namibia

strengthening the capacity for country ownership

residential childcare facilities

better service for Namibias vulnerable children

background
The Namibian government has made great strides in sustainable services for the countrys many orphans and vulnerable children. Thanks to USAID systems-strengthening assistance through implementing partner Pact, residential childcare facilities are ensuring the well-being of Namibias most vulnerable, by adopting and implementing internationally recognized standards through strong new linkages between the state and civil society.
From 2007 to 2013, Pact strengthened the ability of Namibias Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare (MGECW) to ensure that residential childcare facilities provide quality care for most-vulnerable children across the country. Pact carried out this work as the implementing partner on a PEPFAR-funded USAID project (Community Rapid and Effective Action Combating HIV/AIDS (REACH), renamed Strengthening the Capacity for Country Ownership in 2010), which builds the ministrys capacity to implement and coordinate strategy, policy and plans related to orphans and vulnerable children. This report summarizes the technical assistance that enabled the launch of Namibias first Minimum Standards for Residential Child Care Facilities and subsequent implementation with civil society. It also outlines the ministrys achievements with regard to non-compliant institutions, and next steps for alternative care. This report was made possible with the support of the American people through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission in Namibia and implementing partner Pact, with funding from the U.S. Presidents Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), under the terms of Award No. 690-A-00-07-00104-00. The opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Agency for International Development. Namibia has the sixth-highest prevalence of HIV worldwide,1 which adds to its large number of orphans and vulnerable children: approximately 250,000 in 2010.2 Although the government invests strongly in family-based care for such children, for example through its growing foster-care and adoption programs, those most-vulnerable children who lack immediate access to family care also continue to receive care and shelter at residential childcare facilities (see chart). After the MGECW inherited responsibility for such facilities from the Ministry of Health and Social Services in 2005, the MGECW needed to build a new system to ensure minimum standards of service: At the time, many children lived at unregistered homes that provided inadequate care, kept scant data on residents and entered them into a permanently institutionalized arrangement. The ministry responded by asking Pact for help in developing and formalizing a set of minimum standards, and in implementing systematic monitoring, registration and improvement of services. Work on residential childcare facilities received special urgency from the ministrys 20062008 performance audit, in which the Auditor General reported that the public has in recent years complained of poor service that OVCs [orphans and vulnerable children] are getting from the government. The audit cited inadequate monitoring of grants and a poor payment system for allowances to childrens homes. It recommended improved systems for assessment and investigations, criteria for payment of allowances to institutions and improved records management. Pacts systems strengthening responded to all of these needs.
1

that are used primarily for the temporary or long-term reception of children found in need of care and protection. They include: Childrens homes. Residences for more than six children or pupils, under long-term (but not permanent) placements carried out through a Court Order. Places of safety. Places primarily for temporary care and protection of children awaiting court inquiry and placement in foster care, childrens homes or rehabilitation centers. Shelters. Open-door facilities providing temporary accommodation and social integration for street children or children in difficult circumstances though referral.

Residential childcare facilities are those places

Namibian alternative childcare by type, 20022013

20,000

number of children

15,000

Since launching the minimum standards for residential childcare facilities in 2009, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare has reduced unregulated institutional placements while continuing to expand familycentered approaches.

Top cover photo. Eva Neels (center), manager of Nafavi Place of Safety in Mariental, checks her facility against the minimum standards with Amelia Musukubili (right) and other social workers from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare. July 2013. Bottom cover photo. Residents at the Namibia Childrens Home in Windhoek, co-authors of the child-friendly version of the minimum standards. April 2013.

10,000

children receiving foster care grants

The government has added an average of 1,631 grants per year since 2002, as part of its emphasis on care for orphans and vulnerable children.

5,000

0 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

2,000

Pact, September 2013

children at facilities
Pact helped Namibia record 11 new facilities in 2009, bringing their total population to 1,767 children. The government has since closed substandard facilities (16 of the 38 on record in 2008).

CONTACT FOR THIS REPORT Stephanie Posner Country Director and Chief of Party, Pact Namibia +264 (0)61 303 793 sposner@pactworld.org

number of children

1,500

It has integrated their children with birth families or shifted them to foster care.

1,000

500

adoptions

UNAIDS Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic (2012). 2 Namibian Ministry of Health and Social Services. Global AIDS Response Progress Reporting 2012: Monitoring the 2011 Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS.

0 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Formal adoption is also growing as another option for alternative care.

Source: Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare

Residential childcare facilities Better service for Namibias vulnerable children

Moving Forwa rd: Implementing the gu idelines for the alternative Car e of Children

support to ministry
Childrens drawings of ideal facilities
Seven- to 12-year-old facility residents contributed to the assessment in 2008, by drawing examples of ideal care and protests against inadequate treatment (see examples below).

