Reconsidering child protection systems: Critical reflections

Published: No date
Author: Bill Forbes, Alexander Krueger, Nicole Behnam, Philip Cook, Mike Wessells and John Williamson

This paper examines the most recent large-scale development in child protection work—the shift from individual child protection projects towards strengthening national child protection systems.

CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICT A FIELD SCAN

Published: No date
Author: Riva B. Kantowitz for Care and Protection of Children (CPC) Learning Network Columbia University

This paper seeks to articulate the main trends and challenges in the field of children affected by armed conflict. Its objective is to summarize lessons learned over the last decade, provoke reflection, generate questions and suggest potential strategies to improve the lives of more than one billion children affected by violence and deprivation.

Resguardos de Paz – Módulos del proyecto. Guardia Indígena

Published: no date
Author: War Child Colombia

Una historia de resistencia y protección Guardia Indígena. Acciones para la protección comunitaria, defensa de los derechos humanos y construcción de memoria histórica en comunidades indigenas en los departamentos de Choco y Antioquia, Colombia.

Resguardos De Paz – Módulos Del Proyecto. Maach Thuejen Khun. Estrategia guardianes del bosque, un retorno a las tradiciones

Published: no date
Author: Medardo Rafael Barros B. & War Child Holland, Colombia

Consultoría en derecho propio de la etnia Wounaan del Chocó, Colombia.

Integrating MHPSS & peace building: a mapping and recommendations for practitioners

Published: 2023
Author: Michael Wessells, PhD. & Raksha Sule

This is the Report of a Consultancy conducted on behalf of the IASC Thematic Working Group on MHPSS & Peacebuilding within the IASC MHPSS Reference Group. The report was shared and discussed widely in four global consultations conducted July-September, 2022 with young people, grassroots practitioners, and policy and thought leaders.

How Process Matters in Strengthening MHPSS: A Reflection

Published: 2023
Author: Michael G. Wessells

In developing the IASC Guidelines on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings, attention to social process was key for success. A reflection on this process by one of the authors, Michael G. Wessells.

Community-driven systems change

Published: 2021
Author: Firelight Foundation

The power of grassroots-led change for long-term impact, and how funders can nurture it.

Community action to reduce child marriage in Shinyanga, Tanzania. Summary report

Published: 2021
Author: Firelight Foundation

This report summarises achievements and learnings from an independent evaluation conducted by the AfriChild Centre of Excellence for the Study of the African Child, CBO grantee-partners’ reports, reports from community dialogues conducted by grantee-partners with their communities, consultant reports, and observations and reflections by Firelight staff.

Community action to end ‘early sex’ in Kenya: Endline report

Published: 2020
Author: Kathleen Kostelny, Ken Ondoro, & Mike Wessells

An endline study (Oct-Nov 2019) of action research undertaken in Marafa and Bamba, Kenya. The research aimed to develop and test systematically the effectiveness of more community owned processes of child protection that link with formal, government aspects of child protection, and to use the learning from the research to strengthen practice.

Ficha de situación – Chocó: Quibdó

Published: 2020
Author: MIRE–Mecanismo Intersectorial de Respuesta a Emergencias

Ficha de situación – Chocó: Quibdó. Comunidades de Villa nueva, Wounaan Phoboor y Wounaan la Paz.

Minimum standards for child protection in humanitarian action – 2019 edition

Published: 2019
Author: The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action

The updated 2019 edition of this global guidance for minimum standards for child protection in humanitarian action.

Enhancing community engagement in child protection Kampala and Arusha Workshops – Highlights from the workshops

Published: 2018
Author: Community Child Protection Exchange for the Interagency Learning Initiative (ILI)

A themes-focused report back of the workshops held in Kampala and Arusha 30 Jan-01 Feb and 06 Feb-08 Feb, 2018. These workshops were designed to create the time and space for practitioners in Uganda and Tanzania to reflect deeply on aspects of their own organisation’s community-based child protection work, learn about each others’ work and other evidence and learning, and to think about how they might employ some different approaches moving forward.

 

Protecting children through village-based Family Support Groups in a post-conflict and refugee setting, Northern Uganda: A Case Study

Published: 2018
Author: Written by Glynis Clacherty, edited by Lucy Hillier, with contributions from Mike Wessells for the Interagency Learning Initiative (ILI)

This case study tells the story of a child protection programme developed by a community-based organisation called Children of the World that works in villages in northern Uganda. The Children of the World programme was chosen for this set of case studies because of its focus on the importance of a personal psychological process for real sustainable child protection.

