Santiago de los Caballeros, the capital of the province of Santiago, is situated in the heart of a tropical landscape in the north of the small republic. The town is the second largest of the country and is very famous for its tobacco and rum industries, and though it benefits greatly from its industries and has a successful economy, it still has to cope with poverty, destitution and all related social problems. The decision to build an SOS Children's Village in Santiago de los Caballeros was based on two facts. Firstly, there were a great number of orphaned and abandoned children in the region, who needed to be taken care of in a comforting and secure atmosphere, such as that of an SOS-family. Secondly, a large and economically prosperous city should have an easily accessible infrastructure as regards schools and professional training centres, in order to guarantee that the children have good chances of finding a job when they become independent.
SOS Children's Village Santiago de los Caballeros went into operation in September 2003. It consists of 15 family houses where up to 145 children can be taken care of. In addition to that, there is a house for the village director and his family, a house for the staff and a house for the "aunts", or co-workers who help the SOS mothers look after the children and the household. Last but not least, there is a community house and an administration and service centre.
The SOS Children's Village runs its own SOS Kindergarten, where 70 infants and pre-school children can play and learn in three classrooms. There is also an SOS Hermann Gmeiner School, which offers high-quality primary and secondary school education for up to 370 pupils. The building consists of eleven classrooms and a special room for computer training and seminars. Both the kindergarten and the school are open to the children from the local community.