programs

To achieve its mandate and to see its vision come through GCN has the following programmes that work in a complementary manner:

1. GIRLS’ EMPOWERMENT CLUBS The girls’ club strategy has proved to be the most effective strategy in mobilizing, nurturing and mentoring girls as it is through the club that knowledge and skills are imparted to girls at community and school le vels. Since inception, the girls’ clubs have remained the epicentre and nerve centre of the organization as they create the so much needed space and time for girls to meet and come up with realistic and practical solutions to dealing with challenges in the home, school and community. The programme takes girls into 5 stages of empowerment that include, needs identification, mobilizing through clubs to break silence on rape and other forms of abuse, articulating and formulating strategies, confidence building and leadership and active participation in self as well as community development and empowerment. The clubs create much needed space and time for girls to meet, have conversations, ask questions about issues affecting them and work together and, with supportive adults, to come up with solutions. The program takes girls through five stages of empowerment, which are: • Needs identification • Mobilizing to break the silence on rape and abuse • Formulating and articulating strategies • Confidence building and leadership development • Active participation in self and community development. Since GCN’s inception, the girls’ clubs have remained the heart and creative centre of the organization. GCN has several other programmes, all designed to contribute to promoting the full growth and development of the girl child in all spheres of life, and therefore of entire communities. • Setting up and management of girls clubs in schools so as to create platforms where girls meet and go through the above stages of empowerment • Promote information, knowledge and skills sharing on career guidance, scholarships, referral to service providers within girls’ clubs • Educate girls on their legal rights, reproductive health issues, HIV/AIDS, peer to peer counseling, leadership and how to start and run girls clubs etc. • Develop girls’ social, problem-solving through peer to peer counseling, leadership, self-defense skills, with the aim of helping groom confident, assertive young women. • Skills training (life skills) • Implement mentorship programs. • Club launches are monthly celebrations that officially recognize girls who would have excelled in the empowerment programmes	2. ADVOCACY AND LOBBY This program saves as a “mouthpiece of the girl child” in lobbying policy – and law makers to formulate, amend and implement policies and laws that protect the girl child, including those that address gender equality and equity, HIV/AIDS, orphan care, sexual offenses, Child/Victim Friendly Court structures, and harmful traditional practices. Advocacy also targets harmonizing Zimbabwean laws with regional and international legal statutes like the Convention on the Rights of the Child and AU Protocol on Women’s Rights (To which Zimbabwe is a signatory member). • GCN conducts extensive community based sensitization about existing laws and policies that protect the rights of women and children and engages in a significant amount of media, radio and television debate and publicity. • At a strategic level, the Girl Child Network seeks to engage stakeholders, including communities, schools, government, and policy makers in advocacy and lobbying for eradication of practices which impede the girl child’s full physical, emotional, spiritual growth and development. • Policy change is critical to ensure that court cases of child sexual abuse are handled within the shortest time possible. (In Zimbabwe, sexual abuse cases can take up to two years to be heard in the courts, during which time the abusers may still be living in the communities with ample access to their accusers, often resulting in intimidation. • Popularization of laws, policies, regional and international legal instruments that promote and protect girls’ rights in the home, school and communities • Lobby for the enactment of the proposed Child Sexual Offence Bill and review of the Marriages Act and other laws that undermine the rights of the girl child • Advocate for effective implementation of laws and policies that protect girls • Train traditional leadership on laws and policies that protect the rights of the girl child • Lobby government for a functional children’s court and effective Victim Friendly Courts with Victim Friendly people and equipment • Advocate for girl child friendly language and programmes through the media, radio and television • The programme belongs to various child welfare and Gender Based Violence Taskforces nationally, regionally and internationally which are watchdogs of children’s rights. GCN has built strong coalitions with local, regional and international coalitions to ensure protection of children’s rights and help to build a strong voice • Advocacy and Lobby programme is part of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Taskforce as Thematic Lead for Goal 2 in Zimbabwe