Truck drivers stand for child protection – The story of the Regional Association of Truck Drivers Against Exploitation of Children, Uganda, Kampala/Mombasa trucking route: A Case Study

Published: 2018
Author: Written by Glynis Clacherty, edited by Lucy Hillier, with contributions from Mike Wessells for the Interagency Learning Initiative (ILI)

This case study tells the story of a regional association set up by truckers to protect children, in particular to stop truck drivers from picking up girls under 18 in the towns along the Uganda section of the Kampala-Mombasa trucking route. It tells the story of some of the truckers who took a stand against sexual exploitation of under-age girls as individuals and how they approached the Uganda Reproductive Health Bureau (URHB) to help them with technical information.

Communiqué from the Interagency Learning Initiative (ILI) on Community-based Child Protection Mechanisms and Systems – Entebbe, Uganda, November 13-15, 2018

Published: 2018
Author: The Interagecy Learning Initiative on Community-Based Child Protection and Systems Strenghtening

We came together as child protection actors from global, regional, national and local contexts to reflect on progress to date, and to identify next steps, in supporting stronger community-led or “bottom-up” approaches to strengthening child protection systems.  We renewed our commitment to putting communities in the driving seat to protect their own children and we successfully agreed at the meeting how we would take action forward.

Community-based protection and mental health and psychosocial support

Published: 2017
Author: UNHCR

A report by UNHCR which seeks to help community-based protection actors and MHPSS practitioners understand the implications of their work for one another’s field of expertise including how they can collectively contribute to the wellbeing and protection of people affected by forced displacement.

Community-based alternative care as a strategy for protecting Burundian refugee girls and boys: a case study from Mahama camp, Rwanda

Published: 2017
Author: Plan International

A case study which describes the community-based child protection programme implemented between 2015 and 2016 with Burundian girls, boys and adults in Mahama refugee camp in Rwanda.

The impact of protection interventions on unaccompanied and separated children in humanitarian crises – Executive summary

Published: 2017
Author: Williamson, K., Gupta, P., Gillespie, L.A., Shannon, H. and Landis, D. for Oxfam GB.

The executive summary of an independent systematic review, commissioned by the Humanitarian Evidence Programme which identifies, synthesizes and evaluates existing evidence of the impact of protection interventions on unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) in humanitarian crises since 1983.

The impact of protection interventions on unaccompanied and separated children in humanitarian crises – Full report

Published: 2017
Author: Williamson, K., Gupta, P., Gillespie, L.A., Shannon, H. and Landis, D. for Oxfam GB

The full report of an independent systematic review, commissioned by the Humanitarian Evidence Programme which identifies, synthesizes and evaluates existing evidence of the impact of protection interventions on unaccompanied and separated children (UASC) in humanitarian crises since 1983.

The impact of protection interventions on unaccompanied and separated children in humanitarian crises – Evidence brief

Published: 2017
Author: Williamson, K., Gupta, P., Gillespie, L.A., Shannon, H. and Landis, D. for Oxfam GB

The evidence brief of an independent systematic review, commissioned by the Humanitarian Evidence Programme which identifies, synthesizes and evaluates existing evidence of the impact of protection interventions.

From the ground up: developing a national case management system for highly vulnerable children – An experience in Zimbabwe

Published: 2017
Author: N. Beth Bradford

A case study from Zimbabwe on how a national case management system for orphans and vulnerable children was built based on a community based care model.

How collaboration, early engagement and collective ownership increase research impact: Strengthening community-based child protection mechanisms in Sierra Leone

Published: 2017
Author: Michael Wessells, David Lamin, Marie Manyeh, Dora King, Lindsay Stark, Sarah Lilley and Kathleen Kostelny

Chapter 5 of the publication “The Social Realities of Knowledge for Development: Sharing Lessons of Improving Development Processes with Evidence” published by the International Development Institute, 2017. Using Interagency Learning Initiative (ILI) action research in Sierra Leone, this chapter from a DfiD provides a case study on how a highly collaborative approach can enable child protection research to achieve a significant national impact. The chapter describes how the inter-agency research facilitated a community-driven approach to addressing teenage pregnancy.

Presentation by Eddy Walakira – Kampala workshop, 17-18 August, 2016

Published: 2016
Author: Eddy Walakira

This presentation looks at the results of a War Child Holland initiative in Northern Uganda around prevention of violence against children in a post war setting.

Presentation by James Kaboggoza – Child Protection Systems in Uganda

Published: 2016
Author: James Kobogozza

An overview of a recent mapping of child protection systems in Uganda.

