| ROSE HALL TOWN, CORENTYNE — On Friday, some 400 less fortunate children received school supplies, including footwear, stationery and other supplies.Part of the queue that received school supplies.The beneficiaries were drawn from Rose Hall Town, Port Mourant, Williamsburg and Hampshire.The 21 support groups of St. Francis Community Developers also held similar exercises, taking to 2,500 the number of children from across Region Six who received back-to-school supplies.This exercise was made possible through a number of donors, including UNICEF.Child Protection Officer of UNICEF, Patricia Gittens, was a part of the distribution exercise. “Persons must embrace the concept of the distribution as a ‘hand-up’ and not a ‘hand-out’. It is important for this donation to be linked to other development services, for instance health,NFL Jerseys China, education. Social protection is important, especially when linked to community-based initiatives like this.”Gittens said that her organization is fulfilling a basic human rights obligation in ensuring that children are protected and their best interest is realized.President of the St. Francis Community Developers, Alex Foster,Cheap Jerseys From China, said that UNICEF provided technical support, while some of the actual items were supplied by Food for the Poor. The Alim Shah store supplied the stationery, and Poonai’s Pharmacy gave the haversacks. The other items were provided by St. Francis Community Developers and other well wishers.Meanwhile, today, four new play schools commenced operations as part of the Family, Youth, and Children at Risk project.They are located at St. Marks Community Developers at Alness,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, Mibicuri Community Developers at Black Bush Polder,Cheap Jerseys Online, Shining Star Community Developers at Limlair, and Swing Star Community Developers at Number Fifty-Eight Village. Mr. Foster explained that some 120 children are on roll at these centres so far.The opening of these new facilities has taken to six the number of such play schools in Region Six.The other two are part of a pilot project and are situated at the Albion Chapel Skills Training Centre at Fyrish and the Eversham Community Developers. At these pilot institutions, the children were given all the necessary accessories for school, free of charge. UNICEF provided the necessary training, while Sandra Hooper of Educare Guyana helped with the technical aspect.Each of these play schools is equipped with a child-friendly space and would be added to the 52 Child Friendly Spaces already existing in East Berbice and the one on the western side of the Berbice River.The cost for the schools is still unfolding. However, each centre was done on its own budget, and figures are still being tabulated.The administrators of these groups are working in tandem with the Department of Education.In support of these ventures, UNICEF funded a series of Day Care Management Curriculum Workshops.Some 400 persons drawn from across Berbice participated. On Friday, the closing ceremony was held for the three-day Day Care Management Training for Tutors and Volunteers. The venue was the Mibicuri Community Developers Centre.September 10th is the day for Life Skills Manual Implementation Training. September 11th and 12th are the days for the Foster Care Sponsorship Implementation Training. The First Aid Training programme is from September 22nd to 24th, and October 13th is the day for the seminar on the Rights of the Child. All of these are to be hosted at the St. Francis Community Developers’ Building.The vision is to have safe and spacious buildings within the region, with adequate material and equipment for the creation of a child-friendly environment. These facilities cater for the total development of children between the ages of six months and 12 years.The Mission is to provide a sustainable,Cheap Stitched Jerseys, well-implemented development support programme for the children through a partnership with the parents and stakeholders.Some of the services offered at these facilities are rehabilitative education, counseling, and support for both children and parents. Recently, UNICEF handed over some $22 million to the St. Francis Community Developers and some of their support groups for the family projects.The Albion Chapel Library and Skills Training Centre at Fyrish got $3M for the development of their play school and for the empowerment of single parents. The Mibicuri Community Developers received another $3M for the purpose of providing support services for families affected by the impact of suicide in the family unit.FACT Community Developers at Corriverton received $3.1M to upgrade their Orphans and Vulnerable Children Project’s activities in the Upper Corentyne area. Some $13 million was given to the parent body – St. Francis Community Developers — for its Family, Youth and Children at Risk project.The Family,Jerseys Cheap NFL, Youth and Children at Risk project deals mainly with families in crisis, disadvantaged young people and vulnerable children.It was launched in 2000 under the name ‘Women and Children at Risk.’ There was also a sister project, dubbed ‘Youth at Risk.’ After complaints by some of the male gender that the project was biased, the two were merged and renamed Family, Youth and Children at Risk. |
