Submit a thread to our digital quilt for the chance to be featured in an exhibition and win £200. Learn more
Menu

Cross Cutting Theme: Young people

Strengthening the capacity of civil society to advocate for the rights of young people with disabilities

Issue

Equal rights for children and young people with disabilities, although recognised in Kenya, need to be strengthened through engagement between policy makers and civil society.

Project

AbleChildAfrica is working with disabled peoples’ organisations and civil society organisations to improve the rights of Children with Disabilities (CWDs) in Kenya.

In partnership with Action Network for Disabled (ANDY), AbleChildAfrica is forming a coalition of child focused civil society organisations (CSOs) and disabled peoples’ organisations (DPOs) to work with government officials, and to deliver a public campaign that will enhance government and the public awareness of child focused disability rights. AbleChildAfrica is developing the coalition’s ability to advocate for the rights of children with disabilities, facilitating meetings between coalition members and government officials, and developing evidence based reports of policy recommendations for policy makers.

By the end of the project, it is expected that effective public campaigns and engagement between policy makers and the coalition will lead to the implementation of policies that strengthen the rights of children with disabilities.

AbleChildAfrica

AbleChildAfrica is a UK based charity working with and alongside partner organisations in Africa to achieve equal rights for children and young people with disabilities. AbleChildAfrica works in partnership to provide direct services such as education and health, and engages in advocacy and influencing working in the UK and internationally. www.ablechildafrica.org

Action Network for Disabled (ANDY)

Action Network for Disabled (ANDY) works to promote the equality, inclusion and empowerment of young people with disabilities in Kenya. ANDY supports young people with disabilities to become involved in development and decision-making processes. It facilitates their socio-economic empowerment by involving them in small scale self-sustainable projects. www.ablechildafrica.org/our-partners/kenya-partner

Promoting education for all in Quetta

Issue

Pakistan is a pluralistic society with myriad of religious and ethno-linguistic identities. While freedom of religion is constitutionally protected, discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities is an ongoing challenge. Government initiatives have attempted to address this, however more focused attention on remote communities and young people is needed.

Project

Minority Rights Group International (MRGI), Human Friends Organisation (HFO) and Strengthening Rights and Equality by Empowering Teams (STREET) will together work with young people in schools to promote cultural respect and understanding. This project is promoting inclusive practises in communities and schools in Quetta, through the use of storytelling and theatre. Actor-activists are using story-telling and theatre to lead discussions on inclusive practices in schools through performance, guiding young people as they develop their own creative outputs on diversity and tolerance. The project is also supporting teachers to challenge discrimination in schools. In order to reach the wider community, performances will take place at festivals, focusing on the need for inclusive societies and the adverse impacts of discrimination

The project is also facilitating communication with local and national governments on the regional need for policy and practises that are more inclusive of minorities.

By the end of the project, it is hoped a generation of young people will have a better understanding of the importance of inclusion and be champions of these practices in the wider community.

Endorsed project title: Promoting education for all in Quetta, Pakistan

Photo: Flickr CC DFID Girls in school in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Minority Rights Group International (MRGI), UK

Minority Rights Group International campaigns worldwide with around 130 partners in over 60 countries to ensure that disadvantaged minorities and indigenous peoples, often the poorest of the poor, can make their voices heard. Through training and education, legal cases, publications and the media and cultural programmes they support minority and indigenous people as they strive to maintain their rights – to the land they live on, the languages they speak, to equal opportunities in education and employment, and to full participation in public life.www.minorityrights.org

Strengthening Rights and Equality by Empowering Teams (STREET), Pakistan

Strengthening Rights and Equality by Empowering Teams is a group of professional psychologists, anthropologists, researchers, community mobilizers, social workers, teachers, doctors, volunteers and supporters trained rights based approaches, gender, street children issues, reproductive health/HIV/AIDS, project management and sustainable human development trained by different national and international agencies with expertise in Interactive Theatre Training & Performances.www.streetpk.org

Human Friends Organisation (HFO), Pakistan

Human Friends Organisation have partnered with MRGI to protect freedom of religion and challenge religious discrimination in Pakistan, implementing training activities for activists and community members, developing national level networks/dialogue spaces to build cross-religious support for religious freedom, conducting media and awareness-raising work, and local and national advocacy.www.hfopk.org

Preventing child marriage, retaining girls in school and developing gender awareness

Issue

Although child marriage in India is declining, more needs to be done to end it. It is recognised that strategies must have a broad appeal. Jana Sanskrit is working with communities in Purulia district of West Bengal using interactive, theatre-based approach known as forum theatre.