Community engagement to strengthen social cohesion and child protection in Chad and Burundi – “Bottom Up” participatory monitoring, planning and action

Published: 2016
Author: International Institute for Child Rights and Development (IICRD), Dr. Philip Cook, Michele Cook, Natasha Blanchet Cohen, Armel Oguniyi & Jean Sewanou

A final report on action research which looked at how communities can help drive monitoring, planning and action around social cohesion strengthening and child protection in Chad and Burundi.

“Adapting to learn, learning to adapt”: Overview of and considerations for child protection systems strengthening in emergencies

Published: 2016
Author: Child Frontiers on behalf of the Systems Strengthening and Disaster Risk Reduction Task Force - co-led by the CPC Learning Network and Plan International

This review targets actors supporting child protection responses in humanitarian settings. The document aims to provide an overview of child protection systems strengthening in emergencies practice to date, and propose certain key considerations with regards to systems for child protection practitioners.

Global Synthesis report of PLAN International’s support to community-based child protection mechanisms

Published: 2015
Author: Plan International

PLAN International’s review of its global programmes for community-based child protection. NB this is a very large file: 50MB

Summary of studies undertaken on community based child protection mechanisms 2009-2014

Published: 2014
Author: Community Child Protection Exchange

A short round up of studies undertaken since the publication of the 2009 review “What are we learning about community based child protection mechanisms?” All the studies are hyperlinked.

Tanzania: Linking community systems to a national model of child protection

Published: 2011
Author: Sian Long, Maestral International

This report describes a child protection system strengthening initiative that was piloted in four districts in Tanzania. The aim of the initiative was to improve the delivery of social and protective services to all children, especially the most vulnerable, with a view towards building an evidence base for an effective child protection model that can be scaled up nationally.

A Ugandan childhood: through the eyes of children and parents

Published: 2011
Author: Child Protection in Crisis Network

In 2011, 320 children from across Uganda participated in a consultation on the nature of childhood in the country. Drawn from urban and rural areas children shared their hopes as they described what they saw ‘doing well’ as a child to mean. Over 150 parents also indicated their own aspirations for their children.

Sudan: An in-depth analysis of the social dynamics of abandonment of FGM/C

Published: 2009
Author: Samira Ahmed, S. Al Hebshi and B. V. Nylund for UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre

An Innocenti Working Paper Special Series on Social Norms and Harmful Practices.This paper examines the experience of Sudan by analysing the factors that promote and support the abandonment of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and other harmful social
practices. Despite the fact that FGM/C is still widely practiced in all regions of northern Sudan, women’s intention to circumcise their daughters has decreased significantly during the last 16 years. Attitudes are changing and today, actors are mobilizing across the country to end the practice. This paper examines these changes. It analyses programmes that support ending FGM/C in Sudan and
highlights the key factors that promote collective abandonment of the practice, including the roles of community dialogue, human rights deliberation, community-led activities, and the powerful force of local rewards and punishment.

Agencies, Communities, and Children

Published: 2008
Author: Nicole Benham

A Report of the Interagency Learning Initiative: Engaging Communities for Children’s Well-Being.

This 2008 report, commissioned by an inter-agency steering committee and produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development’s Displaced Children and Orphans Fund, drew largely upon interviews with practitioners to draw out factors that both enable and constrain good practice with regards to working with community-based child protection and welfare groups.

Agencies, Communities and Children: a report of the Interagency Learning Initiative: Engaging Communities for Children’s WellBeing

Published: 2008
Author: Nicole Benham for the Interagency Learning Initiative

A report which aims to identify key issues, as a step toward the development of a broad consensus on good practice in engaging with communities to promote children’s safety and wellbeing.

Mobilising Children & Youth into their Own Child- & Youth-led Organisations

Published: 2008
Author: Kurt Madoerin. Published by REPSSI

Several decades of experience in working with vulnerable children across the planet had resulted in Kurt coming to believe that in the face of family, community and societal disintegration, the single most important supportive “intervention” that could be offered “to”, and more importantly “with” children and youth, might be the mobilisation of children and youth into their own child-led and youth-led organisations.

Community Action and the Test of Time: Learning from Community Experiences and Perceptions

Published: 2006
Author: Jill Donahue and Louis Mwewa

Case studies of mobilisation and capacity building to benefit vulnerable children in Malawi and Zambia.

Impact Evaluation of the VSI (Vijana Simama Imara) organisation and the Rafiki Mdogo group of the HUMULIZA orphan project Nshamba, Tanzania

Published: 2005
Author: Glynis Clacherty and Professor David Donald

The aims of the Humuliza Project are to develop a practical instrument to enable

teachers and caregivers to support orphans psychologically and to develop the

orphans’ own capacity to cope with the loss of their caretakers.