Some people have asked about the kind of help Children of the Forest’s needs in 2021.
Funding Challenges in 2021
Despite 16 years of commitment to education and child protection in Sangkhlaburi, COF is currently facing serious financial challenges. Donors are shifting their support from the Thai-Burma border to programs operating inside Burma due to political changes there in the last few years. However, most of the children supported by COF are not direct refugees from Burma. Most were born stateless into migrant communities already in Thailand without Thai ID, and without access to subsidised education or healthcare. Consequently, political developments in Burma make little difference to their circumstances. In addition the covid-19 pandemic has also caused significant funding reductions for COF. This has been further agravated by having very few visitors to the project site in 2020 a situation that is likely to continue through 2021. Individuals and large groups visiting the project to see first hand the work we do usually generates a significant part of our annual income.
COF urgently requires funding support in three key area:
(1) COF Protection for Stateless Women & Children 2021 (95,203 USD)
(2) COF Migrant Youth High School Program (13,604 USD per year)
(3) Child Protection Residential Centre Care (17,800 USD)
While any level of funding support would be greatly appreciated, ideally these programs require longer-term support for a period of at least 3 years to ensure stability in the education and lives of the children COF currently works with.
COF’s 2021 Business Plan is available HERE