SUMMARY:

Sekhukhune Educare Project (SEP), is a Limpopo-based non-governmental organization (NGO) that

provides psychosocial, educational and nutritional support to orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC) and

facilitates increased access to social security grants and other social services. SEP identifies and trains

community members as child care volunteers, building their capacity to provide direct care and support to

OVC. The primary emphasis area for these activities is human capacity development (training). Target

populations include orphans and vulnerable children, caregivers, people living with HIV and AIDS. SEP

integrates OVC and home-based care (HBC) work through a home visit system, where caregivers identify

and supply services for both adults and children. Children then receive some additional services outside the

home through Child Support Groups and Theatre. SEP does not provide food, except in emergency

situations. SEP assists with food security through grant access, household budget training and follow-up,

gardens and provides referrals for food parcels from the South African Government. Through an ongoing

reflection/action process SEP asks questions about community ownership and sustainability. This process

helps Sekhukhune to improve the safety nets for children model, which provides a range of services for

vulnerable children and their families, including training, child support groups, grants access, etc.

BACKGROUND:

SEP works in Limpopo, one of the poorest provinces in South Africa with an HIV prevalence rate of 21.5

percent. In Makhuduthamaga Municipality, where SEP operates 52% of the population is unemployed

(census 2001), 44% have not had schooling and only 11% have matriculated.

SEP will continue to work closely with Child Care Forums (CCFs), government departments, schools and

the local municipalities to raise awareness about the impact of HIV and AIDS on children and their families

and encourages communities to find their own solutions for OVC who need care. CCFs are community-

based structures focusing on the needs of OVC. The role of the CCF is to ensure the identification of OVC,

to be aware of initiatives involving child care and support, to create awareness of OVC issues, to assess

OVC needs, to liaise with other community-driven initiatives focused on children and to perform advocacy

for OVC in the community. CCFs are a vital component for sustainability of OVC programs and community

involvement in ensuring that the needs of OVC are addressed. SEP will partner with the Local AIDS Council

and encourages key local players to actively participate and support OVC in the Limpopo province. With

PEPFAR funding through the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, SEP has delivered care and support

services to over 1,500 OVC in the past two years. SEP used to be a sub-partner under the Nelson Mandela

Children's Fund program which ended in FY 2006. SEP has a cadre of 70 trained caregivers providing

services to OVC in the Sekhukhune district.

ACTIVITIES AND EXPECTED RESULTS:

ACTIVITY 1: OVC Support

With FY 2008 PEPFAR funding, SEP will continue to provide intensive care and support services for OVC

including individual needs assessments for each OVC, psychosocial and nutritional counseling, homework

assistance, play group therapy at the resource centers, and training in home-based care, counseling, child

development, community development, mapping, keyhole gardening and psychosocial support. During

home visits, SEP child care volunteers conduct individual OVC needs assessment and provide counseling

and guidance on nutrition, hygiene and appropriate child protection guidance. OVC support, referrals, and

household and family support will be provided by the child care volunteers when they identify a household

with an ill parent. SEP child care volunteers will also provide homework assistance and support to ensure

that OVC stay in school. SEP child care volunteers will continue to provide support to obtain legal

documentation such as birth and death certificates to assist OVC to access government social security

grants. For OVC who cannot afford school fees and uniforms, SEP child care volunteers will assist with

school fee exemption applications and will ensure that OVC have the necessary school uniforms, school

shoes and stationery. SEP will strengthen its partnership with a local SCORE Supermarket, to provide food

vouchers for OVC who need emergency food assistance.

One-day workshops will be held in villages to assist OVC households with budgeting skills to provide OVC

households with the skills needed to efficiently utilize their social security income to meet long- and short-

term needs of OVC. OVC households are also provided with training to establish and cultivate food gardens

to improve the nutritional content of the meals for OVC and their families. SEP will provide training and will

act as the secretariat for the CCFs and the local municipality in monitoring and reporting on OVC issues in

the community. Feedback will be used to improve service delivery and strengthen coordination of services.

