ORPHANS AND VULNERABLE CHILDREN (OVC)PROJECT

HIV/AIDS is a deadly disease which still has no cure. There is a big number of orphans who have lost their parents and guardians to HIV/AIDS. These children most of the time are left to fend for themselves and their siblings. This places them in a vulnearble position. If no attention is given to these children, they might end up becoming victims of the same disease that took away their loved ones.

After a number of surveys, FORWARD identified the need for the Orphans and Vulnerable Children project in Zago, Ajumawa, Gwanda and Dambatta communities in Dambatta Local Government Area of Kano state.

A pilot project was funded by the Global HIV/AIDS Initiative in Nigeria (FHI/GHAIN) under USAID. It began in October 2005 and ended in June 2006. FORWARD was able to sustain the project till November 2006 and is still sourcing for funds to continue the OVC project. A total number of 350 orphans benefited from this project. A total of 166 caregivers were involved in the project.

Objectives achieved

FORWARD achieved the following objectives on the OVC project:

 Educational Support; a total of 250 OVCs benefitied from this service.

 Home Based/School Visits; a total of 1,600 visits were conducted.

 Children’s Support Club; a total of 608 children, 313 males and 295 females were involved.

 Psychosocial Support Training; a total of 136 caregivers, 12 volunteers and members of the Project Management Team (PMT) were trained.

 Life Skills Training; a total of 80 OVCs were trained and are now peer educators for their communities.

 Nutrition Training; a total of 100 caregivers received nutritional education and training.

 Referrals; a total of 274 referrals were made to the WWCC (Well Woman and Children Campaign) and some then onto the General Hospital Dambatta.