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Reaching Hard to Reach Children Lessons Learned Written for UNICEF Views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily the views of UNICEF |
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Lessons Learned
Allowing Time and Support for New Ideas and BehaviourLasting change takes time to grow roots. Communities such as those in Bihar, and in Sudan were nurtured by the project, by UNICEF and government staff and/or by NGO staff, for several years. When such support ceased it was only because the nurturing role had been passed to another forum – in the case of Bihar and Jharkhand, the women’s Federations. In PNG and Sudan that role would ultimately be taken over by government but it was too soon for UNICEF to withdraw from either – in Sudan for financial reasons, in PNG because the project was still very new.
Community Teams Link local health workers and local political leaders. Establishing community-based teams that include health workers and local political leaders helps to place health and other child rights issues at the centre of village development. Community health workers act as a resource for the community team, not as a leader of the health initiative. This places the responsibility for action on the political leaders and community and helps ensures sustainability and continuity — which is particularly important given the frequent transfers of government officials.
Operationalizing Bottom-Up Planning The will to promote bottom-up planning exists in many countries but the methodology is lacking. UNICEF has a useful role to play in developing the simple tools, accessible to illiterates, remote rural communities and other excluded communities, that can make systematic participatory planning and implementation a reality. UNICEF can help broker the respective roles that can be played by various stakeholders, including local politicians, health workers and district, provincial and other authorities to demonstrate how the system of bottom-up planning based around the rights of children is a viable and important development strategy.
Using appropriate aids Visual materials to involve non-literates in Triple A processes and cue cards to guide participation. The use of visual images and coloured markers helped non-literates identify, remember and monitor indicators of child health and nutrition, and enabled them to become involved in village planning. The cue cards helped the trainers (some of whom have little experience) keep the process on track, and participatory.
Establishing a location The pikinini skel haus was a tangible sign of community commitment as well as a centre for village activities for children. The construction of the pikinini skel house was a mark of community commitment to change. It became a multi-purpose building, used as a base for adult education and play school as well as a centre for child weighing, for cookery demonstrations and a place for monitoring village progress through the display of all the coloured houses.
No exclusion Insisting on participation of entire community, husband and wife together. A policy of non-exclusion helps to mobilise communities and build community solidarity around child rights. Non-exclusion emphasises that all children have rights to health, education and so on. The involvement of all families and husband and wife together in the process meant that couples, families and communities began to discuss health issues, sometimes for the first time. The incentive to change the colour of the house was matched by the incentive to collectively transform the colour of the village.
Making the Project Their OwnCommunities will sometimes take a project and make it their own, transforming it into something they see as more relevant to their needs. This transformation is more likely to occur when there has been insufficient consultation with the community. In Bangladesh, many non-working children started showing up in the Hard to Reach learning centres because these were more convenient than the formal government schools or other non-formal establishments.
Charismatic LeadershipThese projects often operate in extremely challenging environments. They operate outside the norm, demand imagination, commitment and passion from UNICEF staff, NGOs and government officials, and often require charismatic leadership. There was evidence of charismatic work among government officials in Sudan, in UNICEF and NGO staff in India, and in the consultant in PNG who had been responsible for drawing the key elements of the project together. However charisma is no substitute for sound development process.
Monitoring and MobilitySupport for transportation is vital when working with very remote communities. In Sudan, the mobility of government officials was essential for supporting teachers, maintaining standards, and facilitating community contributions to education. The Directors of Nomad Education needed access to vehicles and travel allowances that would allow them to make regular visits to the nomad communities. In Papua New Guinea, travel budgets sometimes impeded the ability of government officials to visit and monitor project activities.
Planning, Process and SustainabilityAll the successful project reviewed in the series – India, PNG, Bangladesh and Sudan – included long term plans for expansion and sustainability. Long term strategic planning requires a holistic approach that looks at all dimensions – from the sociological factors that influence or inhibit change and development at community level to policy decisions of government that influence or inhibit resource allocation.
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Includes lessons learned from Sudan, Bangladesh, India and Papua New Guinea, see full links below Sudan Schools for the Children of Nomads Introduction El Radia, A Teacher’s Story Students: Asia Rihana Mohamed Songs of the Girls, Songs of the Boys Bangladesh Introduction Working Children in Bangladesh Sumy, age 11, domestic worker Mumtaz, age 11, cap maker Anwar, age 13, weaver Al Amin, age 12, shoemaker Teachers and Supervisors India Introduction How Community Action Works How the Groups Are Formed Avoiding Corruption NGOs on the Front Line Chandrakanti’s Story Kushnuma’s Story The Significance of a Signature Overcoming Aggression and Abuse Organizing Against Domestic Violence Escaping from Moneylenders Constraints and Solutions Papua New Guinea Child-Centred Village Development The Context The Situation of Children in PNG Project Structure Preparing for “Colour My House” The Colour My House” Template “Colour My House” in Tsungribu Village Analysis, Planning and Action The Pikinini Skel Haus A Changing House : The Anton Family “I thought everything was fine, but look!” Rising Demands Constraints Lessons Learned Maps Where is Atemble? Papua New Guinea Madang Atemble Village Plan |
Sara Cameron Life Stories |
