Children at risk

Children at risk
Project funded by:  KIA (Kerk In Actie)

In collaboration with: Kayda (Katwe Youth Development Association) ,, KCV - Katakwi Children Voice, UCAA (Uganda Change Agent Association), Probation and Social Welfare Office, Child Family Protection Unit Police, CDO (Community Development Officers) and Ministry of Gender, Labor and Social Development.

Program duration: 2015- ongoing


In Karamoja there are still different forms of violence towards children in all areas of society: early marriages, female genital mutilation and teenage pregnancies that afflict the region with a rate of 30% higher than in other Ugandan regions. The different cases of violence are not reported due to cultural barriers. In this context, physical and psychological needs, with the addition of poverty, are the main causes of the emigration of children who move to other areas of the country (called "returnees") in search of fortune and who are exposed to a greater risk of exploitation.
In the districts of Napak, Katakwi, Moroto and Kampala, a consortium consisting of 5 NGOs has carried out a three-year program focused on the interception and reintegration of these children in their territories of origin.
A fundamental point is to increase the recovery capacity of children, women, families and communities in the Karamoja region, so as to prevent and mitigate the effects of gender-based violence and migration.
Project collaborators are the government, the local administration and various partners in order to ensure basic services such as health, education, nutrition, and increase the space available in local state and private structures, ensuring sustainable access to basic services .
In addition, the program aims to increase awareness and strengthen parenting skills, involving families and communities in the reintegration process, so as to ensure insertion and support for children and avoid new movements.

You can read the Summary Sheet of the project in 2021 by clicking here

General objective:
to achieve a sustainable way of resettling street children through the empowerment of communities in Karamoja, capable of accessing social services and their rights to strengthen communities in Karamoja to reduce the factors responsible for migration children and their families.

Specific objectives:
to design and support an interception mechanism capable of eliminating migration from Karamoja; create a rescue system that focuses on children and their families; start and support a rehabilitation approach focused on children and families; create a model of reintregration and reconciliation maintained by the communities themselves; create a technology-based empowerment system for children (VSLA, food safety and agribusiness). reintegrate karimojong boys into their families; strengthen operating systems and structures for the protection of children in the areas in charge; increase the involvement of children in decision-making processes that affect their social, economic and political well-being and in the development of policies and programs that influence their life at local, district and national level.

You can read the main results in the 2019 annual report by clicking here

Support our activity in Italy and Uganda