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Nivasa Foundation seeks to break the cycle of modern day slavery for women and their children in Sri Lanka. The Nivasa Sponsor a Child program provides financial support for victims of human trafficking to help them raise and educate their children in Sri Lanka. By working in conjunction with local organizations which assist with the rehabilitation of victimized women and their families, the Nivasa Foundation provides hope and help to those who need it most. Our mission is to educate people at home and abroad about the dangers of human trafficking and modern-day slavery and help victims live in dignity and freedom with the ability to provide for their children and their future.
The Nivasa Foundation is the brain-child of Beatrice Fernando, president of Nivasa and a Sri Lankan survivor of human trafficking herself. The word "Nivasa" means home in the Sinhalese language and conjures with it the sense of safety, love, security and comfort that all homes should provide. The Nivasa Foundation seeks to provide victims and their families with this sense of -home,- with the hope of regaining a life of safety and security in which the children can prosper.
The Nivasa Foundation’s program is two-fold:
- financial assistance is provided to enhance the education and welfare of children whose mothers were victims of human trafficking, and
- provide education and awareness to communities and individuals worldwide through public speaking, press releases, newspapers, websites, and workshops to raise awareness about the dangers of human trafficking in an effort to put a stop to the ongoing cycle of slavery
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In order to help Sri Lankan survivors of slavery, the Nivasa Foundation developed the Sponsor a Child program for children of repatriated victims of human trafficking. This program provides aid to rural Sri Lankan parents who have survived slavery and are unable to support their children's welfare and education. By easing the financial burden of raising and educating the children, Nivasa Foundation aims to stem the "supply" of potential trafficking victims and enable the parents to stay home and safely raise their families in Sri Lanka.
In the first five year phase of the project, the Nivasa Foundation has selected ten families to whom we provide financial support to continue education until the children reach their educational goals. The children are required to maintain good grades and the families must be willing to share their experiences to promote public awareness about human trafficking. An independent auditor hired by the organization monitors the families, makes biannual reports, and manages the disbursal of funds to families in Sri Lanka. The program serves to prevent victims of trafficking from becoming victims again, as well as educates people in Sri Lankan and the U.S. of the ills of human trafficking and methods used by traffickers.
In Sri Lanka, education is a high priority, as evidenced by an impressive 92 percent literacy rate. Parents are eager to educate their children and will take the risk of going overseas for work to provide the necessary funds for uniforms, books, transportation and supplies. The Nivasa Foundation Sponsor a Child program takes over the parents' burden of funding their children’s education and asks that parents find employment inside Sri Lanka, avoiding the risk of enslavement overseas.
The Nivasa Sponsor a Child program provides funds for uniforms, books, transportation to school, private tuition when necessary, as well as room and board for college students. The funds will continue until the child reaches his/her goal--- either graduation from college or permanent, full-time employment in their field of interest.
In addition to the Sponsor a Child program, the Nivasa Foundation supports local non-profit Sri Lankan organizations which provide education, rehabilitation, and maintenance to Sri Lankan survivors of human trafficking. One such organization, The Sisters of the Good Shepherd, has (with the help of CARITAS) already begun assessing the needs of survivors of human trafficking in all 25 districts in Sri Lanka, and has concluded that those districts with the highest level of poverty are the ones which are affected most by the cycle of slavery. They have begun their work in Annuradhapura District, a remote area with a bare minimum of facilities and infrastructure, as it appears to be the home of the largest number of survivors of human trafficking. The Good Shepherd Sisters visit the survivors and their families, assess their needs and, provide services (such as medical, psychological, and legal help, enrollment in schools and training programs, microcredit, etc.) which can aid them in their maintenance and reintegration into the community.
Nivasa Foundation seeks to support this project and other like-minded organizations in Sri Lanka to continue and expand their work by providing them with direct aid assistance as well as materials and contacts to assist them in developing their program.
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