In association with

Supported by

Pact support gave the Namibian government its first clear look inside the countrys residential institutions and culminated in the landmark Minimum Standards for Residential Child Care Facilities. Intensive collaboration has provided officials with the tools and know-how to monitor services, make improvements in collaboration with civil society and provide targeted subsidies, so that orphaned children receive quality care.
Assistance with standards for residential childcare facilities featured among the ministrys first requests to Pact in late 2007. From July to October 2008, Pact collaborated closely with government and stakeholders to carry out an assessment, draft the standards, develop registration tools and propose a training and rollout plan. It based its work on discussions with the ministry (including regional social workers), nongovernmental organizations, 18 residential facilities and a sample of 100 child residents. Assessment. On the recommendation of a Technical Advisory Committee (six representatives from government and one each from UNICEF and Pact, who met twice a month to guide progress), Pact began a series of field visits in July 2008. According to the field reports, facilities were often founded without proper needs assessments or registration. Pact found that few systems were in place to unite the children with families or prepare them for independent adulthood after age 18. At workshops with children, most described low-quality services inside the facilities, including insufficient food, overcrowding and poor upkeep, such as broken windows and animal waste around the buildings. One place of safety stood out as totally inappropriate, with, for example, six teenaged girls in one double bed and 12 smaller children in a very small room with eight bunks, all served by a single shower and toilet; later investigations would confirm cases of untreated tuberculosis among the residents. Many facilities kept little data on residents, allowing court orders for many children to expire. Too few facilities admitted children older than 11, those with severe disabilities or juvenile offenders. Overall, facilities were short on trained caregivers and access to social workers and psychologists. Staff simultaneously expressed satisfaction with their work and frustration over lack of guidance that would allow them to do more. Minimum standards. To provide a robust basis for facility registration and inspection, Pact worked with the ministrys control social workers to draft the Minimum Standards for Residential Child Care Facilities. These were based on current Namibian policy and procedures (including the National Plan of Action for Orphans and Vulnerable Children and provisions in the new Child Care and Protection Bill), as well as international guidelines and good practice (including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and guidelines on alternative care). The final version also incorporated all feedback from an October 2008 stakeholder workshop with regional social workers and Namibian NGOs active in alternative care. The ministry published the standards in March 2009. Soon after the launch, Pact conducted a rapid baseline survey on knowledge of the standards at 58 facilities, to facilitate monitoring of the rollout. Despite some awareness of the existence of standards, specific understanding of requirements generally remained low at launch (for example, only nine percent of respondents correctly stated the maximum ratio of seven children for each fulltime caregiver). Pact published the results in September 2009.

Registration package. From 2008, Pact helped develop a facility registration and inspection handbook oriented toward joint assessment, emphasizing collaborative linkages with facilities to assist rather than police. Stakeholders began using it in 2009 as scheduled. Pact also supported the creation of the supporting tools below, gradually testing these and building the capacity of ministry field staff in their use:
Guidelines on registering existing facilities, and setting up new ones Brochure (for facilities) on accessing ministry funding Form (for facilities) on applying for registration Facility self-assessment questionnaire and action plan tool (both first used by 34 institutions in 2010)

International recognition
In the March 2013 Genevabased publication above, a coalition of international non-profits and the United Nations Childrens Fund spotlighted the development of Namibias standards as one promising practice for worldwide implementation of the United Nations guidelines on alternative childcare.

The ministry adopted the latest working versions of these materials in September 2011. Pact also engaged ministry head-office staff and regional social workers in a review that incorporated the materials into regulations of the Child Care and Protection Bill. Facility registry. Joint-assessment visits have allowed the ministry to maintain a regularly updated registry since 2011. To qualify for the first tier of formal registration, homes must meet core standards on care (e.g. access to school, quality food and healthcare): Today 82 percent of facilities are registered, up from 42 percent in 2008 (see chart). Ministry records of facilities, 20082013 By using the standards to ensure quality, the ministry has 50 closed 16 operations out of the total 38 that were on record in 40 total residential childcare 2008, integrating their children facilities on record with birth families or shifting 30 them to foster care.

number of facilities

Chapters of the minimum standards

1. Organizational issues. Needs assessment, reporting to ministry, etc. 2. Management & staffing. Job qualifications & descriptions, etc. 3. Premises. Family environment, safety 4. Administration & finance. Fundraising, complaints procedures, etc. 5. Caring for children. Family contact, health & diet, education, play, reintegration, etc.

20

Pacts four key recommendations for action, October 2008

1. Adopt a robust approach to facility registration and inspection, including quality standards and facility training on implementation, along with facility-drafted action plans, dedicated ministry monitoring staff and a handbook to guide new facility applications. 2. Develop formal foster care for children needing alternative care. 3. Review placement of all children at facilities. 4. Transfer children still supervised by Ministry of Health and Social Services social workers to Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare social workers.

