During the official visit, the delegation visited Vajira Sri Children’s Development Center, the largest orphanage of Sri Lanka which provides shelter for 300 children. The Center was built in 1983 in Pitakotte to provide a shelter for those children, regardless of nationality and religion, who lost their families during the civil war. The institution has accepted many orphans after the 2004 earthquake and tsunami.

HBAid built a 1200-square–meter, three-story building for the children from the support of Hungarian donors and HBAid’s child sponsorship program („Fogadj örökbe!”). The new institution is called “Hungarian House” and was inaugurated exactly one year after the devastating tsunami. It is now operated by Vajira Sri Children’s Development Center.

The investment by HBAid was to provide a suitable home which considered the emotional and social needs of the children after suffering the trauma of the tsunami and being orphaned. As a result, the new “Hungarian House” now provides a home for 100 of the Center’s 300 children. The Speaker of the Hungarian Parliament and his wife donated schoolbags packed with school supplies and different kind of gifts for 150 children of the orphanage.

Author: Csaba Lukács
Source: mno.hu
Translation: HBAid