Children In Crossfire

Ocean Road Cancer Institute
The Ocean Road Cancer Institute, in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania’s main city is the only hospital in Eastern Africa where chemotherapy is offered free of charge, and is host to the Government of Tanzania, Ministry of Health Child Cancer Unit. The ministry tries to provide finances for as much of the chemotherapy treatment and care needed as they can, however, despite their efforts, resources are insufficient and the level of care and treatment is extremely poor.

One of the main focuses of ‘Children in Crossfire’s’ country programme in Tanzania is to ensure access to social services for most vulnerable children and young people particularly those with disabilities.

Ocean Road Children's Ward

The children admitted to the cancer institute are extremely vulnerable. Not only are they fighting cancer and being hospitalized at the institute for anywhere between 3 – 12 months, but during this time they have no access at all to educational or recreational facilities.

Children in Crossfire’ are working with the local ministry administrators to develop measures that will ensure the children’s access to such facilities, continuing to help them develop and reach there full potential. These will include the training and employment of teachers, the development of an appropriate curriculum and the purchase of educational resources to allow children on the ward to continue their schooling.

However, the success of this education programme also requires that the children have access to the necessary health care facilities on the ward.
Currently the children’s ward is staffed by a team of 4 doctors, 10 nurses and 3-4 nursing assistants attending to between 35-60 inpatients…in 17 beds. Often these children must share their beds and food with the family members who come to the wards as full time carers.

This situation is further compounded by a shortage of adequate facilities for treating the children. Blood is in short supply, and even if there were enough donors, there are not enough intravenous pumps to ensure proper infusion. A shortage of IV drips also affects the quality of chemotherapy treatment which requires the infusion of drugs at very precise rates. Equipment such as IV pumps, drip stands and monitors would make a massive difference to the work on the ward. Children who receive chemotherapy generally become immuno-suppressed and require careful management of their fevers with expensive antibiotic, antifungal and antiviral drugs, which are sometimes unavailable and/or unaffordable.

And there are other urgent needs, such as a special designated area with a ventilation hood to protect staff administering treatment, and an incinerator to safely dispose of medical waste.

‘Children in Crossfire’ also support the purchase of medical equipment, the proper installation and testing of equipment and the training of staff in medical protocols and the management and maintenance routines for the equipment.

A few years ago the survival rate of children on the ward was only around 30%, but with hard work and effort, the survival rate is up to around 70% - and with access to the correct treatment this can increase further so that most of the children will recover and have the chance to live a fulfilling and fruitful life.

Lake Victoria Disability Centre
Lake Victoria Disability Centre (LVDC) is a vocational training centre for disabled youths, based in Musoma town in north west Tanzania. The target group is youths with disabilities, male and female of ages between 10 and 25 years. In Tanzania approximately 85% of people with disabilities have no education beyond primary school, and of that, 50% have never been to school at all.

Without an education, these people have little or no hope of finding employment or earning an income. They become a financial burden on their families and are further excluded from and neglected by society.

The LVDC currently comprises of 3 small workshops and at present there 20 students training in the carpentry and woodworking department, the metal workshop where mobility aids are made (a centre that fabricates mobility aids such as wheelchairs and tricycles for the community that otherwise would not be available to them) and the dressmaking and knitting department. When students complete their students they are given support to start up their own income generating activities.

LVDC also offers a Community Based Apprenticeship Programme to cater for disabled youngsters who wish to train in vocational skills but are not able to come to the centre in Musoma. There are 40 young people that currently participate in the programme come from different parts of Mara region (the districts of Serengeti, Bunda, Tarime and Musoma urban). Through the Community Based Apprenticeship Programme, students are linked to well-established small and medium scale workshops for a specific period of time to obtain specific skills. A curriculum has been developed and segmented into training modules. This will assist the trainers leading the workshops in rolling out a truly competence based training programmes, designed to reach out to all students involved regardless of their background knowledge or speed and pace of learning.

The demand for the services offered by LVDC is quickly increasing and they lack both the resources and organisational capacity to meet such needs. ‘Children in Crossfire’ are helping LVDC to locate to a new site where they will construct and equip newer and bigger workshops. This will increase the capacity of the centre from 40 to almost 150 students. CiC are also helping them to develop an organisational strategic plan and provide additional staff and training.

CiC are also supporting LVDC with plans to establish and develop and outreach programme, whereby a trained community worker would visit students who have graduated from the centre to help them get started up in a small business of to find employment. They will also raise local community awareness on disability issues.
In addition to the more practical support, CiC are assisting LVDC to liaise with the Ministry of Education, Vocational Education Training Authority, to lobby for the LVDC curriculum to be officially recognised and the centre to become government accredited.

Huruma School for Disabled Children
Huruma school (meaning ‘mercy’) is based in Tanzania’s second largest city, Mwanza. It was established by the ‘Wazazi Watoto Walemavu Pasiansi’, a group of parents who have children with disabilities.

