Rocinha Favela

Background

Rocinha in Rio de Janeiro is recognized as the largest urban favela in Brazil, with about 200,000 residents. Situated on a steep hillside one kilometer from the famous beaches of Ipanema, Rocinha is a densely crowed shantytown of mostly crude cinderblock and cement housing connected by a complex maze of narrow alleyways. The project we support is in one of the poorest parts of Rocinha, a section called Roupa Suja. While some portions of Rocinha have gained attention for the positive development of its infrastructure, Roupa Suja continues to function at extreme levels of poverty, with an unhealthy sanitary situatin and constant security risks resulting from pervasive conflict among heavily armed drug factions.

Project

Developing Minds Foundation has built and equipped several classrooms for an after-school program, and within the school, we sponsor early childhood education, literacy programs, technology training, and homework assistance. As a result of this project, we have consistently educated over 100 children per year. Our partnership with Uniao de Mulheres, a successful locally-run organization, addresses the woefully inadequate public education offered in this area.