Subsidies. In 2008, Pact began helping the ministry formalize 10 a structure for cash transfers to facilities subsidized subsidize improved alternative 0 care, based on implementation 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 of the standards. The ministry finalized the subsidy formula and criteria in February 2010. The proportion of facilities receiving financial support has risen from five percent in 2008, as a continuation of preexisting subsidies from the Ministry of Health and Social Services, to 65 percent in 2013 (see chart). The MGECW describes its subsidies as a big carrot to promote implementation of the standards and placement of children by court order. faclities registered Child-friendly version of facility standards. To ensure that children understand the standards and have a voice in their implementation, in 2008 Pact helped the ministry plan a simplified child-friendly version. During a pilot in 2009, children responded that the standards should be shared in comic book and poster form. In 2011, Pact helped the ministry organize a storyline competition for the comic among the residents of 40 facilities, and in 2013 it adjusted its approach to mentor story development directly at the Namibia Childrens Home, with involvement of children who drafted developed the characters, plotline and dialog. The ministry circulated a draft in June 2013, and Pact will finalize the comic by November 2013, incorporating feedback from a series of focus groups including children and staff at seven residential facilities nationwide.

By children, for children

The cover of the child-friendly version as of September 2013, incorporating inputs from focus groups and USAID.

Strengthening the Capacity for Country Ownership

Residential childcare facilities Better service for Namibias vulnerable children

better government civil society relations

They saw us as a threat. They thought we wanted to close them down.
Ministry social worker recalling first assessment visits to facilities

Pact facilitated an innovative collaborative approach for faster, more sustainable rollout of the facility standards, through joint buy-in from the ministry and residential home staff. Formation of a Residential Childcare Facility Network created credible stakeholder linkages, which have allowed the government to build a supportive environment for improved services with civil society.
In 2008 most civil society facilities were operating in isolation, without support from the state or their better-performing peers. They were skeptical of interference, and the government had low expectations of their capacity. The ministry initially expected to introduce the standards at a large-scale training of facility representatives, but Pact recommended a participatory alternative involving peer-to-peer assessments. In August 2009, Pact helped the ministry and facility managers organize their first consultation on joint implementation of the standards. With Pact support the following month, three founding facilities and the ministry launched the Residential Childcare Facility Network, to provide grassroots leadership in mentoring and training institutions to meet the new standards. The network also aimed to help facilities access resources and expertise from government and civil society leaders, including those running progressive family-based models. Parallel with the launch of the network, Pact facilitated a workshop where network members drafted a general action plan, a peer-to-peer training curriculum and a participatory assessment questionnaire on the standards. With Pacts assistance, the network met its plan through 2011, carrying out assessments with 34 facilities and developing site-specific action plans to help them improve their standards. The ministry has showcased the initiative before Cabinet as a model for mentoring facility managers on the standards. Civil society role in the network. Civil society representatives in the network actively contributed to development of the self-assessment questionnaire that they now use to gauge their performance against the standards. Facility leaders, along with ministry staff, met with members of peer institutions to help carry out the assessments and draft custom action plans, ensuring that the assessed sites had ownership of implementation. By 2010 the network had visited 84 percent of facilities then on record, resulting in 34 action plans to improve services in compliance with the minimum standards. Pact built the assessment skills of the facility representatives on the network secretariat. Ministry role. The ministry inspects facilities and supports the implementation of their action plans, punishing infractions only in extreme cases. The head office has hired four dedicated staff members: a chief social worker for inspections, a principal social worker for monitoring standards, an operational social worker who ensures that children are placed by court order, and a control social worker for registrations. In addition to quarterly inspections by regional social workers, the national team conducts rolling visits of all facilities via tours of selected regions about twice a year. For the year from April 2012 to March 2013, the ministry database records that the national team made 16 site visits across six regions. Governmentcivil society relations. This peer-to-peer approach has greatly improved the working relationship between the ministry and facilities. Initially, ministry social workers

met with an unfriendly reception on site visits. The networks civil society leaders assisted in changing perceptions of the ministry, by vouching that it was committed to long-term technical support to help facilities meet the standards. When the ministry identifies substandard services, it provides joint planning support and at least two years to address the issue. The ministry reports that all facilities now attend its trainings and that many call to seek advice. Building shared child-protection skills. Since the launch of the standards in 2009, the network has conducted onsite mentoring of facility personnel regarding the standards and self-assessments, with the participation of ministry social workers. In 2011, following Pacts support, the networks civil society members demonstrated sustained engagement to continue improving their services, by taking part in two workshops for ministry social workers: Representatives of 18 facilities attended the session on minimum standards and 32 on facility registration. The ministry has integrated the standards into its own training of social workers, and it also invites facilities to join these activities (e.g. in August 2012 all facilities joined a ministry training event on child protection).

