Robando Sonrisas non-profit organization, created in 2015 in Argentina and in 2020 in France, and registered under the number RNA W442025593 in France Legal notice - Contact us -FAQ - social networks

Our story

Who are we?

Robando Sonrisas, which means "Thieves of Smiles", is a Franco-Argentine non-profit association created in 2015 by Diego Paulete and Jennifer Romero.

Our association fights against inequalities of opportunity, poverty and social exclusion of families and children, through solidarity actions responding to local needs, made possible thanks to donations from our generous Argentine and French donors.

Discover our association on video...

reportage by the Anbaderados technical team of the Noble Foundation

Why Robando Sonrisas?

Focus on the Argentine economy...

The great economic, political and social crisis in Argentina between 1998 and 2002, caused in particular by the desire to link the local currency to the dollar in order to stabilize the almost permanent inflation since the Second World War, caused the Argentine peso to lose 99.62% of its value against the euro between June 2000 and May 2023.

Despite the country's considerable natural assets, highly skilled workforce, export-oriented agriculture and diversified industrial base, it has had to contend over the long term with high inflation and the inability of its various governments to create a stable currency. These economic upheavals have led to the departure of many foreign investors, a sharp drop in the confidence of private creditors and lengthy disputes with US vulture funds.

As a result, Argentina is implementing a policy of severe austerity throughout the country, leaving the most remote areas abandoned, where public services are less and less guaranteed.

Focus on the province of Rio Negro

Take, for example, the village of Aguada Guzmán, in the department of El Cuy, Rio Negro province, in the north of Argentine Patagonia. The only way to get there is via the unpaved provincial road 74. The village of 150 inhabitants is therefore very difficult to access for anyone without a vehicle.

As the village is not connected to the electricity grid, it also has no cell phone network or Internet access.

The village is also not connected to natural gas. Residents use bottled gas. For the non-vehicular inhabitants, a system of solidarity between neighbors is organized.

Finally, the village has no water supply either. The villagers have to get their water from the provincial Development Commission.

L'école la plus proche du village est située à plusieurs kilomètres et depuis la mise à l'arrêt des services de transport en commun par la Province (considérée trop "onéreux"), les familles en situation de précarité et non véhiculées ne peuvent plus emmener leurs enfants à l'école, malgré que l'école soit obligatoire en Argentine de 6 à 14 ans.

How did our association come into being?

In view of this intolerable situation, the Paulete family (co-founder Diego), who repair and sell bicycles for a living, launched a program to collect used bicycles, repair them and distribute them free of charge to the inhabitants of their province, especially children, so that they can go to school.

This is how Diego Paulete and his partner, Jennifer Romero, created Robando Sonrisas.

Since then, the association has been active in a variety of ways in Argentina and France...

Our missions

Financial support for families in difficulty

Bringing household electrical systems up to standard

Distributing school supplies at the start of every new school year

Partner of the Garrahan Hospital Foundation in Buenos Aires

Repairing and distributing adapted bicycles for everyone

The association is currently active in the province of Rio Negro, in Patagonia, Argentina. 

It helps families and children in precarious situations by providing access to essential goods and services, and by constantly striving for equal opportunities.

Diego & Jennifer

Solène & Cyriane

In October 2020, Les Voleurs de sourires moved to France, to the Nantes region in Pays de Loire. Cyriane Nsimba and Solène Fovelle have joined the team to develop the association's financial and communications capabilities.

Robando Sonrisas association d’intérêt général à but non lucratif, créée en 2015 en Argentine et en 2020 en France, et enregistrée sous le numéro RNA W442025593 en France - 

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