Local primary schools had neither the capacity, resources nor ability to integrate such children into the classes, and so the parents took the initiative to open their own school. This was a radical and pioneering move, as the area in which they live still has many traditional cultural taboos about disability, which believed that it was a waste of time and money to try to educate disabled children.

Hurama School

‘Children in Crossfire’ helped to construct classrooms in 2006, and now around 40-50 attend daily classes. There is a vast range of disability ranging from albinism and downs syndrome to more severe forms of cerebral palsy.
The school is making a real significant difference, and last year one student with cerebral palsy was given special discretion from the local education authority to sit his Std 4 primary school exams. He was the first student ever in western Tanzania to have sat such an official examination.

Teachers and students in the neighbouring government primary school are now becoming more aware that children with disabilities can contribute something positive to society and we hope to build on this increased awareness to foster closer links between the two schools.

‘Children in Crossfire’ are supporting the school to purchase building materials to improve the learning conditions within the school. CiC are also helping to purchase educational equipment and resources and more importantly to train the staff and the board of governors in how to better teach disabled children and manage a school.

CiC will also help the school to implement an outreach programme that will raise awareness in the local community about disability issues and provide support to parents and children in the home.

Kivulini Women’s & Children’s Rights Organisation
In partnership with Kivulini Women’s & Children’s Rights Organisation, CIC are supporting a project that will train and support local law enforcement officers and community groups in children’s rights and how to deal with cases of domestic abuse, especially against children. Kivulini Women’s Rights Organization is a registered non-governmental organization based in Mwanza, western Tanzania. Kivulini advocates for women’s and girl’s rights in Tanzania by emphasizing the prevention of domestic against women and girls.

The Kiswahili word Kivulini means “in the shade”. It implies a place of safety, under a tree or otherwise, where people meet for discussions and offer support to one another.
Kivulini was established in 1999 to create opportunities for community members to come together, talk, organize and work towards preventing domestic violence so that women and girls are able to enjoy their rights as stipulated in the Constitution of The United Republic of Tanzania, African Charter and various human rights conventions.

Kivulini Women's & Children's Rights

Kivulini’s vision is to see a community free from domestic violence where women’s rights are respected and valued. Kivulini’s mission seeks to achieve this vision by facilitating an enabling social, economical, and legal environment which guarantees women and girls right to live in violence free communities through self empowerment, advocacy and building an active social movement for change.

‘Children in Crossfire’ are supporting Kivulini in four main aspects of their work as summaraised below, and in particular are helping them to research and document the situation of domestic violence against children with disabilities in Tanzania, and to ensure this most vulnerable group is integrated into the organisations wider programme activities.

•    Community Mobilisation
The Specific objective of this Programme is to develop and strengthen the capacities of community members and local administration to understand the impact of domestic violence against women and girls and act locally towards its prevention in through awareness raising, media and community participation.

•    Capacity Building
The specific objective of this program is to increase the institutional capacities of 9 CSOs (including Kivulini) to effectively implement prevention programs on violence against women and girls with emphasize on domestic violence in the Lake Region through various trainings.

•    Policy Advocacy
The specific objective of this program is to advocate and lobby for better laws, polices and structural reforms to prevent Violence Against Women with special focus on domestic violence against women and abuses of girls through capacity building, media and campaigns.

•    Legal Aid
The specific objective of this programme is to train and support paralegals within the community to offer free support, counselling and legal advice to women and children who are victims of domestic violence.

Mother and child health and nutrition project in Moshi
In Moshi Diocese, with it’s head offices in Moshi Town, is situated at the foot of mount Kilimanjaro and covers an area of 5,029 km2 and a population of approximately 1,055,000.

They offer a range of both religious and social services to the local community which include churches; hospitals and outreach health facilities; schools; vocational training centre’s and orphanages.

‘Children in Crossfire’ have a well established partnership with the Catholic Diocese of Moshi (DoM) in northern Tanzania, with working visits being facilitated regularly between the two organizations. CIC are assisting the DoM with the construction of St. Amadeus Girls Secondary School.

Tanzania is amongst the poorest countries in the world with the majority of the population living in rural areas and below the poverty line. In poor communities such as these, young girls are particularly vulnerable and exposed to the violation of their human rights.

Although primary education is free in Tanzania and the enrollment rate relatively high, retention of girls at school has remained a serious problem. It is common practice for young girls in Tanzania to be responsible for domestic and agricultural chores, and education for girls is often less valued than education for boys. Subsequently girls often have to drop out of school, miss classes and combine their school work with their domestic responsibilities.

St Amadeus Secondary School

Major educational issues for girls are late entry into primary school, early marriage, poor performance in the primary school leaving exam, and high rates of class repetition.

Figures from 2006 show that from the 46% of primary aged girls enrolled in school, only 6% of all girls in Tanzania continue on to secondary education. It is also estimated that 35% of young females in Tanzania are illiterate.
The gender gap in secondary school is at risk of increasing ever more after the abolition of the quota system for girls. Girls with disabilities are even more vulnerable and even more neglected.

This is a problem that Children in Crossfire wish to address, not only to give girls greater access to their right to an education, but also to ensure the continued development of the families, communities and society in which these girls live.