Project

Jana Sanskriti – Centre for Theatre of the Oppressed – aims to sensitise students, teachers, parents and the communities in the region to reduce underage marriage, and improve the retention of girls in school.  Jana Sanskriti is helping communities improve their understanding of the law and use the available government support systems. The project is establishing women’s and community groups to support affected families on a case by case basis. They are sharing the messages on the injustices of child marriage and the importance of girls’ education via local media outlets to increase awareness.

It is expected that the project will create better informed and supported communities able to appreciate and support girls’ aspirations, leading to an improved retention of girls in schools. It is also anticipated that the project will build closer links between communities, teachers, government officials and the police, enabling them to work together to enforce the laws on the rights of young women in marriage and education, which will result in a subsequent reduction in child marriage.

Endorsed project title: Preventing child marriage in Purulia, India

Photo: Flickr CC Eduardo Sciammarella Pushkar

Jana Sanskriti Centre for Theatre of the Oppressed

Jana Sanskriti is a voluntary organization reaching more than 200,000 spectators each year through the performances of 30 satellite theatre teams in rural West Bengal, India. Using the forum of theatre in rural communities the organisation addresses issues such as awareness and policy advocacy for domestic violence, education, child marriage, child trafficking, illicit liquor brewing and selling, agricultural practices, implementation of rights.www.janasanskriti.org

Improving youth participation in public policymaking

Issue

The 2010 National Youth Policy of Ghana acknowledges the need for policies that empower young people to effectively participate in the national development agenda. A review of the National Youth Policy has been scheduled for 2016 – 2017.

Project

Youth Empowerment Synergy (YES Ghana) are improving youth participation in public policy making by training young people to advocate for an improved National Youth Policy. This project will take advantage of the upcoming review to strengthen leadership structures in youth organisations, increase youth participation in the political space, and galvanise broad-based youth research for input into policy formulation. This will be achieved by expanding the membership and building the capacity of youth organisations to engage with politicians at local and national levels.It is expected that the project will lead to the improved articulation of youth issues, perspectives and policy recommendations by the Ghanaian youth, and empower young women and men by giving them the platform to speak, be heard and engage.

“Over the next three years, we hope to benefit extensively from the experience and technical capacity of the Commonwealth Foundation and work closely with other partners to improve the profile of young people as capable actors able to contribute positively to the development of our nation”, Emmanuel Edudzie, Executive Director of Youth Empowerment Synergy.

Youth Empowerment Synergy (YES Ghana)

YES Ghana is a national youth organisation established in 2001. It works to promote a sustainable and productive future for all young people in the country. It delivers programmes in the three key areas of youth participation and active citizenship, youth employment and livelihoods generation and youth policy and governance. YES-Ghana implements these programmes by facilitating access to youth-inclusive financial services, building coalitions of youth organisations and advocating for pro-youth empowerment policies. YES-Ghana actively engages with the National Youth Authority, the main government agency responsible for youth development.

www.yesghana.org

Follow @VoicesofYouthGh on Twitter

The Voices of Youth coalition is a national platform for youth to input into the national development agenda. It comprises over 300 youth groups reaching over 500,000 young people across Ghana. Yes Ghana acts as convenor and provides secretariat support to the coalition.

 

Forging civil society action against child domestic labour

Issue

The use of unregulated, under-aged and under-paid child domestic labourers (CDLs) remains problematic in many countries around the world, with around 11.5 million children worldwide still thought to work in illegal situations.

In India, Pakistan and Bangladesh – where millions of these child labourers live – there is an increasing willingness to change their plight, and this project will capture that willingness and use it to support positive movement away from this modern slavery.

