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Digital Generation: Preparing our children for the new age.

Digital Generation: Preparing our children for the new age.

In today’s world, technology has become and integral part of daily life and a major driver of development through access to information and education.

Technical skills and digital literacy are essential in a world of computers and phones. To prepare children for increasingly digital job and business markets, it is important that they are not left behind and learn to navigate digital devices and software applications. However, the online world also poses risks to children’s safety and wellbeing.

In preparation of the Day of the African Child #DAC2023 on 16th June 2023, African Partners for Child Poverty (APPCO) participated in a radio chat program to sensitize community members especially children, parents, teachers on this topic. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) details children’s basic rights to life, health, food and education as well as the right to express their views and have their opinions heard. Furthermore, children have the right to be safe from violence, abuse, neglect, and exploitation, even more so in the digital sphere. The dangers include excessive time spent online, exposure to inappropriate content, e.g. pornography, cyber harassment and manipulation, among others.

Our discussion centered on parents’ roles in protecting children’s safety in the digital era.

Parents, guardians and teachers can do the following to protect children:

  • Support and monitor children whenever they are using digital devices.
  • Control and have a time limit for children when using digital devices.
  • Ensure that TV channels subscribed and the programmes they are watching are suitable for children’s age.
  • Be aware of the content children access online and talk with them about the experiences and learnings they got.
  • Be mindful of children’s behaviors, moods and characters and talk with them about the things they have seen.

APPCO is an active member of the GBV working group in Gulu and participated in the radio talk show organized by Favour ministries in conjunction with Gulu city. We thank the organizers for the opportunity to share with our community on upholding children’s rights also in the digital era.

Back to school Campaign in Gulu district.

BACK TO SCHOOL CAMPAIGN  IN GULU DISTRICT.

Appco conducted a back-to-school campaign in northern Uganda following the long break as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown. The campaign that had engaging activities targeted community groups. The community dialogue had various groups participating to remind parents that they have a responsibility for sending their children back to school since the new school year was soon starting.

Learning, going to school, and remaining in school so that they can complete school is the most important activity in a child’s life because it prepares children for the world of work, brings hope and dignity to children and their families, and opens doors to a prosperous life filled with knowledge, experiment, and wonder. The discussion focused on taking and supporting children to remain and complete school. Disability Inclusiveness where Children with disability have equal opportunities with children without disabilities Emphasis was put on parents and caretakers to take children to schools that they can afford.

As part of the community participation, the members were argued to create advocacy posters messages. Posters were displayed with different messages and discussion was generated from these posters as shown in the above pictures:

Our Project coordinator Murungi Prosy during the discussions emphasized that “Every child has a right to Education, health and protection and every parent or caretaker has a responsibility of spending quality time with their children”. She encouraged parents to “set examples” for their children to follow, create an enabling environment at home for children to freely discuss body changes, HIV, and understand the unique needs of young people, especially adolescents getting the urge to be attracted to the opposite sex.

Community Radio Intervention

COMMUNITY RADIO INTERVENTION

Because of the lockdown, social gatherings were banned and these made it hard to reach some communities. APPCO came up with the idea of using community radios to create awareness within the community. Before the installation of the community radio, a consultative meeting was conducted in

both sub-counties, and members from the communities were selected to spearhead the management and maintenance of the community radio. The organization agreed to have pilot community radios in Unyama sub-county and Bardege division. The community was consulted on this and agreed to manage

these radios. These radios played a role in reaching many people within the communities with the message of Ending GBV. Both the church and the political wing welcomed the approach and this became a tool for conveying information by the leaders to the advocacy of ending GBV.

COMMUNICATION FROM THE PROJECT COORDINATOR

She thanked the LC1 for allowing them to host the radio in his compound and the general public for being positive about the radio. She went ahead to emphasize that the radio is not for the LC1 but for the community. The reason as to why the radio was installed was due to the ban on gatherings and yet there is a need to continue with awareness creation which caused the need for community radio.

The radio management committee was tasked with the management of the community radio and therefore there is a need for community contribution towards payment of bills like electricity and maintenance of the radio. She was glad that there were witnesses from the local government and elected leaders. She emphasized that the radio shouldn’t be used for politics but instead for announcements and adverts for its sustainability.

WHAT THE CDO SAY DURING THE RADIO LAUNCH

The CDO present appreciated the effort from APPCO towards creating communication channels during this hard time of COVID-19. He advised the Community to utilize the community radio and take the owner of the radio to sustain its usage and maintenance. “All community members need to know the referral pathway”. He later used the community radio that evening to re-echo elder persons for SAGE enrolment since most of them had missed out.

End of GBV Project Meeting

Appco alongside its stakeholders and partners within Gulu city came together for the closing meeting on the project “combating stigma against survivors of SGBV and their children”. The project that was funded by the UN Women’s trust fund ran for 4 years since 2018 came to an end. The project’s target group was SGBV survivors and children who were located in 5 locations of Unyama, Bungatira, Paicho, Layibi, and Bardege.

During the meeting, which was attended by a variety of stakeholders, numerous reviews and resolutions to end gender-based violence were made. Diverse stakeholders, including CDOs, SPWO, OC, structures, survivors, and staff, attended a one-day review meeting. As the GBV project came to an end, participants believed that the APPO’s operations in Gulu as an organization—including the SPWO in her opening remarks—would also come to a stop. However, Mr. Osuwat Martin the ERM APPCO came up and clarified this saying “The project coming to an end is not there or APPCO has ended. The project is not ending but we are checking on how far we have reached and how we can improve on how to do better if the structures can stand and do things alone. Today we are here to do a review that is impact-based (2018-2021). We are to review what has been done, and what can be done better. Even without guidance, we can move alone. It remains with red light; the project has not ended because the structures who understand what to be done are there”.

highlights of the project.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES

  • To Increase public support from faith Leaders in promoting positive attitudes among GBV survivors
  • To Increase number of youth and children participating in advocacy and action to end stigmatization linked to sexual violence
  • To Improved capacity of community prevention and response systems to support survivors and COVID-19 prevention and response.

KEY PROJECT MILESTONES

  • Advocacy (High participation of youth in the Use of drama acts to push the message of Ending GBV in the communities, Integrating GBV messages into church summons by Faith leaders)
  • Assistance: Home visits for GBV survivors and offering psychosocial support. Promoting positive living for GBV survivors)
  • Build Capacities (Strengthened GBV case referral pathways, Forming women groups that engaged in Village Savings and Loan Association)
Youth from Unyama sub-county in gulu district performing a DRAMA kit advocating to end GBV.
APPCO staff engaged with Women groups in a community dialogue in Bungatira sub-county, Gulu district.