A nationwide partnership
Thanks to Pact assistance, Namibias Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare has clear evidence of where residential childcare facilities are operating and which ones require support to meet the minimum standards as well as buy-in to address these needs in partnership with the facilities themselves. The map below summarizes the location and size of all current registered and unregistered facilities, alongside the prevalence of foster care grants in each region. Residential care is much less common than foster care throughout Namibia, and particularly in the north, where very few facilities exist and the bulk of foster care is found.

I also had a hate relationship with the government, but I can see what it is trying to do. I turned around.
Reported statement from representatives of Dolam Childrens Home to peer facilities, when joining ministry social workers on assessment visits

The networks legacy. From 2009 through 2012, the network helped establish the standards as a sustainable, common objective shared by the ministry and facilities. In 2012, when the share of registered facilities was 71 percent and rising, many civil society leaders left the Residential childcare facilities in Namibia, May 2013 network secretariat. The ministry and one founding facility saw value in maintaining omusati ohangwena kavango east/west a formal network, however, and in May 2012 Katima no facilities no facilities Mulilo 0 50 100 150 200 250 they requested Pacts support to coordinate a Andara ministry workshop on relaunching the body. Opuwo Ondangwa oshikoto Facilities at the workshop discussed the skills oshana 0 50 100 150 200 250 no facilities and time that they could offer (most pledged zambezi Tsumeb three to five days of support per month) and kunene 0 50 100 150 200 250 Mangetti proposed opening network membership to otjozondjupa Khorixas Dune 0 50 100 150 200 250 unregistered facilities as well. Following 0 50 100 150 200 250 reconfirmation of the membership roll, omaheke Kalkfeld Omaruru in February 2013 the ministry distributed erongo 0 50 100 150 200 250 letters to request votes on a renewed network 0 50 100 150 200 250 secretariat, with no need for additional Pact Usakos Windhoek Witvlei Number of children on Swakopmund assistance. As of June 2013 the newly elected foster care grants by region Walvis Bay secretariat comprised: khomas 2,5003,000
Member of Parliament Rosalinda Namises, patron of Dolam Childrens Home (chair) Mary Motlatla, Childrens Education Centre Jenny Shimushi, Children of Zion Eva Neels, Navafi Place of Safety Bernadette Rickerts, Namibia Childrens Home Andries Vilander, SOS Childrens Village Tsumeb Andreas Mckel and Mr. Musambane, Omaruru Childrens Haven hardap
0 50 100 150 200 250 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450

Mariental

2,0002,499 1,5001,999 1,0001,499 500999

Facilities by location
//karas
0 50 100 150 200 250

Keetmanshoop

registered unregistered but working to meet standards

The ministry prefers a passive monitoring role in the network going forward.

Children at registered/ unregistered facilities

region
0 50 100 150 200 250

Source: Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare

number at registered facilities

number at unregistered facilities

Strengthening the Capacity for Country Ownership

Residential childcare facilities Better service for Namibias vulnerable children

holding abusers to account

The standards provide Namibia with its first leverage to ensure that facility managers make the well-being of their children their top priority. In several groundbreaking cases, the state has successfully applied the standards to shut down particularly egregious operations.
Thur sday Octofrom While most facilities have willingly accepted assistance the ministry and facility network ber 07 20 10 to meet their minimum standards, the ministry has also been able to ensure quality services by applying the standards to shut down unfit sites. For example, of the 38 facilities on record in 2008, the ministry closed 16 that the network assessed as inadequate. Five of these facilities proved to exist only on paper, as schemes to collect donations. The ministry states that one site, at least, ceased its services voluntarily as soon as it saw the effort required to implement the new standards. Ministry social workers integrated all affected children with their birth families or shifted them to foster care. Of the sites on record in 2008, the ministry also reclassified a further three as foster care providers and one as a private hostel, in line with its updated definitions. News

Thursday October

14 2010

IMPARTIALIT

News

Y DEB

drafted an action plan. There were no changes after six months, however. The Namibian Sun reported that the ministry ordered the shelter to close in October 2010, but that it continued Judge sident Petrus Da operating as before (see clippings below). When ministry Pre called in law enforcement, the ma seb Shafimana Ueite le shelter hired legal defense. Ministry social workers accumulated evidence that shelters management was using children to attract donations for personal gain. A number of local parents confirmed that their children played at the site but did not stay there as claimed; the farm outside Windhoek proved vacant. FRED GOEIEMAN President, to fill AS more legal pra casual vac ctitioner s with the cou Among the shelters confirmed Na residents, social workers discovered tuberculosis. interests rt, or to enable the ancies in in private law untreated mib

Minimum standards make the news

The Namibian Sun ran multiple stories on the ministrys actions to shut down the worst facility in 2010, from the evacuation of children on October 7, 2010 (first clipping at right), to the beginning of the ensuing legal battle on October 14, 2010 (clipping at far right). The second article explicitly cited the facilitys failure to comply with several of the minimum standards (highlighted in green). The ministry ultimately won its suit to terminate all of the facilitys activities in December 2011.