Project

Global March is working with partner organisations in each of the three countries and will look to the progress already being made in India’s justice system on the subject and seek to further embed it in the fabric of people’s awareness. Based on the experiences of India’s Bachpan Bachao Andolan, Pakistan’s Grassroots Organisation for Human Development and Bangladesh’s Shishu Adhikar Forum will spearhead action in each of the countries, partnering with civil society organisations (CSOs) to amend laws, raise awareness, advocate for policy change and build the capacity for CSOs, government and law enforcement to work together in the fight against child domestic labour.

There will be training and workshops for CSOs, compilation of legislative literature, expansive regional and national consultations, and extensive analysis of existing structures – all with the aim of enhancing awareness and encouraging the will of many levels of society throughout India, Pakistan and Bangladesh to let their children live their childhoods in peace.

Global March Against Child Labour

The Global March Against Child Labour is a worldwide network of trade unions, teachers’ and civil society organisations that work together towards the shared development goals of eliminating and preventing all forms of child labour and ensuring access by all children to free, meaningful and good quality public education. It mobilises and supports its constituents to contribute to local, national, regional and global efforts and support for a range of international instruments relating to the protection and promotion of children’s rights, engaging with the United Nations, international and inter-governmental agencies.

www.globalmarch.org

Follow @kNOwChildLabour on Twitter

Follow /globalmarch on Facebook

Bachpan Bachao Andolan

Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) symbolizes India’s largest grassroots movement for the protection of children, ensuring their quality education. As on October 2014, BBA has rescued more than 83 500 victims of trafficking, slavery and child labour and has helped them re-establish trust in society and find promising futures for themselves.

Since its establishment by the Indian children’s rights activist Kailash Satyarthi in 1980, BBA has led the world’s largest civil society campaign in the form of the Global March Against Child Labour and has been at the forefront of laying down laws against child labour and trafficking in India.

www.bba.org.in

 

Upholding the rights of young disabled people

Issue

There are few opportunities to raise funds for Disability rights due to the gap that exists between young disabled people and their civil society organisations (CSOs) and local government.

Project

The Association of Young Disabled People of Mozambique (AJODEMO) is raising its members’ capacity to help local government departments and officials improve how they implement domestic and international legislation designed to support them.

This includes ensuring that the rights and entitlements of young people are better understood, respected, and enforced, with AJODEMO taking the lead in developing and facilitating opportunities for structured engagement between community and local government stakeholders.

The government of Mozambique has shown its commitment towards improving conditions for its young disabled people by ratifying the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and adopting new pieces of domestic legislation.

With a specific focus on the provinces of Maputo and Gaza, AJODEMO is working with the support of the UK-based Disability and Development Partners (DDP) on projects to improve the lives of young disabled people. The project will enhance young disabled people’s ability to engage in the community by fostering dialogue and improved relations with local government, improve their economic prospects, and reduce the stigma and discrimination they face.

AJODEMO President, Cantol Pondja, explained, “We at AJODEMO firmly believe that this project with funding from the Commonwealth Foundation and DDP support has the potential to establish a new way for young disabled people and government officials and institutions to engage with each other for everybody’s benefit – particularly to give young disabled people better chances in life.”

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rSFTW0kpRc?rel=0]

Follow /DisabilityandDevelopmentPartners on Facebook

Eradicating the spirit child phenomenon

Issue

The Spirit Child Phenomenon (SCP) is still a problem in northern Ghana’s Bongo region, where traditional soothsayers label certain disadvantaged children as messengers of bad luck, leaving them at risk of being killed by traditional healers known as concoction men.

Project

AfriKids is looking at issues surrounding SCP in order to address how to drive down the problem. The organisation will provide the education, incentives and stakeholder engagement to embed the cultural and technical change into the affected communities that will help to eradicate the phenomenon.

Training and awareness campaigns on child rights and healthcare will be run in local communities. Technical and financial support will also be provided for the concoction men and for families and women’s groups, while there will also be greater engagement  between the various community groups and government health and education facilities for children associated with SCP. This culturally sensitive project will also focus on empowering women within the affected communities, helping them to work directly with key male decision makers.

AfriKids has already eradicated the practice in the Kassena Nankana district. It is hoped that the work to embed this change in communities in Bongo will result in it becoming a sustainable operation of continuous education and information that will help to make SCP a phenomenon of the past.

The Honourable Nana Oyer Lithur, Ghana’s Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, said that the work has been transformative.

