Capital: Managua
Area: 120,254 km²
Population: 5.6 million (July 2006)
Ethnic groups: Mestizos, European descent, African descent, Amerindians
Official language(s): Spanish
Religion(s): Roman Catholic
Currency: 1 córdoba = 100 centavos
SOS Children's Villages' activities in the country
Following a devastating earthquake in 1972, which almost totally destroyed the capital, Managua, SOS-Kinderdorf International decided to become active in Nicaragua. The first SOS Children's Village went into operation in April 1973 in Estelí, in the northwest of the country. The children it took in were mainly those who had been orphaned by the catastrophe. It was thanks to the commitment of the Nicaraguan, Alicia de Barrantes, and the SOS-Kinderdorf International representative, Luise Sinnhuber that Hermann Gmeiner's idea could be established in this country and that, over the years, more facilities could be built at other locations.
In 1978 civil war broke out in Nicaragua and many people were killed. Because of high unemployment and the resulting social and economic poverty that families were suffering under, more SOS Children's Villages and other facilities were constructed in the west of the country, such as in the capital, Managua. In order to help both single-mothers and families with a lot of children during working hours, SOS Social Centres were built around the country. Babies and children up the age of six are looked after here during the day. This form of care remains the fundamental part of the Nicaraguan SOS Children's Village work.
The years of civil war left the country in a precarious economic situation. Only a few of the cities had enough schools and many families could not afford to send their children to them. Therefore, SOS Children's Villages constructed both primary and secondary schools. Both schools are now recognised institutions and have gained excellent reputations. This country, which is so poor, was hit by another natural disaster in October 1998. Hurricane "Mitch" destroyed vast parts of the country. In order to give swift help to the people affected, an SOS Emergency Relief Programme was set up at the beginning of November. Food was given to 11,500 people and medicines were distributed to the hospitals. Emergency accommodation was set up in León, where children and their mothers could find temporary shelter.
In 2003 SOS Children’s Villages started to operate Family Strengthening Programmes, which enable children who are at risk of losing the care of their family to grow within a caring family environment. To achieve this, SOS Children’s Villages works directly with families and communities to empower them to effectively protect and care for their children, in cooperation with local authorities and other service providers.
At present there are in Nicaragua six SOS Children's Villages, four SOS Youth Facilities, one SOS Hermann Gmeiner School, one SOS Vocational Training Centre as well as 20 SOS Social Centres.