City: Meru
Country: Kenya

The SOS Children's Village is situated on the outskirts of Meru on the road to Meru National Park. Due to its central location, Meru was considered as a perfect location for the construction of an SOS Children's Village. Meru has a fairly good infrastructure, it is easy to reach and it is situated in the middle of one of the most densely populated areas in Kenya. Educational and social facilities are insufficient, however, due to the construction of the SOS Children's Village and the SOS Kindergarten SOS Kinderdorf International was able to considerably improve the social standards of the local population.


The SOS Children’s Village Meru was officially opened on 8 October 2005 and the current village director is Mr. Peter Wambugu.

The village has 13 family houses, each with a capacity of 10 children. The village director's House, accommodation for SOS aunts (SOS aunts take care of the children when SOS mothers are on leave), guest house, and an administration and service area.

The SOS Kindergarten attached to the SOS Children's Village was opened in 2005. It comprises of three group rooms, computer lab, a kitchen and side rooms. At the moment, it is attended by 100 children both from the SOS Children's Village and the local neighbourhood.

A Family Strengthening Programme is also running and was started in September 2011. The construction of an SOS Hermann Gmeiner School and an SOS Medical Centre are in the planning stage. Whether or not they will finally be built depends on the needs of the local population and the extent to which the local authorities are willing to support the project.