Children in Governance, Zimbabwe – End-line Evaluation

Background   
The Children in Governance Project was implemented over 24 months between 2009 and 2012 as part of SCin Zimbabwe’s Child Rights Governance (CRG) Program to accelerate progress in children’s participation in governance processes that affect their lives and community realization of children’s rights.  Its specific objectives were:
• To strengthen the capacity of civil society, child led groups, national and local governing bodies to implement, monitor and report on national compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and;
• To promote child participation in national and local governance processes and structures

Purpose/objective    
This evaluation was carried out to take stock of the project’s activities and performance in addressing community needs related to child rights and child participation in governance.

Methodology
This assessment was guided by an analytical framework focusing on project relevance, effectiveness, appropriateness, efficiency, impact and sustainability. Data was collected by interviewing 94 respondents, 75 of them children, and facilitating focus group discussions of children in Mvurwi, Kadoma, Chinhoyi, Marondera and Rafingora. Relevant project documents such as project reports and the original proposal submitted to the European Union (EU) were reviewed to place the evaluation into the proper programming context.

Key findings   
• The project successfully established 10 new child–led groups and strengthened 40 existing ones through additional training, administrative backstopping and logistical support. These child–led groups had successfully taken to mobilizing local communities to support children’s cause in fulfillment of child rights, albeit against resistance in some areas such as Mvurwi. Child–led groups run income–generating projects of which the proceeds was used to support orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) to attend schools and for community charity work that benefited the aged, institutionalized children and children with disabilities. They used the Day of the African Child as platforms for further campaigning for child rights resulting in adults in communities increasingly appreciating the children’s movement and realizing the importance of observing children’s rights.  Parents and guardians who informed this evaluation cherished the sharp increase in their children’s self–confidence and even positive academic results, let alone the assumption of leadership responsibilities by most members of these groups. School teachers who mentored the group members reported that participation in child–led groups in fact enhanced one’s academic performance and self–confidence.
• The project was successful in strengthening both governmental and non-governmental capacity in pursuit of improved child participation in local and national governance. The Child Welfare Council was strengthened to more meaningfully resume its mandate of advising the government on child rights and participation matters and coordinate a 32–member coalition of civil society organizations concerned with child rights in documenting the complementary national report on the state of Zimbabwe’s observance of child rights to serve as feedback to the UNCRC monitoring process. The project also supported the technical capacity building of the Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs, which hosts the Inter–Ministerial Committee (IMC) on Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law and the National Program of Action (NPA) for Children under the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare.
• In Kadoma, Mvurwi and Marondera junior councilors’ action plans were recognized in the town planning processes, as the relevant town councils funded part of the children’s budgets.
• 50 children participated in the popular Mai Chisamba Talk Show discussing child protection and education issues, indirectly reaching approximately 150,000 children according to the project’s reports.
• Through the National Association of Non–Governmental Organisations (NANGO) the project facilitated platforms for children to interface with budget and policy planners to lobby for a child–friendly national budget through a series of pre–budget consultations. The project contributed in the raising of national budget allocations to the ministries of Education Sport Arts and Culture as well as Health and Child Welfare from USD276,753,600 and USD156,473,600 in 2010 to USD469,367,000 and USD256,198,000 in 2011.

Recommendations   
It should be concidered to produce, in addition to the audiovisual documentary and the written report already produced, a manual of how to replicate the implementation model of this project. Of particular importance is a manual or ‘starter pack’ of “How to start and maintain a successful child–led group”.
The project should further strengthen its quantative systems and tools for monitoring and evaluation. This may include but not limited to the following:
a. Number of students whose fees were paid by child–led groups by gender, by district
b. Amount of fees paid by district
c. Number of school dropouts by gender, by reason for abandoning school
d. Number of cases of child abuse reported by type of abuse, by gender of victim
e. Number of prosecuted cases of abuse against children

Exchange programs between child–led groups should continue but involving more members of child–led groups than just the leaders.
Income–generating projects should be made a universal feature of child–led groups across Zimbabwe through exchange learning programs or the recommended manual on how to start and manage a successful child–led group.
Include the private or business sector in strategic partnerships as well as representative organizations for children with disabilities such as Zimbabwe Association of persons with Disabilities.  The private sector can be strategic as a source of resources to sustain the project at the grassroots.

Follow up (with reference to Action Plan)