ACTIVITY 2: Human Capacity Development

SEP will provide training to its child care volunteers on counseling, needs assessment, referrals, child

rights, child protection and the special needs of the girl and boy child. Child care volunteers are also trained

as home-based care providers. In FY 2008, PEPFAR funds will be used to provide the Government's 49

days of training for home-based care (HBC) which is the South African Government standard HBC training

program. These trainings are conducted by the Department of Social Development (DOSD) which has a

tailor-made Home-Based Care (HBC) module. Training is also provided to SEP volunteers by another

PEPFAR partner, the Hospice and Palliative Care Association. This training covers the topics of child care,

child rights, and other useful modules that relate to palliative care.

SEP will provide HIV prevention messages to all primary schools in its district. The South African Police

Service also conducts gender sensitivity training for SEP child care volunteers.

ACTIVITY 3: Home-Based Care (HBC) for OVC

HBC is provided for OVC who are ill and the affected household will be assisted in managing the child's

illness. SEP will train home-based caregivers to provide these services. Households with OVC who are sick

are visited once per week and more often if necessary. For OVC and the families that are terminally ill, visits

are done on a daily basis. In order to sustain HBC for OVC, strong linkages have been established with the

local hospitals and clinics. OVC are referred to SEP from the hospitals and vice versa.

Activity Narrative: ACTIVITY 4: Psychosocial Support

SEP child care volunteers will identify and provide OVC with psychosocial support and these children will

receive advanced psychosocial support and follow-up. The SEP psychosocial support program will address

coping skills, self-esteem issues, memory work, family trees, and spirituality. SEP will also establish child

support groups which will provide among other things, healthy and appropriate recreation activities for OVC.

This will be done in partnership with community groups, churches and schools. Safe spaces will be

identified for these groups to meet on a biweekly basis. SEP will use community theatre techniques to

increase the resilience and confidence of children. Children who have participated in the theatre activities

have an opportunity to act out or dramatize their experiences, challenges, frustrations and angers and it

also has provided OVC with an opportunity to search for solutions to the challenges they face. The plays

focus on gender issues and provide an opportunity to sensitize the community and the children to gender-

related problems and solutions. In FY 2008, PEPFAR funds will be used to facilitate theatre camps and

expose children to visual art and dance. For those children who live too far from the Ikageng Dishaba

Theatre, SEP partners with these select primary and secondary schools to arrange theatre activities at the

local school. During these theatre activities, participation of the child is encouraged and children are given

the opportunity to lead activities.

ACTIVITY 5: Keyhole gardens

Sekhukhune is affected by drought and lack of water is a big issue. Shortage of water combined with

challenges encountered with community gardens, has led SEP to use keyhole gardens within household

premises. Keyhole gardens are small and use recycled waste water from the household. SEP will also

investigate the use of drip irrigation. Keyhole gardening techniques will be facilitated by the child care

volunteers who will receive training. Disused boreholes will be investigated, and made productive again

through Play Pumps and other providers with necessary expertise to rehabilitate unused boreholes. The

SEP partnership with the Department of Agriculture will be used to provide seeds and equipment, where

necessary.

ACTIVITY 6: Children with disabilities

A community assessment/mapping exercise will assist us to identify disabled children. SEP will also map

what services/resources already exist and develop relationships/partnerships with other institutions for

referral and resources. Disabled children will receive both home and other community services, offered

through child support groups.

ACTIVITY 7: Early Childhood Development (ECD) Teacher training for preschools

SEP offers ETDP-SETA accredited ECD training for preschool teachers. The training covers good health

and safety practices, active learning for children, making equipment and learning resources and activities

for children, working with families, and management of a preschool. One group of 25 practitioners will be

trained.The Sekuhukhune Educare Project OVC activities will contribute to the PEPFAR goal of providing

care and support to 10 million HIV-affected individuals, including OVC.