GRACE Cares partners YOCUPA and MYEP in Zambia to educate and empower their communities. MYEP is launching a Resource Center in Lusaka for children aged 1-9 which will be a vibrant hub of learning to ignite young minds with the joy of reading and exploration. YOCUPA will undertake both online and offline facilitated activities to prevent child sexual violence primarily through the production of videos and facilitated discussions within their very active Anti Sexual Harassment Action Groups.
Zambia faces challenges in providing quality education to children due to poverty, inadequate infrastructure and other factors. Many children do not have access to formal education. The Resource Center will provide a nurturing space for children to develop a love for education and reading. The Zambia Police Victims Support Unit reports an increase in child sexual abuse, particularly online. There is an urgent need to prevent sexual violence, people need to have more education and awareness.
This project will offer technical assistance and material support to YOCUPA and MYEP, both in Zambia, for their vital community education efforts. With GRACE Cares' support, MYEP will launch a new Resource Center to promote education and reading for children. YOCUPA will produce four episodes of video content to initiate online live-streamed weekly discussions focused on preventing child sexual abuse.
YOCUPA has the ability to reach 50,000 beneficiaries in 12 months with prevention, healing, mitigation, counseling, and pulling down of child sexual violence materials online. The new knowledge and information gathered through the facilitated live online platforms will be used to improve content in future video production and offline live drama performances. MYEP is providing a service in the community that does not otherwise exist and is creating a culture of reading and learning.
