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

Questions and comments on Group 3 report-back
Comment: I am concerned about the cost implications
and sustainability of bringing grants into
line with inflation. If this becomes policy we will
be bound forever to handing out ever-increasing
amounts. Can we really afford this?
Response (Petronella Masabane): Government
will cost all policy recommendations and
those which our economy cannnot afford will
not be implemented.
Response (Rosa Namises): The group also
talked about economic empowerment for family
members and caregivers via projects and other
activities to help ensure that they do not become
dependent on grants and handouts. This issue
has come up throughout the conference so we
did not mention it specifically. It can be assumed
that policy will address the need to empower
people economically.
Response (Ottilie Abrahams): It is difficult
for a family to purchase a bag of mielie-meal at
N$50 on a monthly grant of N$100. We have to
provide a reasonable standard of living so the
policy should take cognisance of inflation. However,
Group 3 very strongly proposes that natural
resources be allocated to funding OVC. We could
see no reason for not granting mining rights or
fishing concessions to the committees or NGOs
working with this issue. Were this possible, stakeholders
could involve themselves in many other
income-generating activities. The group has not
promoted dependency at all, but it is saying that
we have to be realistic.
Comment: Last year we recommended setting
up an OVC Fund to assist caregivers and organisations
working with OVC. This must be done.
Response (Petronella Masabane): We all still
agree on this. The outgoing OVCNSC was busy
looking at the process for establishing the fund
but this has not been finalised. The issue will
remain on the books and the new OVCNSC will
definitely have to attend to it in accordance with
the mandate it already has.
Comment: In all regions we have found some
uncertainty – which is not addressed in these
recommendations – on the structuring of OVCrelated
services in the whole scenario, and the
roles and responsibilities of the structures serving
OVC at different levels. We have the OVCNSC
and some proposed implementors, e.g. OVC
regional forums. Can the group say what is the
line of duty from grassroots to local, regional and
national levels in terms of linking the conference
recommendations to implementation? The policy
has to set down all aspects of structuring.
Response (Petronella Masabane): We
should not refer to what we have on the table as
the policy; what we have are merely issues to be
considered for the policy.
Response (Ottilie Abrahams): Our third
recommendation has to do with structuring. The
group felt that we first have to identify the stakeholders,
including OVC, and the stakeholders
should form a committee to work out the modalities
for dealing with co-ordination, monitoring
and evaluation, and to this we could add all other
administrative matters.
Comment: This is criticism but hopefully it is
constructive. The group’s task was unfair in that
it was asked to review the proposed policy, but
in fact there is nothing concrete on the table to
review.
Response: There is a draft policy and that was
the document the group reviewed. Anyone who
has not seen the draft can ask for a copy.
Comment: This group’s task was made difficult
by the fact that it was asked to come up with a
strategy and recommendations rather than
amendments to the draft.
Response (Petronella Masabane): I think the
group did what was required. It came up with
key issues that the policy must address. Our task
now is to discuss these issues and the principles
underlying them. How all these things will be
done is a technical matter that will be left to the
policy drafters to iron out.
Comment (Claudia Tjikuua, MBESC): I
am concerned that education has been left out
of the whole policy. There should be a section
on how education should be addressed. We had
actually hoped to get that information from this
conference so that we can incorporate it now
into our overall OVC education policy.
Response (Petronella Masabane): This will
be noted for the policy drafters.
<strong>2nd</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> on Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children – Windhoek, Namibia, 25-27 June 2002: Full Report
67