Meyirim Youth Social Adaptation Center opened in Aktobe

Yesterday, there was a formal opening of Meyirim Youth Social Adaptation Center in Aktobe, built with financial support of Saby Charitable Foundation. Asel Tasmagambetova, the president of the foundation, Kenes Rakishev, a well-known Kazakhstan businessman and philanthropist, and Berdybek Saparbaev, akim of Aktobe region, took part in the opening.

Meyirim Center will be a social home for orphans and young people with no parental care aged under 29. Four two-storey blocks with beds for 80 people in total are provided for comfortable stay of the residents. Ground storeys are equipped for convenient movement of wheelchair users. Total area of the territory is 3 ha, where the space of the buildings and structures is 6000 sq. m.

The graduates of special care homes for children with disabilities, who are mostly in need of housing and employment after leaving orphanages, will live and work here. But often it is very difficult for them to find a job and get a profession. For that reason, Meyirim Center has mini-workshops, work-rooms, events hall, greenhouses and sports grounds. Young people will be able to learn highly-sought professions and get work experience and record of service necessary for their further employment.

That is why Meyirim Youth Social Adaptation Center is a unique project having no analogues in Kazakhstan. It is the first time that such a center was built not following conventional standards for social hostels. During project development Asel Tasmagambetova, the head of Saby Foundation, wished for it to become not just a hostel but a home where young people could live comfortably and cozily. Home environment here is created both inside the flats and in all working spaces. The Center’s land was also improved with due consideration of the needs of people with reduced capabilities.

It’s not the first project implemented by Saby Charitable Foundation in Aktobe. For the past few years, they created the Society for Protection of Paralyzed Citizens, launched Invataxi social taxi service for wheelchair user carriage, built 4 playgrounds, and provided several educational grants to talented children from Aktobe and Aktobe region. But Meyirim Center is the biggest and the most significant yet for the foundation. The project was implemented in 2 years. Its total estimated cost made up 1,5 billion tenge (almost 5 million USD). It is especially remarkable that the center was opened in the year of Saby Foundation’s 15th anniversary.

We hope that Meyirim Center will be a stepping stone for big success and achievements of young people who will become its residents. For us, it will be the best factor of importance of the work done to launch this unique project.