first adm firms are deal expedi court to Judges onition he gives to Acting reg being hired to ulates lawyer tiously wit when they act as Judges in the High Court Judge President Da h its work. that if they come are sworn in is Damaseb say , Judge Presiden ma across any case in in seb says the wh Petrus Damaseb t public should not ich tha there is even the t the appoint lose trust in the has moved to jud slightest hin allay fears that conflict of inter- are iciary because legal practitioners of conflict of interest it must t lawyers as Judge est may arise be asked to act as jud raised with him or in cer tain cases the next most se- trust in the Judic being handled Reacting to que ges. founded. by these Actin stions from Na- nior judge in his absence. He say mib Jud g s ian if the ges. in December 2011. Social donations and the construction of an expanded site, workers re is enough Sun on the Retha Ste the appointment perception that the Acting Jud reason to think that the LSN inman Recently senior said ges of legal practilawyers with in- tion case raises the pot involvement in a the appointm the ersthey sts exception in private law firm as Actplaced reintegrated all children with their families, with tere the of four that at ing Jud ent o ent ges ial for conflict, s, Harald conflict of creates the cas Geier, Gerson ranks of practicin e is re-assigned interest and cau Hinda, Shafimana ses to ano los s judge. ther felt experie Ueitele and assistance trust in the judicia the state-run Namibia Childrens Home, and they provided counseling, school Sisa Namandje, with of nce d l ry, Damaseb were said that every appointed as Act If a par ty to are ideally equipp effo ing e High Court by Pre Judges of the his office to see to rt was made by sonable and jus a case has any rea- burdens of parcels and fees. it that the private such of t cause to think tha sident Hifikepu- leg nye Pohamba. al the t pra y have not been giv ctitioners do not She says there Previously Hosea cas en a fair hear- rules sit on ing from Angula and Elia es in which their which pre a judge bas Shikongo, senior an practices have PAULUS par tne interes ciple stated above, ed on the prin- find they hav scri rs in big law firm ministry t. Enforcement today. With this precedent successfully established, since been able the European Develo A HIGHLY ambit ASHIPALA e confl it is their duty to s, also ser ved has as Yo info act iou pm u ing s a rm wil ent and par Hig l the Fu be ticu muhandful h Court Judges. nd to surprised at the num ir law lar case th lti- suppor t the million dollarwith the YD I The ministry continues to enforce the standards of loc institutions have Representative ber of files that al mining sector. that - that an assess yer immediately so signed to Article 82 of are the Vei me the to shut down a second facility in Windhoeks Havana township, where it discovered similar kko retu nt m, Na township - a joi eco-friendly is the mibian Con- office Nekundi, who is approached GIP stitution allows daily for re-allocat rned to my or not to seek recusamade whether to hear the matter nt-venture bealso SPYL Secre- train about 2000 youths. F the Head of Sta tween as ion to other YDI indicat . l of the judge tar y for Economic The hybrid ren the of resisted outside monitoring. For example, 2012, social workers were their te jud SWAP to appoint Acting ed thaprioritizing O Damaseb fur the ewa2013, ble en- it is also in the process of Judges from time bia ges because of the perception of for any reason recognised by law abuses. As of (SPYL) proper Youth League proached the Gover t it had ap- have not yet bee Affairs, said they erg y sys to s, tem say tim , Da s e con to be used in the the Judge Presid n officially inform ty development maseb said. on the request of nment Institutext of the judi ent tion ed out the . abo s Pen fit and Judge housing project use ut the Citys efforts to ensure that three stubborn sites made investments to bring their sion Fund The Judge Pre a local the necessary The Law Society conflict of inte s a comsident says the closing a substandard childrens home that rest of Namibia is on the cards. BEE company, of the few institu (GIPF) as one application but decision on their bin ation of sola (LSN), which said that provisiona tions having the represents and curately define the caproof). l biomass (such r, wind and approv Thand acity to fina e propos assessments up to code (e.g. new beds mattresses, Furthermore, in past al was is, ed N$85 million new nce the perception th goo d dev as enough for them. elopments of househ old proj- such magnitud has run for years in Omaheke. While the ect to be built in W was e are in a new age te) to generate elec e. We approache Windhoek is being tricd think the GIPF and sev hailed cases where facilities have rounded up children from local families in order to exploit by its propon about technolog where we ity for household eral internation y and in- and usage proven an effective basis al postandards internationally uni ents as being tential financiers of street lighting. have which GIPF and novation as a young people. This que as it will be the Excess is among a to goi Lo ene ng ndo charity system, the standards have proven offer more than a simple benchmark for joint rgy that the project to be a village for few estate n AIM-listed Matrix the youth, gen wil Capl for legal agreements on the worst the world to use developments in ital indicated keen eratereaching would be hybrid renewable app interest pending Nekundi said. energythe rov However, the Cit the national electricfed into improvements: They have also provided state with its first successful for holding al of the project bytool