Summary
Nyalenda Young Turks CBO is in the middle of an awareness raising campaign in Nyalenda and Kondele communities, having concluded that the population of these communities had very little knowledge about Sexual Gender Based Violence (SGBV). In this campaign, the organisation is using the newly learned knowledge and skills from the Change the Game Academy course on Mobilising Support, such as the solution tree and stakeholder mapping.
Problem analysis
Interviews and dialogue with Nyalenda community members revealed limited awareness of Sexual Gender Based Violence. This was supported by the Kisumu County SGBV Policy 2019, which addresses the issue of limited awareness of sexual gender based violence in Kisumu County. Therefore, the project seeks to address the same issue in Nyalenda community.
Solution analysis
We are using the solution tree to respond to the problems in the community. Based on the solution tree, we aim to increase awareness about sexual gender based violence, through community sensitisation, more advocacy on sexual gender based violence and training the community on diversity.
Stakeholder analysis
Which stakeholders (NGO’s, government, private sector) did you identify as allies and how did you involve them?
Our main stakeholders for the project are:
- The county government, they facilitated the implementation of our project by providing access to various county facilities to conduct sensitisation meetings, such as community halls.
- Kisumu Medical and Education Trust (KMET) supported us by offering safe spaces for our sexual gender based survivors.
- FIDA Kenya (federation of women lawyers) offered psychological therapy sessions and support to our survivors.
- SGBV Alliance Kisumu County also supported most of our sensitisation meetings in the community through transport reimbursement to our staffs and survivors.
- Of our other partners we would like to mention the National Government, which has accomodated us in its offices since 2020.
In identifying our key stakeholders, we used stakeholder mapping by using the allies and opponent matrix from the Mobilising Support course.
Which stakeholders did you identify as neutral and how did you mobilise them?
We also mapped possible stakeholders with a medium attitude and medium influence towards our initiative, but have not recorded any.
Which stakeholders did you identify as opponents and why were they opposed?
We were also able to map our main opponents with high influence and negative attitude towards the initiative. We concluded that most resistance was to be expected from the community gatekeepers and the village elders. They are opposed to our project because they are afraid that they will lose their culture and traditions as a result of the more modern views on this problem that are now prevalent.
How did you involve your beneficiaries in the stakeholder analysis/campaign?
The project beneficiaries are the entire community, including men and women, teachers and even youths. The beneficiaries are given full access to information through passive information gathering and consultation with various stakeholders in the community. Teachers in the nearby schools are given the opportunity to be part of the facilitators of various sensitisation events organised in schools and in the community, as they have more experience and understanding of the youth. The men and women are also fully empowered to help in creating more awareness and empowering their families on the same problem.
Short description of the organisation implementing the action/campaign
Nyalenda Young Turks CBO is a community-based organisation registered in 2020 in Kisumu County and located at Nyalenda community, Nyalenda Capital hall. We advocate for women’s inclusion & participation in policy and decision-making platforms. We empower the vulnerable in Nyalenda community that include the youths, women, persons with disabilities and young adolescent girls, through soft skills and resources to help in poverty eradication with a mission and vision that are in line with our organisation's core values.
Our vision: To be an organisation that transforms lives and imparts skills that bring about sustainability in the community.
Our mission: Empowering the less fortunate with resources and skills set for future self-reliance and eradication of poverty.
Action period
12 months (15 November 2022 - 15 November 2023)
Objectives
1. To promote safe communities and reduce the threat of Sexual Gender Based Violence for girls and women in the informal settlements of Nyalenda and Kondele in Kisumu County within 12 months.
2. To enhance capacities of households, teachers, community gatekeepers, commercial sex workers and local administration to identify and report Sexual Gender Based Violence cases.
3. To improve the capacity of girls, women, commercial sex workers, women’s rights organisations and feminist collectives to engage them meaningfully in reporting mechanisms.
Action results
1. Various households in the community will be sensitised on SGBV. This will enhance their capacity to identify, report and advocate in their community and ultimately contribute to a safe neighbourhood for girls and women.
2. Schools will be targeted and guidance and counselling teachers will be sensitised on SGBV to increase their capacity to identify and refer children who have been defiled to health care services.
3. Sex workers have been made aware of the reporting mechanisms for SGBV and health services so they can protect themselves and report perpetrators they encounter.
Description of preparatory activities
1. Sensitise our targeted beneficiaries on identification and reporting of SGBV cases.
2. Referral of survivors of SGBV for psychosocial support.
3. Conduct sensitisation meetings on social accountability, budget advocacy and gender responsive budgeting for girls, women, commercial sex workers, teachers, men, civil society organisations, women’s rights organisations, grass-root youth organisations, and feminist collectives.
4. Developing of a memo on SGBV programme financing and submitting it to the county assembly budget committee.
Description of implementation
1. The targeted beneficiaries were sensitised on identification and reporting of SGBV cases through a radio talkshow which reached a number of households.
2. Survivors were referred for psychosocial support to FIDA Kenya, one of our allies.
3. Social accountability and budget advocacy sensitisation meetings were held through community and sub-county public participations to address gender responsive budgeting for the girls, women, commercial sex workers and men among all targeted beneficiaries.
Sensitisation meetings on gender-sensitive budgeting were also held.
4. SGBV financing memos were developed and submitted to the county assembly budget committee.
Follow up
The organisation did a follow-up for the survivors who had been referred to the safe house at KMET, to see their progress and healing process.
We also did a follow-up with the group of survivors who were referred to FIDA for psychosocial support .
