Pro-Health International (PHI) and its sub-grantee, African Community and Environmental Health Initiative (ACE-Hi), are working together on the Integrated Child Health and Social Services Award (ICHSSA4) project to improve the health and well-being of orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in Bauchi State. The project is being implemented in Toro and Ningi Local Government Areas of the state.
The ICHSSA4 project aims to provide comprehensive services to children and households affected by HIV to help them build resilience against vulnerabilities and graduate from the program. The project is designed to deliver interventions that are evidence-based, culturally sensitive, age-appropriate, integrated, and gender-responsive. The project also aims to build strong integration between social services and HIV services to provide a continuum of care for children living with HIV (CLHIV) and other OVC sub-populations.
The project targets specific needs of adolescents and young people, children of key populations, and CLHIV. The target communities will be empowered to take leadership in advocating for child- and family-friendly services, promoting cultural norms and practices that reduce gender-based violence (GBV) and HIV stigma and discrimination (S&D). Local and state governments will also be supported to have stronger systems for effective coordination, monitoring, and mobilization of resources for the care of OVC.
ACE-Hi, the sub-grantee, will be responsible for implementing the project interventions. The project interventions will be delivered through a comprehensive case management system that will focus on enrolling children and households infected and affected by HIV. ACE-Hi will enroll about 90% of all the enrolled children and transition 10%, which will largely comprise CLHIV, to other programs by year 5.
John, a social engineer and development specialist who has dedicated the past 10 years exclusively to serving marginalized populations in Africa, is a member of various government accountability mechanisms and is a fierce advocate of an open and inclusive government in Nigeria. The African Community and Environmental Health Initiative (ACEHI) monthly report informs the ICHSSA 4 project Director of Programs on progress made towards achieving the project's goals, modules of OVC, the objective of the project, streams of enrollment, key activities implemented, challenges encountered, innovative solutions applied, recommendations, and lessons learned during the reporting month to allow the Director of Programs to monitor progress, identify gaps in program implementation, and inform other stakeholders.
In conclusion, the ICHSSA4 project is designed to improve the health and well-being of OVC in Bauchi State by providing comprehensive services to children and households affected by HIV. With the support of ACE-Hi, PHI is confident that the project will be implemented successfully, and its objectives will be achieved, thereby improving the lives of OVC and their communities in Bauchi State.