system s. Curre y ity grid. the ministry notes that its of Windhoek Ev the City of still nt world- Windhoek transgressions, leading projects rem en , the com ains skeptical abo kitc of ut the be con hen sewage will are only found in similar nature the City of Windhoek pany informed project. abusers to account. ver ted into bio . THE E Islands, Germany Greece, Canar y The City of Windh It must be noted thuconfrontation s avoiding contam gaswith the shelter in 2010 and oek and Code o has tha Am t the City tion inaalready will be losi adabad provisionally in India, the City of the ng an opportunity approved SDIs und of Windhoek was plic erlying aqu a tooth 2011 was protracted when government iin appac told - fer sys ing devone Clamping down on the worst abuses. Just over two decades atio after in 1986, . n to launching elopment becaus purcha mans a e the land motivatem, YDI said in its its Special Project se land under deliver y proces The SPYLs Do EMSIE ERASTUS tion . s wil s Inf nar pol l be orm icy TH Inv ves E but estm ted with a attorneys determined that they could not Moria Grace has private stak ents demanded tha and an additional Namibian shelter claimed some 150 (PT children at 25 Y) Ltd teame Th e City eho t the owners mu Constit d a site in Windhoek ers and managers Trust says the foundst City Strategic lder, commented the is expected of Windhoek and Development up with Science provide a detaile of the Moria Gra ties to Exe , d EC Ini spe She cut bus tiatives (SD ce nd less in the ministrys power to lter, Wilhelmina ive: iness planand assist, because I) the outlini owned teenagers at a farm outside the city. The MGECW reports that Ministry of Health Social Urbani ng the econom by Dr Elias sation and En Planning; develo conduct have relinquished and Boetie Afrikaner, vironment, of the ping the land as the cost the engana to form You Charlie Shany- viability of the pro ic and financial Utete Karimbue role play planned grid con investigation to be ir duties to allow an -Mupaine. ject. YDI initially th Development ask nec perform inspections based on the standards ting car Services had repeatedly attempted toIni close the shelter due to poor health among its children, ried ed to be allocated tiatives (YDI) wh the hybrid renewa out at the facilele N$ ction 20 ity. 0m Mo 200 for ich ria hec Grace Tru is cham- land at a pioning the revolu According to the youth systems, linkages ble energies cost of N$21 million tares of good fait Ellis said this wee st Chairperson Philip tionary hou to thebeen proposal pre- grid had not yet but the sen k that the decisio nationalwritten into formal law. sing City of Wi project.for residential prior to MGECW assuming responsibility childcare facilities in 2005. Until ted tothe W and ndhoek only pro en n be the all will rev ext isite Cit ens y of Windhoek d after the investig visionally approved 20.93 ation has been Dr Shanyengana is and sewerage infr ion such as road should ac completed. hectares. The site in August, the housing project local astr consul uct Passage of Namibias new Child Care and ure would tant islacked is and renhowever, publication of the minimum standards, the state an enforceable basis for close to the exp be ect Ton car ewable energy spe ed chi ried Th to is came after the Min Meteorology Station train about 200 by YDI. cialist who south of youth istr y of Gender has been a consul about th in proper ty develo Indeed the entire Windhoek. Equality and Ch ting administrator pment and renewild Welfare decide Protection Act will make the assessments dev elo pm action. tha of the Mineral De ent abl t wil e the rem d energy managem E to Cemetery ove all children ent. It is also fro l not require any capital input tend som of Namibia, a velopment Fund The land was orig land aimed at generating Grace Shelter in Do residing at the Moria m the municipa sem ina lam about N$200 and lity, Nekun legally binding, further empowering the behaviour fund star ted in 199 i-Government for township develo lly earmarked million for local di The Ministr ys Per , Katutura. Dr Sha nye you pm 5 nga wit ent th na stated in their h the manent Secreta development app and for a progra help of cem vent the t Pacts 2008 field report concurred that the shelter should be closed as soon Sirkka Ausiku, info etery. lication to Windh mmes, such rmed Namibian Sun ry, oek enforce ministry to CEO Niilo the standards. Chairman a letter last Augus Youth Ser vice and as the National Taapop in i. TALKING INNOV t that ... investig fur ther employ or Director as possible. It found that the single caregiver kept the facilities unclean and atio fou ATI ns nd ON that all is not well : SPYLs paulus@namibiansu Veikko Nekundi and based on the sion said m n.com Photo: File recommendations in the report are it was denot le cided that the faci overcrowded; the children shared beds and a single toilet and shower, and RA KING IN: Wi lity intimidatio Ministr y did close be closed down. The over the years onlhelmina Afrikaner has received down the operations tho be ha usa lf goo nd of d s the order Moria Grace and of dollars Moria Grace Shelt of there was no dining space or seating of any kind. The children were there with as er The mo concerned, Moria far as the Ministr y is Grace is still not Photo: EMSIE ER help build t registered with the Min Elli no placement by social workers or the court, and their numbers fluctuated s AS app TUS roa che istr d EMSIE fair, respon to prevent the Min the court in an effort in three cou The Ministr y cou y. THE FINAL cur tainERASTUS istr y from removin ntries where don kana. He st specific information ld however not provide children and a saga of the Moria fell on