ChildFund Australia has today launched an appeal to help hundreds of war-affected families in Uganda leave their brutal past behind and rebuild their lives.
For 20 years, children and their communities across Northern Uganda were terrorised by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a rebel group led by Joseph Kony. Having fled Uganda in 2006, Kony received worldwide attention last year when a video about the LRA’s atrocities went viral.
At the height of the conflict, most of the population of Northern Uganda – about 1.5 million people – were forced to relocate to Government-run camps because it was not safe to stay in their homes, particularly at night. The LRA frequently attacked homes and villages, murdering parents and abducting children.
ChildFund has been working with children and their communities in Northern Uganda for many years. During the conflict, ChildFund responded with programs in some of the worst-affected districts of Pader, Gulu, Lira and Soroti, providing child protection and psychosocial support to thousands of children living in the camps.
In the early years following the crisis, ChildFund focused on reintegrating former child soldiers with their families and communities, as well as promoting the protection and wellbeing of many other children affected by the war.
Now our work has shifted to helping hundreds of families rebuild their lives. The Uganda Community Recovery Program will re-establish agriculture, livestock and poultry production. Young people will be given vocational training and business skills in areas that interest them and provide services to their community, such as carpentry, masonry, hospitality and hair salon management. The program will also establish village savings and loan associations to give people access to low-interest loans and the opportunity to make immediate improvements to their lives.
ChildFund Australia CEO Nigel Spence says: “Given the massive number of people who were displaced and the devastation of land, livelihoods and infrastructure, the process of returning home has been slow. However, in recent years Northern Uganda has undergone a significant positive transformation. Families have left the camps and returned to their homes. More than 12,000 former LRA fighters and abductees have left or escaped the group and returned to their communities. Land has been cleared of landmines and farming is once again possible. With support, families and communities in Northern Uganda can rebuild their lives and recover from their brutal past.”
You can learn more about this work by watching this video.
Children need to feel safe at school. One of the ways we’re improving the facilities and quality of teaching in Indonesian schools is a focus on safety and child-friendliness on school premises.
After undergoing renovations and program changes with the help of ChildFund and its local partner, LPMAS, Karangsari 2 Elementary School earned the child-friendly school designation. Below you’ll learn more about how we work with our partners to create safe and child-friendly schools.
Safe schools and children
The project, which started last September, benefits 216 students and 16 teachers.
Dina, a sixth-grader in Lampung, Indonesia, loves her school now. “It looks clean and nice,” she explains. “It used to be dirty and was full of trash. The walls were cracking everywhere, and we didn’t have many trees either. I feel the teachers care more about the school and us too now. When they see us littering, they remind us not to do so. I even helped clean the school by picking up trash.”
The child-friendly school model aims to help schools become safe, healthy and protective environments for children; eliminates gender stereotypes; and encourages child participation in all aspects of school life.
Safe schools and teachers
Teachers attended a workshop to learn more about the model and how to integrate it into their instructional approach.
“I love children and want to dedicate my life to them,” says Lukiati, the school`s principal. “When children feel happy and secure in school, I feel really happy. I know now that a school must further the interest and strengths of the child, not just teach.
“When we used to call children to come to us, they used to run away. That is because we were just delivering lessons,” she adds. Now, children come to us, even when we don`t call them and happily greet us with Assalamualaikum (Peace be upon you). I learned that when we teach children, we need to do it from our heart.”
As a result of the workshops, Lukiati and the teachers are now more aware of the importance of a creating a conducive learning environment for children. They now understand that children are influenced by what happens inside as well as outside the classroom.
“A child-friendly school benefits both children and teachers alike. This is the first time I have felt that I am really a teacher,” says Kartiyah, a sixth-grade teacher. “I used to just teach the children in class and then go home. Now, I feel the school is really ours the children and the teachers.”
Renovating the school for maximum impact and long-term change
With the support of ChildFund, Lukiati submitted a proposal to Indonesia’s Ministry of Education and received a grant to renovate the school. The walls had cracks, and the space near the school had been used as a garbage dump for years. Dramatic changes were needed.
With the help of the community, a transformation began. Twelve truckloads of garbage were removed from the backyard, and 6,000 baby catfish from the Indonesian Food Security Agency were released into the pond. The community agreed to feed the fish and use the funds from their sale to fund further improvements in the school. The school received 1,500 bamboo seeds from the Pringsewu Environmental Agency and also created a vegetable garden. Proceeds from selling vegetables enable the school to purchase educational materials and organize excursions for the children.
“The school looks so clean, and I like how we display our writings or drawings on the wall now,” says Zainal, a fifth-grader.
Through the child-friendly school model, ChildFund and its partners have built strong partnerships with the government and community. More improvements to Karangsari 2 are still needed to ensure a quality education for students. However, the local government has stated its commitment to continue supporting the school.
“We will continue to support this initiative, since education is essential to child development,” says Sujadi Saddat, the district’s head. “With a solid partnership among ChildFund, the community and local government, we can promote a safe, healthy and protective environment that enables children to achieve their full potential.”
Support the development of child-friendly schools
Creating child-friendly schools is continuing to improve the quality of the education delivered to children in Indonesia, but there are many more schools that need our support. And we can’t do it without you.
There’s a few ways you can support our child-friendly school initiatives. You can donate educational Gifts for Good, a range of charity gifts which provide schools and children with the supplies they need for a quality education.
For an ongoing and meaningful contribution, consider signing up to our child sponsorship program. Your monthly donation will help send a child in need to school by providing them with:
- School supplies that their family can’t afford to pay for
- Transport to ensure a safe journey to and from school
- Healthcare so your sponsored child can learn and grow up strong
- Food to keep your sponsored child nourished so they can enjoy their school experience.
Not sure how to make an impact? Donate to where it’s most needed and your donation will be used to fund projects in our current priority areas.
Every child has the right to a safe learning environment, and your donation will help us help children in need. Because every child needs a childhood.
