Safeguarding awareness campaign: Working to protect children

Safeguarding is a huge issue in our community, where abuse has become far too common. Richard Bandawo, our new Hope Skills Centre Manager, has launched an initiative to work alongside the police and local authorities to educate communities on how to keep children safe.

The campaign has already been well received in two of our school communities, and next term we plan to extend it to the others.

On July 9, we held a safeguarding awareness campaign at Mang'oma Community Ground to educate students, parents, guardians, and community members about child safeguarding and the different forms of abuse that children may face at home, at school, and in the community.

The campaign was planned and led by Richard Bandawo (Hope Skills Centre Manager) and Harriet Chirwa (Healthy Living Coordinator). They were supported by Chrissy Makaika, one of our former sponsored university students who lives in the local community, and Matthews Donnie, one of our current sponsored university students. They were also joined by Samuel Goodman from the UK.

Bringing local communities together to raise child safeguarding awareness

The event brought together experts from several departments, including the police, Social Welfare, a pastor, a Health Surveillance Assistant (HSA), teachers, students, parents, guardians, and other community members.

Through presentations and discussions, participants learned how to recognise different types of abuse, the importance of protecting children, and the vital role that families and the wider community play in keeping children safe.

Alongside the talks, students gave performances, and everyone enjoyed friendly football and netball matches between the students and community members. These activities helped engage people in a positive and enjoyable way while reinforcing the day's important messages.

Throughout the campaign, one message remained clear: every child has the right to be safe and should feel free to report any form of abuse without fear. Parents and guardians were also encouraged to take an active role in protecting children, listening to their concerns, and working together with schools and relevant authorities to create a safe environment where every child can thrive.

We are excited to see this initiative continue to grow and look forward to taking these safeguarding campaigns to more school communities in the coming term.

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Thanks to the support of our partners, sponsors, fundraisers and volunteers, Hope4Malawi's Youth Development programmes, building projects, resourcing initiatives, and student sponsorships continue to provide life-changing opportunities for children in rural Blantyre.

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