User:Aline1825/SAO Association

SAO Association is a Swiss NGO which runs two day centres for displaced women on Lesvos and in Athens. Apart of a safe space it offers professional assistance and psychosocial care and supports the displaced women on their way to a new, independent and fulfilling life.

History
In October 2015, Raquel Herzog travelled to Lesvos to get involved as a volunteer in sea rescue. As she saw the situation there, she decided to get involved long-term and founded SAO Association in February 2016. After the foundation, the association was at first active in sea rescue.

In April 2016, a major research effort was initiated and carried out by SAO. On two comprehensive tours, an inventory of the 46 refugee camps newly established on the Greek mainland after the EU-Turkey deal was taken. The report was regularly completed by volunteers on the ground until the camps were closed. The report is still publicly available today.

From March 2016 on, SAO led the biggest and only public warehouse for relief supplies in Greece. Donations from all over the world were sorted, stored, delivered and handed out to self-collectors. The donations went to displaced people, camps and other NGOs on Lesvos and mainland Greece, as well as to local people in need on Lesvos.

In February 2017, SAO handed Attika over the local organisation ATTIKA Human Support.

From September 2016 to April 2018 SAO also ran a website and edited weather data for displaced people. Information on storms and high waves were delivered to prevent crossings and thus possible deaths.

The weather information was updated hourly for Turkey, Greece, Libya, Egypt and Italy and shared with other NGOs, volunteers and refugee networks twice a day. They were smartphone-optimised and written in English, Farsi and Arabic.

In 2017, the first daycentre for women, the Bashira Centre, was opened on Lesvos. One year later, in 2018, the second daycentre, the Amina Centre, opened it's doors in Athens. In order to be able to support displaced women also long-term, the programme Back on Track was started in 2019. This programme supports displaced women in their strive for academic or skill building education.

Organisation
SAO Association is a Swiss non-profit tax-exempt association. It consists of an honorary board, a head office, numerous volunteers and members, whereby individual memberships, collective memberships and patron memberships are possible. The association finances its projects through private and institutional donations. It was supported, among others, by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and Swiss Solidarity.

Bashira Centre Lesvos
SAO Association's Bashira Centre is a daycentre for particularly vulnerable, often traumatized, displaced women. It is located in Mytilene, the capital of Lesvos and it focuses on emergency assistance and orientation for those who are forced to live in the camp on Lesvos or are housed in flats in Mytilene.

In the Bashira Centre, they find support from the permanent staff of social workers, psychologists, and translators. They can also use the sanitary installations, participate in workshops and be creative.

In cooperation with partner organisations, access to medical, social, and asylum services are offered as well.

Amina Centre Athens
At the Amina Centre in Athens, traumatised women and mothers, along with particularly vulnerable, disabled, and elderly women, find professional support and an oasis of calm. The focus of our team (psychologists, social workers, and translators) is on psychosocial care.

The programme includes practical support (hygiene items, clothes, milk powder, diapers, etc.) and various workshops such as sewing classes, bodywork, and sexual health, where displaced women can develop their skills and create a new foundation for a self-determined life. Our psychologist or social worker supervises these workshops. Language courses in Greek and English help the women prepare to find their way forward in their new lives.

In cooperation with specialised organisations, SAO also organises informative workshops on legal and health issues.

Back on Track
SAO supports displaced women on their way to complete an academic or vocational education and gives them a chance for an autonomous life and a sustainable integration in society. The pilot project of the programme Back on Track started in 2019 with three students. In 2020, the programme Back on Track Vocational was started additionally. In this programme, the focus lies on skill building to secure the livelihoods of the women.

Weblinks

 * Website of SAO Association
 * Hilfe für Flüchtlingsfrauen. In: SRF, mitenand. 28. Juli 2020 (Video; 3:52 min)
 * Alarmierende Zustände im Flüchtlingslager «Moria» auf Lesbos. In: SRF, Tagesschau. 12. September 2019 (Video; 4:31 min)