the sordid unaccountably. Up to 32 children might beKAK present during the day (short of the legal battle is still g the donations. It currently hol ors can deposit on why the shelter UNAWE SHINAN any Gr ace for m of ds A bei rag orp bet was two ng ing wee hanage said that in most shut down apart acc when Ministry of at OSHAKATI cases woman find from saying tha Trust. n the Ministr y and the Moria Grace in Namibia - the Moria Grace She ounts ence with po Moria Grace did lter AcTHE Osh count managed by ms17 and Child Welfare Gender Equality 150 claimed in the shelters fundraising materials); this fellthe to at night. elves not meet standards t fall ana Region has ing Boa vic tim rd Th soc Me e ECN ial to be mber Shareen workers and to a Residential Ch rape Despite the Min been by men who Thude and a tru stricken by an epi the Ministrys Ch istr y ordering Mo they spe last 16 year dem ild Protection uni spite the orders by ildcare Facility. De- Grace to refrain ria lis and Partne st account managed by Eland rapes. Provisi ic of suicides drinking with and nd nights out on Wednesday (6 t from the Min coll rs. istr Th ecti y the e ng the late two ona m don shelter until its investig October) remove being t remained open and l improve other accounts engage in ations are in Ge figures re- sex The facility network attempted to help shelter its in r2010. leased the ualservices all children from d atio rma fun activities while this wee election. k by the shelter continues ns are completed, the that the she ny and Italy. Ellis confirmed Last Thursday (7 ctioned as usual. show that at least Oshana Police cated, only to realise highly intoxiproclaimed orphan care of the selfto receive funds thro lter does have sev Ndjarakan 140 people too the Ministr y was abo October) evening as several websites what and era age ugh l has . acc but oun hap ts said k pen Through intensive peer visits, the the shelter completed its self-assessment wh ed after they becom ir own lives bet Ministry officials strides in tran dren said to be resi ut to remove the chil- tance. These web ere they solicit assis- mistake.that the Italian account was a 2009 and Septem ween Januar y On the staggering e sober. proper ties owned visited the three strategically drama unfolded to ding at Moria Grace, children purpor sites display pictures of ber 2010, while sui by Moria Grace Besides allegation tedly living at the such an extent tha 250 were reportedl cide cases, Kashi increase in sta , rtin ent s g of , neutral a wit she Min nei h t som the ghbourhood lter the istr ys child protect y raped. hakumwa ateth tributed this to a ion unit and social new ing which is not allowed under the, children being portrayed as The most popula Groot Aub, the farm Grace near activities of th workers had to call lack vulnerable standards for Res old Moria Grace children despite hav in ide in the North remainr form of suicide and education as far of awareness law ntia She enf ing ade l lter Ch orc quate capa par ild em for assistance. Th in Soweto ents ent Facilities. The new Car as s hanging, while ven e standards also req e ians, Moria Grace is also said or guardthe barrel of the gun tion and handling suicide preKatutura and end , moving on to and legal ser v trauma experience media witnessed the that child care uire up young rela to round of depression ing their investigafacilities provide d by tive the s second. On averag comes closely was concerned. chi from tion ldre Me a home- to pos as n at the under con anwhile, number of people TAKEN AWAY: Ch e as vulnerable chi far as Aranos suddenly appeared, as a like environment with a maximum take place in the Noe, five suicides There is no consist review proces Grace proper ty in struction Moria ldre ing that some chi of say- children per hou rth enc orphanage in So ildren were removed from the ldre se mother. The bui ten shelters care. A couple stay n under the suring that the During the period every week. cation and awareness wh y in eduWhen the Minis Dolam, Katutura. theirs. The Ministr n at the shelter were currently being we old ing ldin to at Mo g by the ria ria the Mo Gra Gra Mi try ce farm near Gro under review, to ce som en it comes nistry of Gender y did manage to rem con Welfare officials arrived dynamics and some 50 people ot Aub last week at the farm there ove Grace does not me structed for Moria admitted Equality an e children but were reported to arethis issue. Awareness campaigns was that they had bee et any of those req environment. have taken their Photos: EMSIE ERd Child Moria Grace Trustwas later stopped by the ments. there, but we do it n forced to say children. There was no sign of any uire- their own dau ow members from rem AS how ght TU er S eve is r an a It will look a orp you dangwa while Osh n lives in On- stop, while sickness and then we ing han residing at ng ing ovcouple with two chi Namibian Sun has the rest. the shelter. ldren who they said dres on at the orphanage, where chilamended or ad 44, Okatope 36 akati recorded problems continue. and economic ria Grace has four also learned that Mowere orphans residin n were paraded in Grace founder Wi Wilhelmina founde diff and Ongwediva ere g fro nt lhe at nt ban ties Mo lmi d of k ria na and keep a Moria Grace accounts 1986. tourists said som Grace. and other sam Afrikaner 12.Over 100 rap Suicide is a ver y They later confess e of the aritans under the es complex issue ed emsie@namibiansu in well as technolo im- On Wednesda children were staying. at Okatope, just und were recorded in a sense that we were theirs. Ther that the children pression that they n.com talk of different were orphans, ne y the Ministry er 80 reported pe e are no chil

