USAID 4TheChild project’s name is derived from its Kiswahili title – Tuungane Tulinde Tuwekeze Tuboreshe Afya na Elimu ya Mtoto – which means “coming together to protect, invest, and improve the health and education of the child.” While the total number of orphans in Kenya has declined from 2.3 to 2 million between 2010 and 2017, and the teen pregnancy rates for Kakamega, Kisumu, Bungoma, and Siaya Counties are high with a significant number of those being HIV positive. USAID 4The Child seeks to continue the positive trends regarding orphans and help bring teen pregnancy rates down.
Overview
OBJECTIVES
USAID 4TheChild goal will be to increase the use of quality county-led health and social services by orphans, vulnerable children (OVC) and their families, and adolescent girls and young women (AGYW). The objectives are:
• Increase access and demand to quality HIV prevention services for AGYW in Kisumu County.
• Increase access to quality health and social services for OVC and their families in Bungoma, Busia, Kakamega, Kisumu, and Siaya Counties.
ACTIVITIES
USAID 4TheChild’s OVC program serves children in a range of adverse situations. Children who are living with HIV, living with caregivers who are living with HIV, orphaned, at risk of becoming infected, or a combination of these factors.
The program activities are focused on service delivery to OVC and their families in the five counties to improve their health, well-being, and protection as well as strengthen child, adolescent, and family resilience. Without a coordinated multisectoral response OVC are at risk of not knowing their HIV status, not adhering to HIV treatment, facing economic vulnerability due to caregiver illness and/or death, and living in a child-headed household – a situation that puts them at greater risk of school dropouts, early marriage, risky behaviors, and HIV infection.
USAID 4TheChild’s DREAMS (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, and Safe) program empowers AGYW and advances gender equality across many sectors including health, education, and economic growth.
The program activities empower AGYW and reduce risk through youth-friendly reproductive health care and social asset building; mobilizes communities for change with school- and community-based HIV and violence prevention; reduces risk of sex partners through the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) programming, including HIV testing and treatment; and strengthen families with social protection (education subsidies, combination socioeconomic approaches) and caregiver programs.
USAID 4TheChild is designed to contribute to USAID’s mission of improving the health and wellbeing of children living with and affected by HIV, as well as strengthening communities as they work towards an AIDS-free generation.
Original source can be found here.