3. GIRLS AT RISK SUPPORT This program provides 24 hour emergency services to abused girls especially for those who want to disclose abuse following GCN awareness campaigns. GCN provides rescues for potential abuse victims, accompanying them to the police, social welfare agencies, and other children’s service and women’s organizations as appropriate. They also provide referrals for legal aid, shelter, counseling and relocation of rape survivors to safe shelters. Finally, GCN conducts self empowerment courses to victims of sexual, physical, emotional and economic abuse as follow up rehabilitation, scholarships and reinstatement into school. Since 1998, Girls At Risk Support Program has tracked and tackled over 20 000 cases of child sexual abuse in seven of Zimbabwe’s provinces, providing legal and psychosocial support to abused girls and their families, taking a dual approach through prosecution of the abusers and rehabilitation of the abused children. Most of the girls who have been supported in this way have managed to return to their education, including several who have since completed tertiary education. In addition GCN provides the following support: • Emergency rescue operations for girls at risk. An integral part of GCN is its three “Girls Empowerment Villages” which serve as community – supported safe houses for girls who have been affected by abuse • Reinstatement of sexually abused, orphaned and vulnerable girls into schools • Facilitate the rehabilitation of girls in safer family homes • Implement Women as Role Models program to link women achievers with poor girls for educational sponsorship • Provide an effective referral service to all survivors of abuse especially rape.	4. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND EMPOWERMENT Through this program, GCN conducts capacity building for entire communities to enable them to own and sustain programs and structures that will support the empowerment of the girl child. The structures will be conduits for future programming and development of GCN’s activities. Sample programs include: training for economic self help projects that enable communities to generate enough income for girls’ education, uniforms and other basic needs; training for members of Girl Child Network Monitoring Committees that meet monthly to assess child abuse and bring perpetrators of abuse to Village Courts and to the police; Community Group Counseling training; HIV/AIDS education; programming for men and boys to support a gender based violence free community; and community implementation of National Plan of Action on Orphans and vulnerable children. As can be understood from that extensive list of activities, GCN has a holistic vision for educating, empowering and promoting girls in all aspects of society. In addition to the general empowerment of girls, GCN actively addresses abuses that are discovered among the girls in the clubs and in their wider communities. Community Development and Empowerment remains pivotal to girl child empowerment. Key activities include: • Implement Self-Help Grant Schemes strategy as exit and wean off package for old girls clubs and community based organisations • Community capacity building through school based parents committees on girls’ rights, gender , community group counseling and HIV and AIDS • Community based sensitization programmes on trafficking in girls and other harmful cultural practices • Men’s and boys’ Gender Based Violence programme to enable men and boys to be supportive of girls’ empowerment and development and help men and boys to support a gender violence free society • Implement HIV and AIDS and National Orphan Care Policies • Lend assistance in emergencies • Community Group Counseling training imparts basic skills in counseling to communities to enable them to handle and manage child abuse through Girl Child Monitoring Committees • Gender and HIV and AIDS training

5. INFORMATION DOCUMENTATION & DISSEMINATION GCN has developed a culture of documentation and dissemination of information from girls to other stakeholders. In 2005, GCN established “information cafes” at the Chitungwiza headquarters and at each of the Girl’s Empowerment Villages, where clubs deposit all the information they collect on girls’ issues in order to be collectively analyzed. This information is then compiled and informs GCN’s recommendations to government, media, donors and policy makers. The program also seeks to document empowerment activities carried out by GCN, collate data and statistics relating to Gender Based Violence and evaluate impact of GCN programs. • The mandate of this program is to document and disseminate relevant information to girls, the media and other stakeholders. Information collected on girls issue is analyzed, commented on and recommendations are made to the media and other stakeholders. This way GCN ensures that girls are positively portrayed in the media. Information materials are produced and made available to the publics.	IMPACT GCN has made a huge impact over the period under review. What is apparent is the level of confidence among girls between 5 and 18 where they have a choice, voice and space. Individual transformation has resulted in behaviour change significantly contributing to a statistical reduction in the number of girls who are infected by HIV and AIDS. Their slogan is “The Sky is The Limit” and they maintain the ‘one meter space’ where their spaces are not invaded by, especially, older men with burning sexual desires. One of the most notable impact was GCN’s ability to convince the whole nation to condemn harmful cultural, religious and commercial practices like early marriages, Miss Rural Beauty Pageant and the pledging of young girls to avenging spirits. In many instances and for years, these practices had become norms. There is evidence that women like teachers lacked the power to challenge gender based violence cases endorsed by patriarchal set ups as most school heads are male. Many female teachers are first empowered to fight abuse against themselves before extending a hand to vulnerable girls. There are many female teachers who have had head on collisions with patriarchal practices in schools and there have been casualties and even with the worst backlash some female teachers have refused to budge.