The school is pioneering, in that it will have a strong and particular focus on teaching science subjects – which are traditionally considered not to be subjects that girls should study. It is also pioneering in that, through the partnership with CIC, special provision and attention will be given to integrate girls from the most vulnerable situations and girls with disabilities.

The school is currently under construction, with the classroom blocks almost completed. The dormitories and science labs will be completed in 2009, and we expect the first intake of students early in 2010.
Once the school has been opened, ‘Children in Crossfire’ plan to support the DoM to run a ‘scholarship and mentoring’ project. This scheme will provide school fees to allow girls from especially difficult and vulnerable backgrounds to attend St. Amadeus School.

Additionally, a number of ‘mentors’ will be trained to offer practical and emotional support and counseling to the girls so that they can make the most of their opportunity to study.

The Tanzania Early Childhood Development Network (TECDEN)
The Tanzania Early Childhood Development Network (TECDEN) was founded in 2000, and registered in 2004. Based in the main city of Dar Es Salaam, it is a network of Tanzanian civil society organizations working in partnership to influence policies and practices related to Early Childhood Development by sharing information and experiences and by generating knowledge and understanding.

TECDEN project in Tanzania

The TECDEN vision is:
A Tanzania where young children, from conception to 8 years, are treasured in such a way that their basic rights are met and their rights to both survive and thrive are realized through holistic approaches to supporting their development.
To create an enabling environment for strengthening the capacity of TECDEN members to strategically engage in key policy and Programme Development processes at all levels to influence the improvement of support for holistic development of all infants and young children.
TECDEN work toward this vision in 4 main areas:
•    Engaging in policy dialouge at all levels to influence ECD best practises, policies, programs, and legislations.
•    Facilitating the effective coordination and promotion of TECDEN's activities as performed by member groups at different levels.
•    Facilitating communication, networking and information sharing among and beyond members both locally and globally.
•    Facilitating the enhancement of capacity of network members to be proactive and take a leading role in the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of ECD activities.

TECDEN has been invited by the Government of Tanzania to develop an ECD policy that will inform the practice of key government ministries with responsibility for the provision of social services to young children.

‘Children in Crossfire’ are supporting TECDEN to consult with its member groups in the development of this policy. This will ensure that young children and those directly responsible for their care have their voiced expressed and can fully participate in the policy development process. As an outcome the policy will reflect the experiences of local ECD professionals. Through this consultation process, CiC is also assisting TECDEN to build it’s own organisational capacity and provide capacity building training to it’s member groups.

‘CRED-PRO’ - Child’s rights curriculum development
Known as ‘CRED-PRO’ this initative brings together organisations with the responsibility for the care of children in Tanzania.

The objective of CRED-PRO is:
To develop, in collaboration with relevant government and civil society partners in Tanzania, a sustainable child rights curriculum for professionals working with children from pre-birth to eight years which can be incorporated into the training of staff working in the fields of, for example, health, education, ECD, community development and civil society organisations.

Cred Pro Initiative effecting change

Tanzania ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in 1991. It also ratified, in 2003, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC). In so doing, it committed to ensuring that rights are respected for every child. However, if children’s rights are to be realised, it is necessary for the adults with whom they have contact to understand and respect those rights. When the Committee on the Rights of the Child, the international body responsible for monitoring governments’ implementation of the Convention, examined the Tanzanian Government on its progress in implementing the CRC in 2006, it specifically recommended that action should be taken to ensure that all professionals working with children should have training on children’s rights and their implications for policy and practice. For example, teachers, social workers, doctors, nurses, psychologists, lawyers, judges, police, residential staff, and early years’ workers all play a role in children’s lives. It is important that they are equipped with the knowledge and capacities to fulfil their responsibilities towards children’s rights:

•    In their individual professional practice
•    In the design and delivery of services
•    As advocates for the promotion and protection of children’s rights in legislation, policy and resource allocation

‘Children in Crossfire’ joined the CRED-PRO advisory committee, which includes representatives from local government ministries and both local and international NGO’s.

CiC have taken on a significant leadership role within the committee and in our role are advocating for the needs of children with disabilities to be included in the curriculum.
We are also piloting, in partnership with the Tanzania Institute of Education, a programme to deliver the draft curriculum to groups of professionals. Eventually it is hoped the government of Tanzania will incorporate the curriculum into the formal programmes at their various professional training institutions

As part of our contributions to the committee, CiC have produced a research paper on ‘The Situation of Children with Disabilities in Tanzania’, which we will launch during the ‘Disability and Development’ week on 9th June 2009

Children's Act advocacy
In partnership with UNICEF and other NGO’s, CIC are involved in a working group that is developing a ‘Children’s Act’ for presentation to the local parliament so that children’s rights are recognised in law. CIC have special responsibility for advocating on behalf of children with disabilities.

Children in Crossfire would like to thank:

IRISH AID & ALL OUR SUPPORTERS FOR HELPING US TO IMPLEMENT THESE PROJECTS

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