Building Capacity of Child Protection Professionals for Family Based Care
UNICEF is committed to engage and educate the community to promote inclusion and family care for children with disabilities.
In a bid to prevent institutionalization and improve the care of children with disabilities in families, UNICEF is supporting the National Child Development (NCD) Agency and National Council of Persons with Disabilities (NCPD) to build the capacity of Child Protection Professionals from all districts as trainers.
The Child Protection professionals are NCD Agency staff deployed at district level who usually supervise and support the Inshuti z’Umuryango – IZU - (translated: Friends of the Family).
IZU are community-based child and family protection volunteers, placed in every village across the country.
The training focuses on increasing awareness on disabilities types and effects among children and why their inclusion matters.
The trainees are also tipped on how to combat stigma using the right appellation for disabilities.
The trained professionals will in their turn train and support the IZU on how to engage parents on care and nurturing their children with disabilities, and promoting inclusion in their communities.
The Parents’ Sheets were developed to guide discussions during home visits, parents’ peer support groups, and community dialogues.
Training hand-outs were given to IZU Coordinators at the sector level from Rubavu District who took part in a practice session. With support from the Government of Norway, UNICEF and NCDA will intensify coverage of the training sessions and support to parents in two districts of Huye and Bugesera with a plan to roll out countrywide.
