June 2023 - June 2024: Wana Ndoto Access to School and Health for Vulnerable Children in Dar es Salaam
With the generous support of the Erik Thunes Legat, together with our local partner, STEPS Tanzania, we have secured schooling and healthcare for 50 vulnerable children. This project is an important complement to our sex worker project, New Hope, which helps sex workers find alternative sources of income and create stable homes for their children. We set up the project in response to the fact that all research and our own experience from the field shows that children of sex workers are extremely vulnerable to sexual exploitation and easily become part of risky environments. Therefore, we found it necessary to make a special effort for the children to ensure their rights to school and health.
What we do
Stable Schooling: We ensure 50 children are covered for school expenses such as transportation, school uniforms and books, helping to reduce absenteeism and ensure stable schooling.
Health insurance: None of the children currently have health insurance. We make sure that all 50 children have health insurance, which ensures that they can get the necessary medical care.
Supporting the Mothers: Through the New Hope project, we help sex workers start socio-economic businesses. We have helped 30 women start their own businesses while ensuring that their children had access to school and health care while their mothers received training. This allows their mothers to have a stable income and pay for their children's school fees in the long run.
This initiative is helping to create a more secure and stable future for the children and their families in Dar es Salaam. By providing children with a stable education and access to healthcare, as well as helping their mothers achieve economic stability, we are breaking the cycles of poverty and vulnerability that children often get trapped in.
