De Yang update

  A Press Conference was held in De Yang City on Children's Day (1 June 2010) to announce the building of a new Training & Resource Centre in De Yang city, Sichuan. The Popular Chinese movie star Ms Zhang Ziyi attended the Conference as a major donor of this project through the Zhang Ziyi Foundation. Other VIPs that attended include Mr Deng Guo Jian, Vice Mayor of De Yang City, Mr Nick Whittingham, Consul-General of the British Consulate-General in Chongqing, Mr Wang Jian, Governor of Jing Yang District, De Yang City, Madam Wu Jian Ying, Director of CSWA and Mr Robert Glover of Care for Children.

Care for Children specialises in moving children into local families as an alternative to institutional care. The rebuilding project in De Yang is for a new training and resource centre for the management and development of foster care, special education needs, and support for street children in the region. See picture below.

On May 12, 2008, an earthquake measuring 8.0 on the Richter scale hit Si Chuan Province, a mountainous region in Western China. According to Chinese state officials, the quake caused 69,197 known deaths including 68,636 in Si Chuan provinces; 18,222 people were listed as missing, and 374,176 people were injured. Although the actual number is unknown, at least 4,000 children were left orphaned and over 2,000 children disabled. Care for Children was one of the first international NGOs on the scene to help with various relief efforts.

The project has great potential to transform thousands of children's lives and make a positive impact on the development of child welfare in De Yang, Si Chuan, and the surrounding region.