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Child Rights Training Material Validation workshop successfully completed! 13-15 Dec 2023

by EventsUncategorized

Event Date: 13 – 15 December 2023 2026

Event Location: Addis Ababa

Event Category: Inclusive Finance

Development of Child Rights Training Material

In a significant step towards promoting inclusivity and safeguarding the rights of children and children with disabilities in Africa, a three-day Validation Workshop on the Development of Child Rights Training Material recently concluded. Held in Addis Ababa from 13 to15 December 2023, the workshop aimed to evaluate and refine the training material in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Participants were from child-led organizations, Organizations of Persons with Disabilities and ADF staff. The initiative was made possible by the Civil Society Strengthening Programme, led by Save the Children and implemented by various partners, including the African Disability Forum (ADF).In a significant step towards promoting inclusivity and safeguarding the rights of children and children with disabilities in Africa, a three-day Validation Workshop on the Development of Child Rights Training Material recently concluded. Held in Addis Ababa from 13 to15 December 2023, the workshop aimed to evaluate and refine the training material in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Participants were from child-led organizations, Organizations of Persons with Disabilities and ADF staff. The initiative was made possible by the Civil Society Strengthening Programme, led by Save the Children and implemented by various partners, including the African Disability Forum (ADF).

a group of participants sitting around a table working on an activity for the workshop

The workshop brought together a dynamic group of individuals, each contributing their unique perspectives and experiences. With representatives from child-led organizations and Organizations of Persons with Disabilities , the collaborative spirit of the event underlined the importance of working in the best interests of the child, as outlined in the UNCRC, taking into account children with disabilities.

The main objective of the workshop was to scrutinize and enhance the developed training material, ensuring its consistency with the principles outlined in the CRC and CRPD. These international conventions serve as cornerstones for advocating for the rights of children and persons with disabilities, emphasizing the need for a holistic, rights-based approach to their well-being.

a group of people standing together with a banner that says: validation workshop on child rights training material development. Global civil society strengthening programme (2022-2026)

Participants engaged in thought-provoking discussions, sharing insights derived from their rich experiences in advocating for child rights and disability inclusion. The diverse backgrounds of the attendees fostered a rich dialogue that enriched the process of developing the material. This collaborative effort not only ensured cultural sensitivity, but also incorporated a wide range of perspectives, making the training material more comprehensive and applicable. The material encompasses topics of enabling environment, intersectional challenges, the right to participate, the right to survival, the right to protection, and the right to development. The commendable progress made during this workshop was made possible with the support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. The Sida-funded Civil Society Strengthening Programme has been instrumental in empowering organizations to advocate for children’s rights and inclusion of persons with disabilities in Africa and globally. This initiative exemplifies the positive impact that targeted funding can have on fostering a world where every child’s rights are respected and upheld. As the workshop draws to a close, the refined training material is a testament to the collaborative efforts of the participants. Going forward, the implementation of this material in diverse settings will play a pivotal role in empowering communities to advocate for the rights of children and persons with disabilities. The shared commitment to the principles of the CRC and CRPD will undoubtedly pave the way for a more inclusive and compassionate future. The successful completion of the workshop marks a significant milestone in the ongoing efforts to protect and promote the rights of children and persons with disabilities. The collaborative endeavours of participants, under the support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, exemplify the potential for positive change when diverse voices unite for a common cause. As these refined training materials are disseminated and implemented, the impact on communities and societies at large promises to be profound, fostering a world where the rights of every child are not only recognized, but actively championed.

IMG-20211012-WA0010

Five-day regional meeting organized by WaA! Programme Knowledge Management Working Group held in Nairobi, Kenya from Oct 4-8

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Event Date: 4–8 October 2021

Event Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Event Category: Inclusive Finance

We are Able! Programme Knowledge Management Working Group

A five-day regional meeting was organized by the We are Able! Programme Knowledge Management Working Group in Nairobi, Kenya from October 4-8.

The We are Able! programme, funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs as part of the Power of Voices Partnerships for Strengthening Civil Society, is being implemented by a consortium consisting of ZOA, the African Disability Forum, See You Foundation (Light for the World), the Leprosy Mission Netherlands, VNG International and The Hague Academy for Local Governance. The programme is also implemented together with the local partners in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda between 2021-2025.

The We are Able! programme strives at co-creating inclusive governance for access to basic resources that leaves no one behind. We are Able! focuses on empowerment, amplifying voices and creating resilience among persons (including men, women, and youth) with disabilities and other excluded groups, particularly those faced with food insecurity in areas of protracted crises. While persons with disabilities are the core target group of the We are Able! program, we create benefits for other excluded groups like vulnerable women, youth in general, marginalized ethnic groups and internally displaced persons (IDPs), as applicable per context.

The main goal of the We are Able! Knowledge Management is to ensure that knowledge/experiences within the programme are continuously assembled and transformed, including through partnerships, into better development results for people with disabilities and other marginalised groups, and for greater programme impact.

As part of the Knowledge Management-MEL framework, annual learning and sharing events are designed to generate, use, and share the best available evidence and experiential knowledge to achieve higher quality operations as well as greater visibility and influence. Hence, the knowledge management working group aims to deliver outcomes including enhance use of evidence-based planning and programming, peer-learning and knowledge and good practices sharing across the programme, a strong learning culture among WaA! Partners through interactive/collaborative engagements, sharing and co-creation and higher quality interventions and country-specific results through adaptive programming and action learning for the We are Able! programme between 2021-2025.

The main objectives of the regional learning and sharing event included:

  • Share lessons learnt/challenges and bests practices from Y1 implementation period;
  • Discuss Baseline 1&2 findings and the scoping studies with the view of streaming baseline data for the WaA! Basket indicators;
  • Discuss the integration of food and nutrition security and the Y2 implementation plans;
  • Discuss the shift of power training conducted in county;
  • Discuss how to integrate Local Authorities in the central role of promoting food and nutrition security for persons with disabilities;
  • Harmonize the understanding of the WaA! programme among Country Coordinators and Monitoring and Evaluation officers;
  • Discuss the role of L&A in Food and Nutrition security and the Y2 implementation;
  • Generate insights for the finalization of the Y2 detailed planning for the WaA! programme to be submitted in November 2021 to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
  • Teambuilding.

The main outputs achieved by the event include feedbacks on the baseline study findings, reflection on lessons learned from Year 1 of the programme and scoping studies research, food security and livelihoods governance, lobby and advocacy at country level/disability inclusion and shift of power, team-building and Year 2 implementation plans.

Participants included representatives from We are Able! programme, staffs from the six African countries where the program is under implementation representing ADF, ZOA, VNG international, the Hague Academy for Local Governance, See You Foundation and The Leprosy Mission, and also colleagues from the ZOA HQ Netherlands.