Kakuma Refugee Camp is among the largest refugee camps in Africa and the World.
The Camp, located in North-Western region of Kenya, provides abode to approximately 200,000 refugees and asylum-seekers.
Kakuma is one of the implementation sites for the Joining Forces for Africa (JOFA) Child Protection Project.
The JOFA project Child Protection Needs Assessment conducted in December 2020 revealed that children living in Kenya were experiencing various forms of violence. Among the findings was that physical and emotional violence against children has risen. Both children and their parents were experiencing increase psychological and emotional distress, and children were facing higher levels of emotional and psychological abuse from parents and caregivers.
The findings showed that 34.5 per cent of children in Kakuma refugee camp who were interviewed during the assessment reported being forced by their parents in various forms of child labour. The report quotes a child respondent in the survey saying:
“Parents see child labour as normal and if you don’t support them in selling goods, they beat you up and deny you food.”
There were minimal engagements of parents with children in conversations promoting child protection at household level. The inadequate awareness among parents and caregivers was due to lack of consistent initiatives in Kakuma refugee camp that deliberately target parents and caregivers and enable them to acquire prerequisite knowledge and skills on positive parenting.
Our response: Parenting without violence
As part of the JOFA Project’s efforts to ensure parents and caregivers have increased capacity, skills and support to mitigate the child protection risks associated with COVID-19 and its secondary impacts, World Vision in rolled out the utilization of Parenting without Violence Model in Kakuma refugee camp in April 2021.
The Parenting without Violence model is designed to support parents and caregivers build strong relationships with their own children or those under their care, by enabling them to resolve problems together.
The Parenting without Violence model was developed by Save the Children international as a common technical approach. The JOFA project has adopted and adapted the approach for implementation by various partner agencies in Kenya, Uganda, Mali and Ethiopia.
Nyandeng a 37-year-old mother of eight children who have lived at Kakuma Refugee Camp for the last seven years, was among the parents and caregivers at the Camp identified to be engaged in the Parenting group activities, through the use of parenting without violence model.
World Vision organized the parents and caregivers into 126 parenting groups, each comprising of 25 parents and/or caregivers and ensure that they were engaged regularly, taking them through parenting lessons as guided by the parenting without violence model.
During one of the Parenting Group meetings, Nyandeng was able to identify negative aspects of her parenting and confessed her challenges. Nyandeng described herself as one who had poor perception about children and people in general and did not mind resorting to violence to communicate and express her displeasure in different circumstances.
The Parenting without Violence model includes several introspective moments during the training. Participants are often asked to visualize what a good future looks like for them and internalize. They are also asked to recall moments where they behaved inappropriately towards their children.
A key message featured in the model’s facilitator’s guide book includes:
Just because a child is not behaving the way you want, does not mean their behaviour is “bad”. It may be a natural reaction to anxiety, fear, sadness, boredom, frustration or lack of understanding about what is happening. If your child is not behaving the way you want, try and understand the feeling behind the behaviour.
During the sessions, parents and caregivers are also encouraged not to be demoralized if they did not handle a situation entirely as they hoped, they have a chance to try again.
Nyandeng and the rest of the parents in the parenting groups have so far been able to acquire tactics to manage stress and find ways to care for themselves, understand their children’s rights, the development and protection risks that children face. They have learnt how not to discriminate their children along gender biases and be informed on where and how to seek help.
Nyandeng observes that her perceptions, attitudes and actions towards her children have changed since she joined the Parent Support Groups.
“I think completely differently from the way I used to before this training. I act calmer than I used to before this training with World Vision”, she said.
Nyandeng particularly notes that she no longer takes drastic actions towards her children, when they are on the wrong such as corporal punishment. Rather she patiently and calmly guides them.
She specifically remembers a pivotal moment during the training:
“For me, the part that the parenting without Violence trainer taught us that I like the most is the part where we were taught on how to coexist in a family and be the ones to lead in bringing peace in the family. This part was very important because we were shown some of the best ways to coexist in the family and we have applied them they are actually working on us.”
“The other day, my child fought at the communal water point. I didn’t take any drastic action. I just took my child home and apologized to the other family. Everyone was surprised and couldn’t believe that was me!” said Nyandeng.
She continues to narrate, “I remember an incident where my eldest son asked me for money and I told him I didn’t have money at that moment, he talked back at me harshly and used abusive words towards me, I didn’t take any drastic action at him, I rather allowed him to have his time and later had a moment of talking to him and I was able to show him the best way to respect elders, he never repeated what he did to me.”
While on one hand Nyandeng believes she is on a path to lasting change as a result of the Parenting without Violence Parent Group Sessions, her 13 year old daughter, Sunshine (not her real name), agrees that her mother’s interactions with her and her siblings has changed for the better.
Sunshine vividly recalls both her parent’s excessive aggressive nature towards her and her siblings.
“Whenever, I made any mistake, they would punish me in a way that made me feel like I was not their child.” She said. Sunshine added that it was also not unusual for her parents to not bother with providing their basic needs.
Sunshine further expressed her desires: “I want my parents to take good care of me and love me. I would like my parents to understand me and gently show me the correct path in a way that will not hurt me. I also want them to provide my basic needs all the time.”
Luckily for Sunshine, through the Parenting without Violence Parent Support Group sessions, her mother’s eyes were opened to her and her siblings suffering.
In the utilization of the Parenting without Violence Model, it has emerged that:
- For effectiveness, the parenting model should be complemented by school-based Child Rights Clubs. Most parents identified to take part in the Parenting Support Groups have their children as members of Child Right Clubs. Children in the Clubs learn about their rights and have open discussions on child protection issues. This enables children to be better prepared for meaningful interactions and engagements with their parents who are beneficiaries of the parenting without violence model.
- Consistency in attending Parenting without Violence model Parent Support Group sessions is important. It is the Project’s endeavour to ensure all the beneficiaries attend the sessions and walk the journey together.
As at September 2021, a total of 3150 parents and caregivers were engaged in the Parenting without Violence Parent Group sessions. During the same period 1,780 children from five primary schools within Kakuma Refugee Camp, were engaged through child rights and child protection sessions in the clubs. The project also reached 1,530 children through community peer-based networks. These are networks of children within the refugee block residential arrangement.
Keep up to date on the progress of the project by signing up to JOFA’s quarterly newsletter
Get the latest news, case studies, learning briefs, voices of children, and more.
This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union.
Its contents are the sole responsibility of Joining Forces and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union