ChildLinK’s existing work with grassroots CBO who are members of the Child Rights Alliance (CRA and has been working collaboratively with the Regional Administration in Region 3, 4, & 6 for the past five years and have been successful in setting up long term specialized services for children who have experienced sexual abuse. In addition, ChildLinK has established relationships with grassroots CBOs and also with the national and regional Childcare and Protection Agency (CPA) and social welfare services in the Ministry of Human Services. This initiative places emphasis on collaborative institutional strengthening of grassroots CBOs to grow their programme and strengthen community-based responses in emergencies for vulnerable families. This initiative will also strengthen grassroots CBOs to have a stronger voice through their engagement and membership with the Child Rights Alliance, widen their community network to include faith-based organizations (FBO’s) and organized community groups and will also give children and their families a national voice on issues for their protection. In addition, this initiative seeks to establish national collaboration with the University of Guyana (UG) to engage academics on the discourse of the growing migrants situation in Guyana, the University of West Indies (UWI) to implement their toolkit targeting migrants for breaking the silence on violence against migrants. CRIE aims to also set up new and specialized services for women including migrants that parallels the child advocacy centres. The CACs provides a safe space for children to report sexual violence with key stakeholders including police and victims are supported through the court system. This action will set up a Women’s Advocacy Centre (WAC) in Parika where there have been a growing number of reports of
sexual violence against women and girls and very little recourse for women to be supported to report and receive services as a result of sexual violence.

The specific objectives of this action will be to:
1. To strengthen the knowledge and skills of five community-based organizations (CBOs) in Regions 3, 4, & 6 to provide community support during the Covid-19 and migrant emergencies in ten communities by September 2023.
2. Improve the knowledge and skills of 350 stakeholders (Faith-based leaders, Undergrad Students, Social Welfare Officers, Police, Teachers, Health Care Workers and Community Leaders/local authorities) in ten communities in Regions 3, 4, & 6 to increase care of 5000 children and families and set new services for reporting and improving services to women and girls who have been sexually abused by September 2023.
3. Strengthening the Child Rights Alliance (CRA) to be a stronger network often grassroots organizations that protect vulnerable children and families during the Covid-19 and migrant emergencies by September 2023.

CRIE will focus on solidifying strong collaboration with local authorities in the three regions and the CBOs to identify key issues of vulnerabilities in the communities and to work in partnership to address existing and emerging challenges as a result of Covid-19 and the influx of migrants. This partnership will aim to adopt a model on the approach the regional administration can replicate in communities and will highlight the knowledge, skills, resources and network within the region that enable a pragmatic response to
support families in emergency situations. ChildLinK will improve the capacity of the CBOs to be sub-grantees of this initiative and widen the roles of CBOs in responding to emergencies. This learning will be documented by the CRA and shared with the Regional Administrators and the local government Ministry to guide support to other high-risk communities in other regions to safeguard children and their families during emergencies.

Expected Results:
1. Strengthened capacity of five CBOs in three Regions to respond and safeguard children and their families in ten communities during the Covid-19 and migrant emergencies.
 Signed partnership agreements between ChildLinK and five CBOs to be subgrantees to work collaboratively with their regional administrators to provide support to children and their families in high risk communities in Region 3, 4, & 6.
 Consultants recruited and facilitates capacity development sessions with the CBOs on:

o CBOs vision, mission, community mapping, work plan and operational policy and practices (maintaining safety in face to face work and working online where possible).
o Providing direct services to vulnerable children and families including migrants and children with disability; counselling, parenting skills education, referrals to additional services, referrals to jobs, supporting integration including learning the language.
o Securing and managing CBOs resources including staff, volunteers, donations and finances and use of online social media platforms.
o Use of PPE and adhering to government regulations for the emergencies
 CBOs conduct community mapping in ten high risks communities in the three regions, identify interventions for safeguarding vulnerable families including children with disabilities and migrants and develop their work plans.
 ChildLinK subgrants to five CBOs to provide community-based services to 5000 children and families including migrants and children with disabilities in ten communities during the Covid- 19 and migrant emergencies.

2. Improved capacity of 350 stakeholders to safeguard 5000 children during Covid-19 and migrant emergencies.
 Collaboration with the University of Guyana to introduce a new module in the Social Work Unit to prepare 50 social workers annually to work with children and their families in emergencies.
 Collaboration with the University of the West Indies for the implementation of the revised Breaking the Silence Tool Kit targeting 300 migrant families in all ten communities.
 Collaboration with the Childcare and Protection Agency to support the implementation of their 5 years strategy on deinstitutionalization to support 50 children in institutions including juveniles to be reintegrated to family-based care.
 Coordinate with CBOs and conduct training with 300 stakeholders (Faith-based leaders, Police, Teachers, Health Care Workers and Community Leaders/local authorities) on providing support services to 5000 vulnerable children and families including migrants and children with disabilities in their communities and referrals where necessary for social protection services.
 Facilitate sessions with the project stakeholders to discuss and design a handbook on guidelines to maintain good mental for children and families particularly during emergencies.
 Coordinate with the Regional Administration in Reg 3 to set up the Women Advocacy Centre (WAC) to improve reporting and court support to 100 children and adults (women/men, children) who have been sexually abused.

3. The CRA is a strong network of ten grassroots organizations advocating for the protection of children and their families in the Covid-19 and migrant emergencies.
 The CRA conducts quarterly training for members of the alliance in community engagement, regional networking, monitoring and evaluation, counselling children and families, training trainers on parenting skills education, finance reporting and advocacy and supporting women and children to report abuse including sexual abuse.
 The CRA documents human interest stories in its quarterly e-magazines to strengthen evidence-based advocacy for protecting children and their families in emergencies.
 Members of the CRA conducts regional public education campaigns to protect children and families in emergencies and distribute posters with key protection messages.
 The CRA engages children and families in its advocacy campaigns and gives children a bigger voice in its monthly online and national broadcast on radio and television events.
 Members of the CRA conducts quarterly community tours where this is safe and discuss with community members the protection of children and sharing posters and brochures on child protection, including protecting migrants and children with disability.
 The CRA document the community model and engage the three regional administrations to support other high-risk communities in their regions to increase care and protection of children and their families during emergencies.