G I P F F U N DS TARGETE SWA
PO Youth League dre ams big with hybrid

ian Sun Page 3 REALITY OR F As the shelters lawyer became acquainted with the standards, he conceded that the ministry A NTA SY ? was in the right. The shelter ceased the all activities, including the collection of overseas

NO CONFLICT SAYS D
Gerson Hinda

D project

Probe into trouble Moria Grace shelt d er

Namibian Sun, October 14, 2010

EC

Suicides, rap es Moria Grace no more ravage North

Namibian Sun, October 7, 2010

Strengthening the Capacity for Country Ownership

Residential childcare facilities Better service for Namibias vulnerable children

future directions
Regulation of Namibias residential childcare facilities is on a demonstrably stronger footing than it was four years ago, and new policies and practices in the coming years are set to further strengthen implementation of Pacts original recommendations.
The following summary presents the advances made regarding the actions that Pact recommended in 2008, along with next steps to watch for.

3. Review of all child placements

At this time, the ministrys monitoring is ensuring that all children are appropriately placed via court order, that facilities have clear plans for reintegration with families, and that abusive sites are shut down. Next steps. While the forthcoming Child Care and Protection Act will reduce pressure on the Namibias system of alternative care for orphans and vulnerable children, it may also require further revision and rationalization of Namibias current format for child welfare grants. For example, foster care grants are currently worth N$200 per month, whereas facility subsidies are N$474 per child per month.

1. Robust approach to facility registration and inspection

Pact helped the ministry roll out every mechanism required for robust monitoring, including the Minimum Standards for Residential Child Care Facilities and a full complement of supporting outputs: a registration and inspection handbook, training of facilities on the minimum standards, action plans drafted by facilities and dedicated full-time monitoring staff at the ministry. The Residential Childcare Facility Network provided an innovative approach to implementation that engaged facilities themselves to establish a sustainable, self-driven process of improvement, expanding the ministrys reach and improving its relationship with civil society leaders. Next steps. A stronger, formalized approach to linkages with civil society will allow the ministry to build on its pioneering activities with the facility network, to involve civil society in further vital services for Namibias orphans and vulnerable children.

4. Transfer of all cases to Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare

All old cases under the Ministry of Health and Social Services have been transferred.

2. Formal foster care

The ministrys regulation of residential childcare facilities is part of a larger nationwide strategy on alternative care, which emphasizes family care including the dramatic expansion of foster care (see chart, page 1). Next steps. Namibias long-awaited new Child Care and Protection Bill is in the process of finalization, and its passage in parliament will strengthen the entire alternative care system. It will establish a formal foster care registry, give the force of law to the assessment of residential childcare facilities, and alleviate pressure on other formal systems by giving thousands of additional families easy access to a new class of kinship care grant that requires no court order.

summing up
Pacts technical assistance to the Namibias Ministry of Gender Equality and Children Welfare from 2007 to 2013 has helped the Namibian government make signal improvements for the care and support of orphans and vulnerable children. Namibia has established minimum standards for residential childcare facilities, an advance that has won international acclaim as a promising practice for alternative childcare; it maintains a well-documented facility registry via strengthened staffing and procedures, which enable social workers to identify and address the needs of Namibias most-vulnerable children with confidence; and it has forged cooperative linkages between the government and civil society for sustainable, highquality service delivery for years to come.

Strengthening the Capacity for Country Ownership

Residential childcare facilities Better service for Namibias vulnerable children

Pact is an international non-governmental

organization with 40 years of experience helping local partners become highperforming leaders in a wide range of fields. Since 2006, Pacts team of expert advisors has helped strengthen the systems of 38 Namibian partners, including Namibias Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare. yang tze village office 3g sam nujoma drive klein windhoek namibia +264 (0)61 303 793 pactworld.org