adminThe elderly, orphaned children and to some extent those living in rural areas are often categorised as the most vulnerable people in developing countries like Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe has seen a sharp increase in the number of orphaned and vulnerable children over the years, thanks to the HIV/Aids scourge.
Many houses are headed by either the elderly or children, some as young as 10 whose parents would have succumbed to the Aids pandemic.
The reaction of communities to the plight of these children has been compassionate and remarkably resilient. However, they are also struggling under the strain. To date, few resources are reaching families and communities who are providing this front-line response, and little attention is given to orphans and vulnerable children in most national development agendas.
Some of the orphaned and vulnerable children have, despite the poverty, matured into adulthood, having looked after their siblings. The major challenge now is how to feed and clothe them. Some dropped out of
school due to lack of money for fees and it is almost impossible for them to find jobs.
On the other hand, the elderly who are looking after their grandchildren are also finding the going getting tough due to the harsh economic climate.
While Government came up with programmes such as the Basic Education Assistance Module (Beam) to assist in educating the most vulnerable children, the funds have often been overstretched such that they cannot cater for everyone.
It is against this background that we welcome the Government-proposed scheme to assist at least 300 000 economically disadvantaged households through monthly grants.
Called the Harmonised Cash Transfer, the scheme was mooted after the realisation that hundreds of senior citizens in the country never worked in the formal sector and had no access to pension funds, a situation that was posing serious challenges for them in this harsh economic climate.
As we reported yesterday, the scheme is being run under the National Action Plan for Orphaned and Vulnerable Children with assistance from the Child Protection Fund.
The programme is expected to be rolled out next month and each beneficiary would receive a monthly grant of between $10 and $25.
This is in line with the Government’s plans to offer public assistance to the needy through means-tested approaches like the Assisted Medical Treatment Order Service (Amtos), which seeks to afford those above 60 years free treatment at Government health institutions.
The Government’s move is in line with Unicef’s Framework for the Care and support of orphaned and vulnerable children some whose strategies are to mobilise and support community-based responses, ensure access for orphans and vulnerable children to essential services, including education, healthcare, birth registration and others; and ensure that governments protect the most vulnerable children through improved policy and legislation and by channelling resources to families and communities.
Government must be commended for coming up with this safety net aimed at cushioning the elderly and vulnerable children in our society today.
While the money might be little, we are sure it will go a long way in alleviating the poverty, especially in rural communities where children were dropping out of school because they could not afford the $10 fees required per term.
In fact, even in urban areas, there are children who have dropped out of school because their parents failed to raise the $10 or $20 fees needed per term.
With a drought looming due to the current erratic rains, we want to call upon the Government to continue exploring ways of alleviating the hunger and poverty in our communities through support to the most vulnerable.
Londile Moyo
Online Reporter