Spotlight Project 4.1.1

Help & Shelter received 12 million in support from Spotlight Initiative / UNICEF to implement a follow-on project in the catchment areas, Mon Repos to Lusignan and Grove/Diamond. The project will run from July to December 2023.

The key objectives of the project are:

1.      In-school youths are aware of child abuse – forms, related issues and how to report incidences.

2.      Community members more knowledgeable of helping agencies and how to offer effective assistance to victims who disclosures abuse.

3.       Increase recognition of efforts to address social norms and attitudes that supports child abuse at the community level.

4.       Greater awareness and behaviour change in residents towards the prevention of GBV, child abuse and related abusive practices.

 Targeted activities include.

• ·         Engagement with 500 in-school students
• ·         IEC materials dissemination– posters, brochures, audio visual productions, booklets, and contact / referral agency cards.
• ·         Support and training for Youth and Adolescent Action Groups in the community for sustained activities   in public education.
• ·         Raise awareness on child abuse and positive parenting education.
• ·         Consultant support and mentoring for community-based groups.  

The overall outcome of the project is heightening awareness on Child Abuse, peer sharing for changes in social norms which perpetuate violence and a strengthened community-based responses.

Help & Shelter with support from the Spotlight Initiative) receivde approximately $4.5 million for a 4-month project, commencing October 2020, the main focus of the project is giving support, intervention and active referrals for survivors and at risk persons affected by Gender-based violence (GBV)   and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). The project also focuses on the network of essential service providers being exposed to training and community- based responses from focal points and access to hotline calls and counselling available to survivors of GBV within the communities.

The focal points within the communities will be shops, pharmacies, health centers, police stations and other business places. The Project Action will be implemented in communities in region 4. The target communities are Mon Repos /Good Hope/ Lusignan / Grove and Diamond. The key Objectives of the project are:

1. To offer direct service delivery through 24 hr psycho social hotline counselling services
2. To offer direct on-line counselling and support services through social media platforms targeting youth populations
3. To produce and disseminate GBV IEC products – posters/informational brochures/emergency fold out packs for at risk populations utilizing essential services (in the context of COVID-19) such as pharmacies/supermarkets/health centres/police stations.
4. Engagement with essential and emergency services for exploring best processes for training and disseminating of IEC products and direct emergency assistance.
5. To build capacity of frontline & essential services such as pharmacies/supermarkets/health centres/police stations to identify, refer GBV cases and distribute IEC products to at risk populations