SECOND ANNUAL SOUTHERN AFRICA LOCAL

PROJECTS:PREVENTION
GOVERNMENT AND GENDER JUSTICE
SUMMIT AND AWARDS
28 – 30 MARCH 2011
KOPANONG HOTEL, JOHANNESBURG,
SOUTH AFRICA
“365 DAYS OF LOCAL ACTION TO END GENDER
VIOLENCE: HALVE GENDER VIOLENCE BY 2015”

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 HOW DID YOU GO ABOUT IDENTIFYING
THIS PROBLEM?
PROJECTS:PREVENTION

• School rape of learners by learners and learners by educators

• High levels of violence
• Gang activity
• Unemployment
• School absenteeism
• Mass school drop out of girls due to bullying
• High rate of teenage pregnancy in school
• Substance abuse
• General disrespect for human rights among learners

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 IS THIS ISSUE IMPORTANT?
PROJECTS:PREVENTION

• Yes, youth often more open to ideas and influence by peers

• Feel that their peers are able to relate more to the issues
• Involvement and participation of youth, educators and care
givers
• Youth social justice and activism enhances youth social
problem solving skills
• Strengthens networks within communities

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CENTRE
 HOW ARE YOU GOING ABOUT
ADDRESSING THIS PROBLEM?
PROJECTS:PREVENTION

• Established human rights clubs within schools

• Members conduct Awareness to Action campaigns
• Form networks, post discussions through social media
• Established educator’s care teams
• Established parent/care giver forums

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 WHAT IS THE TIME-FRAME FOR THE
PROJECT?
PROJECTS:PREVENTION

• Launched the human rights club concept in 2008

• It started functioning in 2009
• Presently offer ongoing support to clubs until 2013
• For clubs to run independently by 2013
• Publicise the project in the website

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CENTRE
 WHO IS THE KEY TARGET? WHO IS
INVOLVED? ARE WOMEN AND MEN
EQUALLY INVOLVED?
PROJECTS:PREVENTION

• Primary and Secondary School learners

• Educators
• Collaborate and share knowledge with community
organisations and forums for youth, women and men

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 PARTNERSHIPS FORMED THROUGH THE
PROJECT
PROJECTS:PREVENTION

• Government
• Civil Society Organisations
• East London Industrial Development Zone (ELIDZ)
• Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature
• Volunteers

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CENTRE
 RESOURCEFULNESS: WHAT FINANCIAL,
HUMAN AND OTHER RESOURCES WERE
MOBILISED?
PROJECTS: PREVENTION

• Donor support for the project

• Community support
• Human Resources – have had two staff members working
within the schools
• Volunteers who have received honorarium for their assistance
In addition supported by administration team in setting up of
meetings, camps etc
• Each club has a leadership committee
• Each school has an educator as additional member of the
committee

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 MONITORING AND EVALUATION
PROJECTS: PREVENTION

• Club visits and ongoing workshops

• Focus group discussions with community and other stakeholders
• Monthly and quarterly reports by clubs
• Gender disaggregated data
• Participant feedback forms
• Pre and post activity questionnaires
• Independent evaluation
• Attendance registers
• Longer term tracking of members and impact

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 WHAT RESULTS HAVE BEEN ACHIEVED?
PROJECTS: PREVENTION

• 18 Human Rights Clubs established since 2009

• Department of Education recognizes value of the programme
• Growing number of Human Rights Club advocates
• Decrease in school absenteeism
• Improved school performance and greater opportunities for
youth
• Safer schools environment
• There is a reduction in teenage pregnancies
• Improved sexual reproductive health and rights of girls

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 IMPACT (BASED ON THE SADC
PROTOCOL TARGETS)
PROJECTS: PREVENTION

• Articles 20 – 25 and 27 of the SADC Protocol on Gender and

Development
• Promote the rights of women and girls in communities
• Build a human rights culture throughout the school
environment
• Build capacity of male youth, boys and men to become allies
with female youth, girls and women in finding effective
solutions and in preventing boys and men’s violence

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 EFFECTIVENESS
PROJECTS: PREVENTION

• Decreased levels of school absenteeism

• Members demonstrate increased agency for leadership
• Decreased levels of school violence and sexual harassment
• Good practice methods of intervention shared by networks of
clubs and community through social media
• Greater demand from other schools for replication of intervention

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 SUSTAINABILITY AND REPLICATION
PROJECTS: PREVENTION

• Started with 1 club and now we have 18 clubs

• Provide continued supervisory, consulting, financial and human
resource
• Funded by Bread For the World, Ford Foundation etc
• External evaluation recommended intervention as model of
excellence needing sustained replication
• The project aims to expand this intervention beyond East
London to Port Elizabeth, Cathcart, Alice, Mthatha, Libode,
Peddie, Centane, Butterworth and King Williamstown by end of
2011

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 LESSONS LEARNED
PROJECTS: PREVENTION

• “Where, after all, do women and girls’ rights begin? “In small
places, close to home – at the school and playground…
• Learning must be done in an environment that models human
rights
• Focus of human rights education is not on external issues but
on inward personal values, attitudes and behaviours
• See human rights from perspective of real life experiences
• Local action for human rights is critical

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PROJECTS: PREVENTION

ANY QUESTIONS?

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