For the girl child A total of 62 382 girls directly benefited form GCN empowerment program. Empowerment of girls has generally resulted in a rapid reduction in fresh cases, especially of rape and other forms of child sexual abuse. No cases were reported of club members getting married early or falling pregnant. Orphaned and vulnerable girls were reinstated in school and 90% of girls reintegrated into school through boarding schools excelled academically. If anything, there are more girls requesting assistance to go to school than girls requesting shelter from violence. Girls have now joined other youth organisations like Child Parliament where they are advocating for laws protecting children.	Involvement of men and boys intensified A lot of men and boys have been greatly transformed. A significant number of fathers escort their daughters for counselling and more and more men with daughters frequent GCN to support the organisation in the best way they can, resulting in some of them taking contract support service work like cleaning, catering an driving where they go out for rescue missions to help girls at risk. There is a significant number of male teachers running girls clubs and they are equally articulate or even more so on gender equality. Quite a number of boys working for gender equality in GCN and communities have been nicknamed “Sister Bettina” (in reference to Betty Makoni, Director of GCN) and have accepted the mockery and patriarchal incarceration that goes with fighting for women and girls emancipation. Boys in schools respect girls clubs and the route to the club experiences less harassment than ever before. Most Girl Child Protection Committees comprise male community leaders who meet monthly to review any cases of child sexual abuse and take collective action.
Traditional and Religious leaders and healers The myth that virgins cure HIV and AIDS is fast diminishing because GCN has held several workshops with the traditional leaders and healers. No traditional leaders or healers conducted any virginity tests and all of them promised to comply with the national laws. Evaluation of the advocacy and lobby workshops showed a clear shift from attitudes, beliefs and practices especially on virginity testing, pledging of girls to appease avenging spirits and forced marriages. One religious leader threatened to expel from his church anyone marrying under aged girls. In terms of pledging girls to appease avenging spirits some traditionalists are adamant and argue that GCN should provide an alternative solution.	Government Laws protecting girls from harmful cultural practices are in place. The Minister of Women’s Affairs Gender, and Employment Creation now has a Domestic Violence Council in place, whose mandate is to ensure the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act passed into law in 2006. On several occasions Members of Parliament and Government Ministers have challenged GCN to swiftly act on girl child issues. In some instances some government departments refer girls at risk to GCN.
Community Based Organisations Strengthened and linked to potential funding enabling them to take up some cases of abuse that GCN is dealing with. GCN has assisted at least five organisations to be set up and operate independently. These include; Ray of Hope Survivors of domestic violence and rape New Hope Foundation Child and women’s rights Maunganidze Kind Hearted Children’s home Small is Beautiful Visual Art Swerengoma Theatre and dance group	International Organisations International advocacy has been intensified with GCN invited to speak out on such forums like United Nations Girls Education Initiative (UNGEI), Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), African Gender Monitor (AGM) and GROOTS and add voice to calls on governments to support girls’ empowerment and education. Action Aid and other international organisations are funding girl child specific programmes.
GCN Staff Motivated, innovative, empowered and inspired staff empowered, able and willing to challenge any cases of gender based violence in any part of Zimbabwe.	Schools There has been a reduction in gender based violence in schools with 6 schools reported child sexual abuse in 2007 compared to 15 in the previous year. This can be put down to the spread of the empowerment message in the education system as the girls club concept spreads. There have been cases of boys openly championing the rights of girls, and male staff involvement in clubs in some schools thus reducing the potential for gender based violence. The Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture has initiated Girls Empowerment Movement to deal with specific girl child issues in schools in conjunction with GCN.
Media The training workshops conducted for 30 journalists and the awards for 20 journalists have seen an increase in the number of sensitively written, objective articles on girls compared to the previous year. There has been a change in the attitude of journalists and there has been an increase in the number of cases referred from media houses as some journalists are now acting like social workers and not just ending with writing the story but making follow ups on it. However, there is still a strong male bias in the editorial policy of media houses which calls for further training and lobbying.	Women Women have begun initiating self help projects and have become more involved in GCN activities this year. Child Monitoring Committees and community sensitization programmes have been virtually taken over by women in the communities and they have joined the programmes, with some of them reliving their childhood and wishing that such programmes had been in place while they were growing up. There is no way a daughter can be empowered and the mother left behind.
The Corporate World The Zimbabwe Institute of Management has recognized the role of GCN and awarded the organisation for making a positive contribution to the nation. Most of the Women as Role Models are corporate leaders who have led the way in making enquiries about how they can contribute to GCN programmes. There have also been requests from corporate bodies for GCN to run empowerment programmes for their staff. The corporate world refused to fund gender insensitive programs like Miss Rural Pageant after they heeded calls from GCN.	Miss Rural Pageant The general populace condemned the Miss Rural pageant and it was a monumental flop in 2007. The organizer has been roundly condemned in the media and is under investigation after some of the girls spoke out against the abuse. GCN has been lobbying against this pageant for a while now and this year finally marked the successful end of this lobbying effort as the pageant has effectively been banned.