Education Changes the World
The way we work through networking
VIA Don Bosco works hand in hand with an international network of partners to adapt its educational projects to local realities and multiply its impact on young people.
At the heart of our action on the ground are the vocational training centres, which are our partners in providing quality training for young people. They are supported by our employment offices, which guide students towards the job market or entrepreneurship. One or more planning and development offices coordinate our educational programme on site. These offices act as bridges between our partner schools and play an active role in building their capacity.
Our team also works locally in collaboration and synergy with other NGOs. This is particularly the case in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Haiti, where we are collaborating with ACTEC to build the entrepreneurial skills of our partners and young people in our partner schools. In Benin, Bolivia and Tanzania, our partnership with Plan International and Light for the World gives girls access to quality education and vocational training. In Bolivia, we are working with Solidagro to train teachers, promote communication and set up ecological brigades among schoolchildren. In terms of training, VIA Don Bosco works actively with Miel Maya Honing in Cameroon and Haiti to train young people in beekeeping. We also work with SOS Faim in Mali to train trainers in agroecology; and with Entraides et Fraternité in Madagascar for the introduction of a training module on agroecology in our partner schools with an agricultural and livestock programme.
VIA Don Bosco is also a member of several Belgian and international networks. These networks are places where we can discuss the issues and themes of education and sustainable development and consolidate our projects. These networks include:
- CNCD-11.11.11: the National Centre for Development Cooperation
- ACODEV: the Belgian French-speaking and German-speaking federation of development cooperation associations
- Educaid.be: the Belgian platform for education and training in development cooperation
- Don Bosco Network: the worldwide federation of Salesian development NGOs
- Don Bosco Tech Africa: the coordinating body for Salesian vocational training centres in sub-Saharan Africa
- Don Bosco Green Alliance: the international Salesian platform bringing together institutions, organisations and young people from the Salesian family involved in concrete actions to protect the environment