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Relevant background information
Following the interest by two earlier programmes a national seminar on Child-to-Child was held in 1986 and opened by President Kaunda who delivered a ringing endorsement of the programme which for a number of years became the main health education programme in Zambian primary schools and was strongly supported by UNICEF money and expertise. This included the distribution of the book Children for Health to all primary schools (but without supporting training).
A special training (in Britain but by the Canadian International Development Agency) was organised for Home Economics tutors in Teachers’ colleges and a College Curriculum produced, circulated but never officially accepted. Among several seminars which took place between 1990 and 1995 a seminar with the curriculum development centre needs to be mentioned in which subject tutors all looked at ways in which health education, with the Child-to-Child approach could be integrated in their subject programmes. Zambia also took part in the four-country action research project linking schools with teachers’ colleges which reported in Nairobi in 1992.
Currently, although Child-to-Child is no longer an official government programme, its legacy is widely apparent in primary schools and colleges throughout the country, numbers of schools still maintaining clubs and committees. The UNICEF-aided programmes such as the Zambia Community Schools Project (which has included the approach in its two year basic plan 2005-7 and the Programme for the Advancement of Girls’ Education (Girl Child Readers ordered) continue to show interest in incorporating elements of the approach. Child-to-Child principles also inform the recommended approaches to the ‘cross cutting themes Basic Health, Environment and Living Together. given great prominence in the current Basic School Curriculum framework published in 2001.
Information supplied by UNICEF in December, 2004
Mpika
Since the 1980s, Child-to-Child activities have been thriving in Mpika through school committees and clubs that have been spearheaded by motivated teachers and different committees that comprise health workers, government departments and organisations. Some of the key areas that have been focussed on include gender issues, inclusive education and the promotion of children's rights, and since 1999 an inclusive education project has been implemented in seventeen local schools. Read more
Lufwanyama District Child-to-Child Programmes
Since 1997, a group of 25 rural schools have been involved in Child-to-Child activities in the Lufwanyama District. Health is introduced not only in classroom teaching but in school assemblies, health committees and regular weekly health talks. Training is provided to teachers who are the key implementers of Child-to-Child activities and parents are also very supportive of health activities. Read more
Child-to-Child Livingstone, Zambia
This programme involves over 1,000 children and 200 adult facilitators who are teachers, health workers and college lecturers. There are 5 urban schools involved in the programme and beneficiaries are primary aged boys, girls, street children and even college students. Evaluations of the programme thus far indicate improvements in students’ academic performance, personal hygiene, school attendance and strengthened links between the parents and school. Read more
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