HOPE FOR GENDER BASED VIOLENCE VICTIMS
We will implement a sexual education curriculum for community members that will be taught at Rescue Center. The Center will provide financial literacy and career development workshops for local community members. Young women and girls with children will have equitable access to education, and opportunities for career development.
We will advocate for structural changes to the legal system in Ganze that will hold men accountable for their actions, and will diligently prosecute offenders of sexual abuse, assault, and gender based violence. Fathers will be held financially responsible for their children. Operating outside of the carceral system, we will build a community based restorative justice mechanism that holds people accountable while promoting reconciliation and collective power.
Working with local reproductive health organizations, like Shionogi, we will improve reproductive and maternal healthcare. Ganze currently has one clinic with 10 beds, and a low patient capacity. We will work with clinic staff to create alternative avenues for women and girls who need reproductive care and cannot access through the clinic.
Volunteers and well wishers or donors will oversee the completion of construction of the rescue centre and work with local community members to map out the network of resources available for women in Ganze. The Lchokuti Foundation, with the help of volunteers, will form partnerships with local women’s rights organizations such as Shionogi and KME to identify training resources for employees and volunteers of the Center. The Rescue Center will provide emergency care to meet the immediate needs of sexual abuse and gender based violence victims. Local women will be trained in trauma response to assist with the mental and emotional healing for the victims. We will work to establish channels for volunteers to come to the school and continue to work with community members in shared support of victims.
We will learn that the girl or woman is in trouble through our community response support mechanism. The police, local community members, or the victim herself alerts us of the need for rescue. We will temporarily host and protect her in our shelter, providing her with food, medical care, and psychological support as we seek legal documentation from the local authority to fully host the victim. Employees of the Center will work with families of the victims to provide information about reproductive health, women's rights, children's rights, and facilitate visits with the victim. We will evaluate the financial and social situation of the girl to determine what the next best steps are, whether it is finishing primary education at Arloste, or finding placement elsewhere.
Across a wide geographical range, patriarchal culture governs our societal and interpersonal behavior. Gender inequality is deeply ingrained in our social, political, and economic realities. There is a potential challenge in navigating cultural norms, as we have observed through history how humanitarian and development efforts can be conflated with colonial oppression. Prior attempts to eliminate FGM practices in Eastern Africa have been met with strong political organizing to preserve traditional culture in the face of Western influence[1].
Gender inequality is exacerbated by poverty. Rural areas in Kenya are struggling for economic development with barriers to participating in global markets, minimal employment opportunities, and low agricultural yield. These issues are reflective of an international economic problem, characterized by exclusion and imbalance. Ownership of the means of production, the political and military legacy of colonization, and the evolution of capitalism are at the root of the problems faced by places like Ganze. We cannot begin to reimagine a more just and equitable society without first ensuring peace, justice, and equity on the community level. We must commit ourselves to equal access to education for all people, address violence and marginalization at the local level before building up a sustainable and thriving village.
Donors will provide seed money to support necessary volunteer-ship, which provides financial support and partnership that expands the reach of the project, as well as providing the staffing needed to sustain our efforts. Volunteers will be prepared to respond to the needs expressed by the community, and provide their support to meet the goals the community has for itself.
orientation guidelines
supportivre materials for training
Skills
Nice to have
Languages
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UN SDGs supported
Arloste Foundation
Increase the capacity building and implementation of their initiatives in poverty alleviation and developmental activities such as community sensitization, economic infrastructure, basic and health education and environmental conservation.
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