To improve the well being of orphans and other vulnerable children (OVC) and families affected by HIV/AIDS, Pro Pride, in partnership with Save the Children USA and with the financial support of USAID, had been implementing PC3 program in Dire Dawa and six towns of East and West Hararge zones of Oromia Region beginning from mid-2005. Under this program, the organization managed to reach more than 27,000 OVC and their families with comprehensive care and support comprising education, health and nutrition, psychosocial, legal protection, life skill, and livelihood services. As part of the program strategy and as a result of the community mobilization and capacity building efforts made, the organization involved 19 community organizations and their constituencies in the implementation of the program, and this had helped the organization to lay the ground for the sustainability of such services and a support system within the community. The organization also established strong linkage and collaborative relationships with health facilities, micro and small enterprise development bureau, vocational training institutions, microfinance institutions, NGOs, schools, and other concerned government and non-government bodies in the area and this was a very important factor enabling the organization and its local partners to reach this number of children with comprehensive services.
Yekokeb Berhan Program for HVC
Pro Pride had also involved in Yekokeb Berhan program for HVC, which was a follow on program to the OVC Care and Support Program, implemented in partnership with Save the Children USA and with the financial support of USAID. Pro Pride had implemented the program in partnership with Pact Ethiopia and financial support of USAID. The program, which was of five years duration, intended to improve the wellbeing of highly vulnerable children in Ethiopia by strengthening systems at the households, communities, regional and national levels.
Savings groups organized under Yekokeb Berhan Program for HVC in Amhara Region
As one of the local organizations involved in the initiative, Pro Pride had implemented the program in six towns namely Finote Selam, Bure, Dembecha, Sekella, Dega Damot, and Quarit of West Gojjam Zone of Amhara regional state and hence reached a total of 15,272 highly vulnerable children with various services and support from May 2012 to December 2016.
The organization had carried out a lot of activities that helped improve the well-being of children and their families. The activities carried out include providing HVC with Educational Support in the form of scholastic materials, tutorial support, covering school fees and school uniforms, etc.), Shelter and Care (in the form of hygiene and sanitation materials), Economic Strengthening (packages of training and Matching fund), Child safety support (birth registration), Health care support (Covering medical support, immunization, HIV counseling, testing, and treatments), Psychological support (home to home guidance and counseling), food and nutritional support (direct food support and practicing gardening vegetables).
This initiative had helped improve the wellbeing of highly vulnerable children of the intervention areas using the continuum of care approach to ending child vulnerability in which target children had received health, education, shelter, nutrition, psychosocial, legal, and economic support in family and community settings. The economic strengthening intervention had also enabled HVC families to organize themselves in saving and credit groups and also acquire basic business skills as well as planning, selection, and management of micro-enterprises (ME-SPM).