a long-lasting legacy for young people living in the city.

Jacqueline, aged 22, has her own child but is also responsible for her six siblings because her mother is in hospital with psychiatric problems.
She attended the course, which taught her about customer service and communication, and now feels more optimistic about her future.
“My dream is to have a steady job so I can finish building my house and help take care of my family,” she says."

Læs mere her!