“I would like to use this opportunity to commend AfriKids Ghana for the extensive work on the subject of the “Spirit Children” in the Kassena-Nankana East and West Districts of the region,” he explained. “We are happy to hear that the practice of killing spirit children no longer exists in these districts. What is even more significant is the involvement of the practitioners of the tradition known as concoction men in the solution process”.

Follow @AfriKids on Twitter

Follow /afrikids on Facebook

 

 

Fostering a democratic culture in schools and local communities in the Caribbean

Issue

Democratic processes rely on the engagement and participation of an interested electorate if they are to succeed. In the Commonwealth Caribbean countries, there is generally an apathy towards the community engagement process – particularly at the local government level – largely due to a lack of knowledge and cynicism about civic participation and local governance.

Project

The Caribbean Association of Local Government Authorities (CALGA) is working with young people to help them constructively engage with local government. This project will work to develop student councils in secondary schools, which will send representatives to specially created Junior Councils that will provide a structured interface between young people and local government institutions.

The young people on these Junior Councils will be trained in the local government system, participatory governance and advocacy and lobbying techniques, giving them the capabilities and confidence needed to effectively engage with authorities.

The project will also work with government representatives to integrate the young people’s voices into local government processes. The project aims to eventually embed the Junior Councils into local governance processes, allowing it to continue beyond the duration of the grant.

The work has attracted a mix of trainers and project coordinators in the four countries, from the education and local government sectors. Councillor Examin Philbert from St Lucia – a Project Coordinator and school principal – explained: “The project is timely and will afford students the opportunity to actively participate in democratic processes. It will enable Student Councils to develop leadership skills, forge partnerships with the school administration, as well as, lobby and advocate on behalf of the student body. The Junior Councils will catapult our youngsters into meaningful participation in community and Local Government engagement.” 

 

CALGA

The Caribbean Association of Local Government Authorities is a not for profit organization established to facilitate the further development of Local Government within the Caribbean region.

Their mission is to promote good governance and local democracy through capacity-building, networking, advocacy, and effective representation of the interests and views of Local Government authorities.

www.calga.org

 

Fostering cooperation for sustainable development

Issue

The role of civil society, in particular women and young people, in influencing local governance processes in India is recognised as vital.

Project

Technology and Action for Rural Advancement (TARA) are working with civil society, women and young people in the environmental field, to help them influence local governance processes in India.

With a grant from the Commonwealth Foundation, this project will improve the skills and capacity of civil society organisations to engage with local government, nurturing collaborative relationships and better understanding. Advocacy models will demonstrate environmental sustainability concerns, fostering cooperation, sharing knowledge and promoting the involvement of young people and women in local governance.

The project will work with diverse stakeholders nurturing a collective sense of responsibility. It has a strong environmental aspect and targets women as well as addressing cross-cutting themes.

Technology and Action for Rural Advancement (TARA)

TARA is a registered social enterprise in New Delhi, India.

It enables the creation of livelihood support systems through training and capacity building for the rural poor and marginalised communities. It is part of the Development Alternatives Group, an organisation providing development solutions in India and elsewhere.

www.tara.in

 

 

Increasing access to finance for women and young people

Issue

Access to finance is a big challenge facing women and young people in the subsistence agriculture, fisheries and food processing sectors in Bangladesh.

Project

The Anglican Alliance is increasing opportunities for enterprise by involving 600 women and young people in the development of policies on accessing finance.

This project will enable three communities in Bangladesh to engage with business, civil society and government to shape the policy for economic inclusion, ensuring these policies are relevant and locally owned. It will foster the development of best practice in participatory governance and share this through a distance learning programme, available throught the Open University.

The project is further strengthened through the Anglican Alliance’s reach in other regions, particularly Africa and the Pacific, and responds to the 2013 Commonwealth Theme ‘Opportunity through Enterprise’.

Anglican Alliance

Anglican Alliance is actively involved in working towards a world that is free of poverty and injustice.

It tackles poverty and its causes by working in partnership with others around the world, empowering individuals and communities to overcome inequality and injustice. Women and youth empowerment are regarded as key development challenges and are the focus of Anglican Alliance projects in several countries.

www.anglicanalliance.org

Follow @AngliAlliance on Twitter

Follow /anglicanalliance on Facebook