2nd National Conference on Orphans and Other ... - FHI 360

Disability (projects and referrals)
School health programmes (information
and training on primary health care;
Youth Health Development Programme;
STD clinics)
School fund exemption
Poverty reduction projects
Advocacy and lobbying
Safeguard OVC safety (places of safety,
foster homes etc.)
Ensure financial assistance (grants and
allowances)
Commemoration of special days/events
Strengthen programmes initiated by the
communities
Community awareness-raising campaigns
OVC committees
Street children’s programmes
Strengthen, maintain, continue existing
programmes
Training for community volunteers in
PSS care
10. Coca Cola
Assists schools with educational materials/sports
Sponsorship to schools
Assists with HIV/AIDS and drug and
alcohol awareness in conjunction with
TADA
Sponsors communities financially
Networks with the Government and
UNAIDS
Plans to sponsor HIV/AIDS, malaria,
agriculture and education before the
end of 2002
Plans to assist NGOs with OVC centre
11. Katonyala
Pre- and post-test counselling
Counselling training for professionals,
community home-based caregivers and
community AIDS activists
Identify OVC (bank account has been
opened for funds from local sponsors)
Advocacy
Referral
HIV-positive support group
Networking, e.g. with NACOP
Plans to train teachers and older
orphans
Questions and comments on Group 1 report-back
Question: On the key strategy, does the word
“stakeholders” include the community, and on
recommendation (4), should the community not
be involved?
Answer: We actually saw the community to be
the primary stakeholder, and in the recommendation,
“organisations” include CBOs and “institutions”
could also include the community.
Response: The community should be explicitly
mentioned in the strategy because we can’t just
assume that people will know it is involved. (The
OVCNSC may amend the strategy accordingly.)
Comment: Surely the starting point in implementing
the strategy would be a committee of
stakeholders to determine the kind of training
and activities to be carried out. If this is the case,
not only should the community be involved,
but it should own the whole project and be there
from the start – at the planning stage.
Response: The strategy and recommendations
will involve the community all the time.
Question: Who will co-ordinate the activities
around PSS support?
Answer: The OVCNSC. We also have a number
of regional co-ordinating structures, such as the
RACOCs which are working very well in some
regions. If one is dealing specifically with HIV/
AIDS, the RACOC structure is very strong on
co-ordination. We want to strengthen existing
structures rather than create new ones.
Question: Can the group say anything about
prioritisation in attending to the needs of OVC,
e.g. in the HIV/AIDS impact assessment for the
education sector there were notes saying that
the sector should take care of basic and material
needs before moving onto PSS needs. Should
we address these different needs simultaneously?
Answer: We had a broad discussion on who
precisely is a child in need and the factors that
place children in need, and we concluded that
we have to meet basic needs before a child will
start to talk or hear what a service provider says.
60 <strong>2nd</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> on Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children – Windhoek, Namibia, 25-27 June 2002: Full Report