The Patronato Santo Antônio in São José dos Pinhais – Paraná looks after children, young people and adolescents from families living in poverty and exposed to various forms of violence. They are often only looked after by their mother, a relative or a guardian appointed by the children and youth court. Many children live in situations of acute deprivation, have high nutritional deficits and often have a low level of education, physical and sexual violence is frequently reported. They are constantly exposed to drug trafficking and the consumption of various types of drugs, and it is not uncommon for family members to die as a result of their involvement in this problem.

The aim of the project is to create mechanisms that will lead the young people to develop the ability to take over, lead and solve problems.

Therefore the Salvatorian Sisters invest a lot in the preparation and vocational training of adolescents and young people so that they have real opportunities to shape their future through work and income. At the same time, they prevent young people from going astray in the face of all the temptations.

In collaboration with companies and training centres, Patronato Santo Antonio offers a series of courses in metal mechanics, IT and administration. Another important field is the training programme for young people in food science and the bakery trade. In view of the high demand, 96 young people of both sexes (60% of these people are female and 40% male) aged between 16 and 18 are to be trained in this field.

Activities for example:

• Train them to produce the food defined in the project.
• Recognize the importance and learn how to apply sanitary standards for cleaning the environment.
• To assimilate and learn ways of preserving food.
• Practising the use of flours to make different dishes. The skills that interest the students are: sweets and snacks, baking, jams, jellies, spices, trivial everyday food, cakes, pies, cookies, among others.

The project needs financial support and costs approximately 10.120 euros.