ACTIVITY HAS BEEN MODIFIED IN THE FOLLOWING WAYS:

OVC targeted to received services increased from 3,600 to 4,000

Caregivers trained increased from 1,200 to 1,400.

COP08 Narrative below

ACTIVITY DESCRIPTION: This activity is related to Track 2 Christian Aid activity in eight States,

Community Care in Nigeria (CCN), that provides comprehensive services to OVC using a similar model.

The Community Based Care of Orphans and Vulnerable Children (CBCO) program is a multi-country Track

1.0 OVC project. CBCO local partners in Nigeria are the Anglican Dioceses of Jos and Makurdi in Plateau

and Benue States, respectively. Jos Diocese covers the urban and rural areas of Plateau State. These

areas have high HIV rates (up to 7.7% in some areas) and are prone to widespread conflict and

displacement, resulting in large numbers of OVC. Makurdi Diocese, in Benue State, covers Makurdi city and

large parts of the surrounding rural areas. Benue state has experienced consistently high HIV rates of over

9% since 1999 when it peaked at 16%.

Christian Aid is partnering with the health and development units of Jos and Makurdi Dioceses, the Gospel

Health and Development Services (GHADS) and Anglican Diocese Development Service (ADDS).

Emergency Plan funding will be used to: support a capacity development program with ADDS and GHADS;

establish community-based OVC support structures that directly provide services and facilitate referrals;

train clergymen and community organizations to combat stigma and provide counseling; support advocacy

for the leverage of additional support for OVC; support lesson learning and the roll out of national OVC

initiatives at State and Local levels.

The expected impact in COP8 is to improve the quality of life for 3,600 OVC including the provision of Direct

Primary support to at least 2,400 and Direct Supplemental Support to a further 1,200. In addition, 1,200

caregivers will be targeted in COP08. In order to ensure these targets are reached, all registered children

will be monitored regularly using the CBCO OVC and Quality Assurance Tracking Database, which has

incorporated the CSI. The Database utilizing the draft GON monitoring tools allows the monitoring of

services provided directly by CBCO, by referral from CBCO, by another organization independently and by

services leveraged by CBCO.

Community organizations, in collaboration with the CBCO partners, will directly provide a selection of

essential services from the six core areas (food and nutrition, shelter and care, protection, health,

psychosocial support and education).

Economic Strengthening Services for OVC Caregivers

Representatives of OVC households will be mobilized into Savings and Loan Associations (SLAs).

Members of SLAs save for several months and when their savings become significantly large draw small

loans, which they use for income generation activities, school fees and uniforms, etc. To complement this

economic strengthening work and bolster their food and nutritional security, the groups will also be

supported with self-help projects in agriculture and complementary sectors, e.g., seed and livestock

multiplication.

Psychosocial and Food/Nutrition Services to younger OVC

OVC between the ages of 6 to 11 years of age whose guardians are attached to the SLA groups will

participate in weekly Kids Clubs activities. Trained peer facilitators take the children through a structured

manual informed by material developed by the Regional Psychosocial Support Initiative (REPSSI). In this

way, these children receive quality, structured psycho-social support. Under-5s will be targeted for

preventive health care support, birth registration, weight monitoring and food/nutrition support. This will take

the form of training and/or provision of food supplements locally mobilized through existing community

groups.

Healthcare and Psychosocial Support Services for Older OVC

Older OVC - those between the ages of 12 to 17 years of age - are mobilized into youth clubs and

participate in the program's weekly life skills sessions. The sessions are also facilitated by trained peer

educators by material informed by Population Services International (PSI) and other national and

international reputable material. Through the life skills sessions, these older OVC benefit from both

healthcare support (i.e., reproductive health) and psycho social support.

Child Protection Services

Within the SLA groups, Child Protection Monitors are appointed. The Monitors are responsible for visiting

the homes of each of their fellow SLA members at least twice per month. Here, they spend time with the

OVC, thereby, providing adult mentorship support, as well as ensuring they are not being physically or

mentally abused, stigmatized, and/or discriminated against. When minor child protection cases are

revealed, they counsel the guardians in question to explore alternative ways of treating the children. More

serious cases are reported to OVC Support Committees, established in each community, child protection

committees, and/or local government officers/police for resolution. Through this mechanism, the project is

working to ensure that all the children are systematically monitored following the Child Status Index (CSI)

and, therefore, benefit from child protection support, as well as one-one-one counseling support.

