By partnering with ground level Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), VITAL supports sustainable development projects which ensure the many disadvantaged and vulnerable children around the world receive access to equal and quality education, healthcare facilities, nutrition, protection and emergency shelter.
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Child Protection and Education Program Location: Rambagan, Kolkata, India Program for Children living in Red-light District: VITAL is partnered with the Child in Need Institute (CINI ASHA) for this project which aims to protect 300 children living in and around the red light area of Rambagan in Kolkata from exploitation and abuse. We provide the many disadvantaged and vulnerable children of the area with access to quality education, protection and basic health services, counselling and recreational activities as well as opportunities to develop leadership and other skills that will provide them with employment prospects. There are an estimated 400 red light areas in India with 2-3 million prostitutes working in them of which it is reported that 30% are children. The revenue generated from this business runs into millions of dollars each year. One of the biggest concerns for the government and non-government organisations is that the numbers of children trafficked into sex work increases by up to 10% each year in some of the brothels. Rambagan, in the north of Kolkata, is one of the 27 red light areas in the city. According to various reports, 100,000 sex workers operate in the city and of these, 40% are below 18 years of age. In Rambagan, brothels co-exist with slums and homes of small traders. Young girls growing up in the areas are at high risk of being trafficked into sex work, or being married off in their adolescence years to prevent being sold into sex work, both of which violate their rights to having a childhood protected from abuse and exploitation. The children living in red light areas are amongst the most vulnerable to exploitation and abuse as they exist in an environment that is riddled with violence, alcohol, drugs, trafficking and deprivation. Many of them are emotionally traumatized and suffer from low self-esteem hence counselling plays a fundamental role that helps to overcome their trauma. Counselling services are also effective in helping the children express their suppressed feelings which they are otherwise unable to do at their homes. In cooperation with a local club and its members, safe spaces have been located which include schools and vacant rooms in houses , for children in the age group 5-16 age group, to have opportunities to study, have extra teaching support and leisure activities at a time of the day when they might otherwise have been in situations of risk to their personal and psychological safety. The projectís education program is based on Evening Preparatory and Coaching Centres which are staffed by community teachers and local youth clubs who are key stakeholders in the project. Our objectives are to ensure that childrenís rights to protection and education are respected, that children are enrolled into formal schools upon completing sufficient preparatory schooling and to provide back up support and tuition to prevent drop outs. In addition, the children are provided with dance and theatre training, counselling and career guidance, and karate as part of our holistic approach to providing them with support and care. Children below the age of 5 were generally looked after by their older siblings (if any) who in turn could not attend the projectsí Evening Coaching Centre and eventually dropped out of school. Mothers would feed their babies with alcohol to put them to sleep while engaged in their profession. The babies would spend most of their lives under the bed while their mothers are busy with clients. In response, an initiative to set up an Evening CrËche for children under the age of five was established, to both look after infants while their mothers were at work and to ensure older siblings were attending school and focusing on their education. An Adolescent Support Centre has been developed for the huge numbers of adolescents who are out of school. These adolescents are particularly more vulnerable to addiction and gambling, especially in the evening as they have nowhere to go whilst their mothers are engaged. After adequate training two 'watch groups' of adolescents have been formed to create an awareness on the prevention of early marriage of girls, trafficking & disappearance of children, prostitution of underage girls as well as new entrants into the sex trade, risks of early motherhood, HIV/AIDS, child abuse and violence. Overall, this project provides integrated services to young people growing up in difficult areas so that they can enjoy the benefits of education in an environment where they feel protected, where they have possibilities to have access to culture and recreation, get basic health care, and where they are provided with life skills to help them to enjoy their childhood and youth. This will contribute to their overall development and offer them a better future. Goal To ensure children living in and around the red light area are not deprived of their rights to protection, development and education by mainstreaming them into formal schools and also providing them with opportunities for educational support, intensive counselling and therapeutic/recreational activities. Activities In response to needs expressed by the communities and the children through focus group discussions and regular interactions, VITAL and CINI ASHA implements the following activities:
Monitoring and Evaluation Monitoring will be conducted through the following internal processes: Field visits will be made twice a week to monitor the implementation of the activities, to have regular interaction with the children, their mothers and other community members and to follow up needs expressed by the children including counselling sessions. Additionally, progress of the childrenís education will be monitored by comparing the children's school results against their performances in the coaching centres. We also intend to equip the adolescent groups to monitor migration, early marriage, school drop outs, underage new entrants into the sex trade in their areas and disappearance of children. Reports on the above will be compiled and analysed on a quarterly basis and future activities will be informed by the findings. Evaluation: An end of year evaluation will be done by external consultant/s to study the impact of our services. It will be participatory in nature and will involve the community members, particularly mothers and young adolescents. Stakeholders Community teachers, local youth clubs, community-based organisations, community volunteers -mainly comprised of mothers, implementing organisation Child In Need Institute, and funding organisation VITAL. |
