Plan International Canada

Purpose

This initiative aims to improve the safety and quality of school and community environments for 120,000 vulnerable girls and boys in Kwale and Kilifi counties. The initiative supports governments and community organizations to improve access to safe and high quality learning environments, to strengthen child protection systems and increase birth registry with the objective of reducing early marriage, violence, and abuse of children. The initiative fosters innovation and harnesses the strengths of Kenya’s vibrant mobile technology industry to pilot initiatives such as digital birth registration. Some initiative activities include: (i) training and mentoring people responsible for child protection, including teachers, health staff, police, judiciary to identify, report and refer cases of child abuse, and help rehabilitate and reintegrate children; (ii) training and mentoring members of school management committees and community-based organizations to detect and prevent abuse and exploitation and take action against offenders; (iii) establishing and strengthening child protection units, and support groups for survivors of abuse and their families; (iv) setting up a system for community based reporting of child protection cases using mobile phone technology; (v) establishing a teacher-offenders database to increase the number of cases reported and to institutionalize reference checks for teachers seeking employment; (vi) supporting the expansion of Kenya's national child helpline; (vii) developing a pilot digital birth registration system and supporting awareness campaigns to prevent early marriage and promote birth registration; (viii) reviewing policy and legislation to identify gaps and action needed to address child protection in schools and communities; and (ix) supporting the establishment of equitable water and sanitation facilities for girls and boys in 40 schools.