Have you heard of Tamam Paraguay yet? Well, if not, let me take you to a very short imaginary journey then!
Mercado de Abasto, in the capital city Ascuncion is our destination, where Tamam’s partner organization ‘Fundación Vida Plena’ is located. Since the first visit of the Tamam team in October 2008, Vida Plena is receiving volunteers and funding for excursions from Tamam. But let’s first explore more about Mercado de Abasto and Vida Plena.
Mercado de Abasto is a huge marketplace which consists of numerous storage buildings, warehouses, bazaars; and places where people sell and buy the cheapest vegetables, fruits, meat, all kinds of food products and clothing. There are also wholesalers who can get you industrial commodities. Yet, Mercado de Abasto is not only a place for local commerce but also a neighborhood where families and people live. During the day, it is very crowded with lots of people and trucks, movement and noise; during the night, they say it is also crowded but with different settings and nature this time, as it transforms to a place where crime and prostitution is frequent. But what about the minors of the neighbourhood? Where do they stand in this picture?
There are quite a number of children who work around Abasto. Some of them sell vegetables and fruits, some of them collect card-boards to sell and some of them “watch after” cars for money. There are also some children who drop out of school due to their parents wills.
On the other hand, the children of Abasto do have a place where they can remember to be children again and this place is called Vida Plena. Vida Plena, which literally means “full of life”, is a “day care center” located in the middle of Mercado de Abasto, which hosts approximately about 50 to 60 children each day aging from 3 to 14 years old.
At the Paraguayan schools, students attend to their classes according to the study periods. Therefore they either go to school only in the mornings or in the afternoons. Vida Plena, thus, is not an alternative for the schools but is a supplementary place, where the kids come before or after their study periods and actually receive much more than what they get at schools.
Vida Plena was formed in 1998 as a private, nonprofit organization which “proposes ways of education and self-education for a full and decent life, in harmony with the inner and outer existence”. The center is maintained by a director and 4 educators, besides the support of foreign volunteers. The main focus of the activities at the center is the children’s curiosity. The motto of Vida Plena is “children should have fun, take initiatives and simply be children.” Therefore the day care center is quite different from the usual authoritarian and bureaucratic Paraguayan schools.
From 8 to 4 o’clock, in both groups the activities start by forming a circle where nutritious snacks and fresh fruit juice are served. Then, everyone starts working on their school work until the “fun time” begins, where games and sports are played and creative activities are done. In the day care center, each participant is separately valued, is special and seen as a unique individual; which is probably why they come back every day even though regular participation is not mandatory like in their schools.
Vida Plena provides way beyond what a usual school can provide. Children get support to learn math, read and write properly, play games, do craft-work, do sports, listen to music; they get encouraged to dance or to express their thoughts in front of the group, to take initiative; but beyond that, they learn to value the animals, they learn to be honest; they get love and respect, and they get listened by adults. This is the atmosphere of Vida Plena and it was such a pleasure to get to breathe that air.
But, besides being an amazing experience, what is the importance of supporting Vida Plena? Well, in general, the Paraguayan government does not support the NGOs so much. Institutions of education are centrally executed, and there is a lot of corruption. Vida Plena is 100% dependent on foreign funding. Everything at the center, from the toilet papers, to the books; from the materials, to the food; from the wages of the educators to the rent, is compensated by private funds. In this regard, Tamam for instance has been funding some excursions where many of the children for the first time find the opportunity to see a new place. In the previous excursions, they visited some beautiful sight seeing places, went to the amusement park, played in the water for hours and made life long memories in each and all of them. It is highly crucial to understand how those outings ensure them to see the world outside Abasto. Some of the kids attend so regular in order to be able to participate in the excursions and this is perhaps enough to understand how an important part the excursions play in their lives.
Vida Plena receives volunteers from Tamam as well. 11 Tamam volunteers have visited Vida Plena since 2008 and the effect of these volunteers on the kids is tremendous. To demonstrate, due to the “machismo culture” of Paraguay, men are considered as breadwinners of the households and are not suppose to take care of the kids. During the visit of three male Tamam volunteers, Elisabeth, the director of Vida Plena, has decided to hire a male educator. She expresses that witnessing how kindly those three young volunteers were playing with the kids and how the kids enjoyed their presence, she thought it was necessary for them to have a caring “male figure”. One child even asked one of the volunteers if he could be her father.
By having so many foreign volunteers around, the kids raise an awareness of the existence of different cultures and countries. On my last day in Abasto, while visiting some of the kids and families, the 10-years-old Aksel brought a map and showed where Turkey was located on. Moreover, now the 8-years-old Nicol knows that in Turkey there are no Mermaids. Besides those vital information (!), they grow curiosity and enthusiasm to learn and explore more about the world and the “bigger picture”.
This landlocked country bordered by Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia, due to its central location, is sometimes called Corazón de América, or the Heart of America. There is so much to find out about the Paraguayan history and culture(s). Like all Latin American countries, Paraguay is suffering from its bloody history and there are huge effects of the past on the present day. It is important to be aware of the post-colonial history of the world. But at the same time, it is crucial to understand that there is so much to do and it is us, the present generations, who will shape the future. Paraguay is a beautiful country full of cultures and colors; like anywhere in the world, there is hope in children and youth. A lot can be changed just by providing equal opportunities, which every single child deserves.
Support Vida Plena!
Sara Pınar Önder
Note: Please contact us to donate money or to be a volunteer. For further information, contact person: Philip Sandberg – philip.sandberg@tamam.se