Displaying 1 - 10 of 12
Abstract
The use of child soldiers has been increasing in the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, and the Central African Republic. To understand the implications of this on regional security, the study employed a strict textual analysis of the relevant literature on the use of child soldiers in these countries. The study found that the limited protection of refugee camps, poverty, and kidnappings are the major factors contributing to the recruitment of child soldiers. Moreover, the conflict over resources and that of religious differences has torn families apart and increase…
Abstract
Ritualistic child sexual abuse (RCSA) is an under-recognized and poorly addressed form of child maltreatment. Despite a relative decrease of war-related sexual violence in post-conflict Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the existing monitoring reports leave no doubt that RCSA remains a public health problem of high significance. While RCSA requires urgent action, little has been done to address it. This article critically examines RCSA as a predatory form of child maltreatment and the lack of relevant child welfare interventions to address it. Based on a broader empirical study…
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Introduction Parenting programmes are increasingly popular for reducing children’s exposure to interpersonal violence in low/middle-income countries, but there is limited evidence on their effectiveness. We investigated the incremental impact of adding a caregiver component to a life skills programme for adolescent girls, assessing girls’ exposure to violence (sexual and others) and caregivers’ gender attitudes and parenting behaviours.
Methods In this two-arm, single-blinded, cluster randomised controlled trial, we recruited 869…
Abstract
This chapter, which is the core of the book, is comprised of two studies. The first study provides an analysis of the psychological situation of street children and youth in Yaoundé and Douala, while the second one deals with resilience building within a rehabilitation home. The first study was made up of a sample of 508 street children and youths. A comparison between a sample of 254 children and youths of the street (working and living on the street) and that of 254 children and youths on the street (working on the street but living off the…
This chapter appears in Child Maltreatment in Residential Care: History, Research, and Current Practice, a volume of research examining the institutionalization of children, child abuse and neglect in residential care, and interventions preventing and responding to violence against children living in out-of-home care settings around the world.
Abstract
In Sub-…
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Violence against adolescent girls occurs at alarmingly high rates in conflict-affected settings, in part due to their increased vulnerability from their age and gender. However, humanitarian programming efforts have historically focused either on child abuse prevention or intimate partner violence prevention and have not fully addressed the specific needs of adolescent girls, including engagement of caregivers to reduce risk of violence against adolescent girls. Thus, the objectives of this analysis are to examine the whether gendered and parental attitudes of…
This article examines how urban Congolese refugees in Kenya promote psychosocial well-being in the context of structural vulnerability. This article is based on interviews (N= 55) and ethnographic participant observation with Congolese refugees over a period of 8 months in Nairobi in 2014. Primary stressors related to scarcity of material resources, political and personal insecurity, and emotional stress. Congolese refugees mitigated stressors by (a) relying on faith in God’s plan and trust in religious community, (b) establishing borrowing networks, and (c) compartmentalizing the…
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Since the early 2000s, the government of Cameroon has implemented three major initiatives directed at orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) due to HIV/AIDS. These are children whose survival, well-being and development are being compromized by HIV and AIDS. The initiatives are namely; the bi multi-OVC program (2004–2008), the National Support Program for OVC (NSP-OVC 2006–2010), and the Children, HIV and AIDS program (2008–2012). Behind each of these initiatives stands a foreign and institutional operator (UNICEF, the French Cooperation, and the Global Fund). The implementation of…
A mobile phone-based community surveillance system was piloted in the Democratic Republic of the Congo with the goal of identifying new cases of unaccompanied and separated children on a weekly basis. Over an 11-week period, community focal points reported 62 cases of separation across 10 communities. Most children were between 5 and 14 years old, and the majority of children had been under the care of their parents prior to separation. More than half of the children were unaccompanied, meaning that they were living without an adult relative or customary…
Abstract
When parents migrate, leaving their children in the origin country, transnational families are formed. Transnational family studies on children who are “left behind” indicate that children suffer psychologically from parental migration. Many of the factors identified as affecting children's responses to parental migration however are not considered in child psychology and family sociology studies. This study aims to bridge these areas of knowledge by quantitatively investigating the association between transnational families and children's psychological well-being. It analyzes a…