Educational Services

Despite the economic strengthening work that is being undertaken, there are still many OVC who are

unable to attend school, particularly at the secondary level. Given this, rigorous targeting will be undertaken

with the OVC Support Committees and SLA groups to identify older OVC in most need of secondary school

support, and this is provided. In addition, older OVC who cannot be integrated into the formal education

system, i.e., those that do not even possess a basic educational foundation on which to build, will be

provided with vocational training through local training institutions.

Activity Narrative: The two partners in CBCO will also facilitate referrals to other organizations to fill in significant gaps. ADDS

and GHADS will develop advocacy skills that will enable them to leverage additional support from public

sector service providers. Priorities are likely to include advocacy to remove constraints to Universal Basic

Education (UBE) and to improve access of vulnerable groups to services of organizations such as NAPEP.

The potential of private sector support for OVC services (e.g. school support) will also be explored.

In order to ensure primary targets are reached and to assist scale up, priority will be given to interventions

that have low costs per OVC and can cover large numbers (e.g. child protection committees, Savings and

Loans Associations for income generation).

CONTRIBUTIONS TO OVERALL PROGRAM AREA:

The program will support the development of a network of organizations implementing household/family-

based OVC programs as set out in the Emergency Plan. It will directly contribute to serving 4,000 OVC. The

program will improve the lives of OVC in line with the National HIV/AIDS Strategic Framework by delivering

sustainable, comprehensive quality approaches to care and support services, by strengthening socio-

economic, nutritional and psychosocial support programs for vulnerable groups and by building capacity for

implementation of HIV/AIDS technical responses. It will encompass all six components identified in the

National OVC Plan of Action as being essential for scaling up OVC support effectively: Service Delivery

Environment, Education, Health, Household Level Care and Economic Strengthening, Psychosocial Needs

and Social Protection and Monitoring and Evaluation Framework.

Christian Aid and partners will assist, through advocacy and support to lesson learning with State and Local

Government stakeholders, the roll out of activities supported at national level by PEPFAR policy partners

and programs. In addition, the participation of State Ministry of Women Affairs representatives and SACAs

and LACAs in program activities support local coordination and provide a venue for the sharing of lessons

learned.

LINKS TO OTHER ACTIVITIES:

Linkages will be established with HIV/AIDS treatment centers and community adherence activities (care and

support programs) and TB/HIV programs to ensure that OVC and caregivers stay alive and in good health,

to counseling and testing centers to enable family members to receive necessary support and to PMTCT

providers to reduce the increase in numbers of HIV+ children.

TARGET POPULATIONS:

This program targets girl and boy OVC and families affected by HIV/AIDS. It will provide services to OVC

and family members in community settings using existing established and accepted community

organizations as service providers. In addition, religious leaders, including priests, bishops and leaders of

women's organizations will be trained to combat stigma in their work and will be supported to engage

productively and openly with PLHA.

EMPHASIS AREAS

This program includes an emphasis on Local Organization Capacity Development and community

mobilization, nutrition and training. In addition, emphasis will be on increased access to micro-finance for

households provided by existing rural development programs of ADDS (Benue State only). ADDS and

GHADS, working with Christian Aid, will encourage greater access to income generation opportunities

through advocacy to regional branches of institutions such as NAPEP and will encourage provision of UBE

through advocacy to local and State Government stakeholders. The program will also aim to a) support

equal numbers of male and female OVC and address cultural and economic factors that limit access to

services of either gender; and b) develop opportunities for women to increase their access to economic

resources.

New/Continuing Activity: Continuing Activity

Continuing Activity: 13017

Continued Associated Activity Information

Activity Activity ID USG Agency Prime Partner Mechanism Mechanism ID Mechanism Planned Funds

System ID System ID

13017 5430.08 U.S. Agency for Christian Aid 6369 3714.08 USAID Track $231,770

International 1.0 Christian Aid

Development

6724 5430.07 U.S. Agency for Christian Aid 4165 3714.07 Track 1.0 $175,665

International

Development

5430 5430.06 U.S. Agency for Christian Aid 3714 3714.06 Track 1.0 $0

International

Development

Emphasis Areas

Gender

* Increasing gender equity in HIV/AIDS programs

* Increasing women's access to income and productive resources

Human Capacity Development

Estimated amount of funding that is planned for Human Capacity Development $29,700

Public Health Evaluation

Food and Nutrition: Policy, Tools, and Service Delivery

Food and Nutrition: Commodities

Economic Strengthening

Estimated amount of funding that is planned for Economic Strengthening $7,417

Education

Estimated amount of funding that is planned for Education $7,417

Water

Table 3.3.13: