During these unpresented times of Covid-19 we've been working tirelessly to adapt our work and support the needs of the community. We're proud to say that we've been working with Bubi District Hospital to help them prepare for cases with equipment such as hand sanitisers, gloves, masks and hand-wash stations. Support for this effort now has its own appeal if you'd like to support it (thank you).
We've also been working to ensure the latest information about safe practices reaches the public and we have drawn information from sources like World Health Organisation, John's Hopkins University and the BBC. Communicating with the people we usually serve is challenging as not everyone has access to a phone or mobile data so we've been using various means to help get the message out.
At the same time we've been putting in place a number of safety measures to allow our staff to return to the office as quickly as possible and get out into the community where they can, (following social distancing protocols and safe practices) continue to deliver the essential services that gain young people their birth certification documentation and in turn access to services, legal advice and that silver bullet – education.
We’d like to take this moment to thank all those in the areas we work in who’ve done so much to protect their communities and save lives, and all of you who help us fund our work to see that the most vulnerable people are not left even further behind when this crisis struck.
Links:
This quarter we are happy to report the success story of Anisha and her grandmother and caregiver, Chelya. Anisha was born in South Africa and was brought to Zimbabwe by her mother, Samantha, upon her return when Anisha was six months old. However, due to Samantha’s chronic illness and inability to meet registration requirements, Anisha was an undocumented citizen and subsequently excluded from education.
Chelya attempted to resolve the issue by approaching the Registrar General’s Office several times. However, her attempts were unsuccessful. In South Africa, Samantha used a pseudo-name to access maternal health. This meant that when Chelya tried to register Anisha, she could not prove that Samantha was her mother; it was Samantha’s pseudo-name that appeared on the health card, appearing that various essential registration documents did not match.
After many unsuccessful attempts, Chelya approached the Trinity Project. Owing to the strong stakeholder relationship between the organisation and the Registrar General’s Office, Trinity Project successfully lobbied for the registration of the Anisha in line with the National Constitution of Zimbabwe (2013), the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of Children and United Nations Convention on the Right of the Child. As a result, Anisha managed to obtain a birth certificate represented by her grandmother instead. Anisha is now a registered Zimbabwean citizen and is enrolled in school. This also enables Anisha to access her various socio-economic rights associated with health and justice.
Anisha’s case represents the many children who are at risk of having their future compromised and being trapped in the vicious poverty cycle that will increase their risk of sexual exploitation, child trafficking, sexually transmitted diseases, teenage pregnancies, child marriages and more. Without access to identity documents, children are not visible in the eyes of the state and remain on the peripheries of official society. It means not being part of the national population register, disabling the state from providing adequate services like education and social services. They face challenges that those with access to identity documents will never face. The Trinity Project continues to work to protect and empower these vulnerable individuals.
Alongside other business: This quarter saw us focus on the strategic elements of our work on birth registration.
Trinity project being a major stakeholder in access to documentation, we were approached to lead community mobilisation and to present before the panel of commissioners the challenges they face in trying to assist clients. The organisation managed to partner with Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission on the National Inquiry on access to documentation in Zimbabwe by leading community mobilisation in the provinces of Bulawayo and Umguza. Clients were given a platform to present their testimonies and talk about the challenges they are facing during birth registration before the ZHRC Commission and also in the presence of the Registrar's officers who are responsible for issuing birth certificates.
After the presentations were made we further recommended that, regular mobile exercises be conducted by the Registrar’s Office and the Registrars themselves to adopt definitions of a 'relative' that is friendly and relevant to our sociocultural background (the laws should be relevant to us). We also recommended that requirements be loosened in order to allow relatives and traditional leaders to register children.
Work at this level is the most sustainable form of delivery and lays the ground for millions of future Zimbabweans to be registered correctly at birth and access their full set of rights.
In amongst business as usual... this quarter Trinity has spent time reflecting on the rich history communities have in engaging with adolescents and youths. The multi-agency approach to supporting them has yielded great things in shaping the lives of young people and empowering them to be their own agents of change and the driving forces in their own lives as they grow to adulthood.
In business as usual...we managed to train 20 Sexual and Reproductive Health mentors using the Sista to Sista Approach which offers a comprehensive package of knowledge on SRH, HIV, Cancers, teenage pregnancies, among other pressing issues which affect young people. The training was on the SRH manual that has 40 sessions.
We managed to conduct 2 awareness meetings on SRH, HIV, Non-Communicable Diseases and Voluntary Male Medical Circumcision. The communities was encouraged contribute in the reduction of new HIV infections and in disseminating information on SRH and HIV, among other issues. A total number of 104 (50 male and 54 female) people were reached during the two meetings in Bubi and Mzilikazi District.
We've also provided sanitary products to 75 young ladies. This has contributed much to good hygienic practices among girls, reduced vaginal infections, reduced the chances of getting cervical cancer and even increased the girls attendance at school. Provision of sanitary wear has also reduced the chances of girls getting sexually abused in exchange for money for sanitary wear. While we're delighted with this we note that it was not enough to provide products for every member of the group.
We're also happy that we managed to procure stationery for the vulnerable members of Songintandane Kids Club in Iminyela Surbub of Bulawayo. The stationery procured was distributed to 127 children.
In addition to other resources we hope to procure bicycles for Mentors especially those in Bubi district.
Links:
The issue of birth registration rumbles on in Zimbabwe, contravening a basic human right and leading to a number of vulnerablities throuhout life including lack of access to education and denial of inheritance. In 2016 it was estimated that 2.4 million 0-17 year olds do not have their births registered. Our work in 2017 in Bulawayo estimated the percentage unregistered at 44%!
This quarter we're proud to share with you a simple case study for two children. Seen in the picutre, the outcomes of one beneficiary who, following legal advice and support offered by Trinity, was able to get her ID documents and birth certificate for herself and her younger brother. A brighter futre now awaits on a foundation of newly found security.
Links:
Project Reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you will get an e-mail when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports via e-mail without donating.
We'll only email you new reports and updates about this project.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
