Income Generation Support
Chimwemwe Children’s Centre will implement activities which will support vulnerable children and their families affected and infected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and mitigate against further impact of the disease. It aims to bring long term change in the lives of children through strengthening the children’s families, resolving the root problems that brought them onto the streets and enabling them to build good relationships.
The project has already assisted over 20 children to return back to school. Those children have been provided with school uniforms, school funds and writing materials. For those in secondary schools, Chimwemwe has paid for text books, school fees, and school funds. 70% of them have passed their end of term exams. Chimwemwe will also economically empower the families of reintegrated children through small loans for income-generating activities.
Chimwemwe will support Income Generation in the following ways:
Family livelihood sustainability
- Discuss, assess and counsel families on how to meet their basic needs
- Provide family loans where appropriate to start or expand small income generating activities for self sufficiency at household level
- Set up a programme to provide farm inputs such as seed and fertilizer to secure food security in the homes
- Link families to other organizations who can support them in food security such as World Vision, ActionAid Malawi, Christian Service Committee and Eagles Relief and Development, in the areas where such programmes exist to avoid duplication of efforts
- Advocate on behalf of vulnerable families though local leaders for inclusion in programmes that focus the poor
- Provide a one-off emergency input during the hunger season when necessary of food inputs or preferably seed and fertilizer, according to the needs of each family and the preparation of their garden
- Give follow-up training and counselling to families involved in Income Generation Activities or food security to improve their performance and output
- Provide group Income Generation training and counselling though family support meetings and provide a base to share experiences
Children’s income and life-skills
- Provide practical training for the children in growing their own food in the Chimwemwe garden
- Provide at least quarterly life-skills lessons focused on managing money/IGAs
- Carry out career guidance counselling sessions with individual children and record outcomes
- Organize work-place visits to understand a variety of jobs and to develop interests
- Involve more children in IGAs after they have made a plan for family reintegration so that begging is reduced to a minimal
Training
- Support older children in training and apprenticeship, extending the range of activities to include things such as welding, shoe-repair, barber shops, photography, tailoring, carpentry, brick-laying, card-making, art and other trades for independent life when fully grown and employed or running their own businesses
- Make and extend links with other organizations offering training and support to benefit all children in need of training
- Develop and carry out a life-skills course for older children in income generation and with a cut-off point with Chimwemwe involvement
- Carry out IGA workshops to identify children’s interests and skills
- Explore how to extend farming/agricultural skills for children though a demonstration farm
- Organize workshops for a trainer of trainers
- Organize workshops for apprenticeship children to share ideas and experiences