Our Partners
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SMAT-P
Sustainable Measures Against Trafficking in Persons also known as the SMAT-P project was an initiative of the Italian Bishop Conference awarded to Caritas Nigeria for three years (October 2018 – March 2021), and implemented in partnership with local church partners namely diocesan JDPCs (Justice Development and Peace Commissions) in in Benin, Uromi, Auchi, Isselle Uku and Ogoja. The project was implemented in 10 LGAs namely: Essan Central and Essan South East, Etsako West, Owan East, Orhionmwon, Ikpoba- Okha (in Edo State); Ika North East, Ika South (in Delta State); and Bekwara and Yala (Cross River State). Project Objective: The primary objective of the project is to support persons who are vulnerable to Human Trafficking through its project’s components namely: Prevention of Human Trafficking and Irregular Migration through awareness-creation in the targeted communities; Provision of Educational supports for the most vulnerable through sponsoring of pupil’s school fees, levies, uniforms, school bags, and sandals; Formation of Anti-trafficking clubs in Secondary Schools in the targeted locations to establish champions of Anti-Human Trafficking. Introduction of Saving and Internal Lending Community (SILC) Scheme to beneficiaries as a long term livelihood support; Psychological First Aid to help heal the trauma of the returnee migrants; and, Empowerment of youth with skills in various trades like ICT/hardware repairs, soap-making, welding, fashion design, hairdressing, Shoe-making, cosmetology, tiling, and catering. {snippet smat-p-archievements} Implementation Strategies The SMAT-P project adopted the following strategies: Stakeholders’ sensitization, mobilization, and engagement; Conduct of baseline survey for target beneficiaries Engagement and training of community mobilizers/frontline advocates Awareness creation campaigns in Schools and Communities Education materials support Formation of Victims support groups Formation of Anti-Human Trafficking Clubs Formation of Savings and internal lending Communities (SILC) groups Training in vocational skills and Distribution of start-up kits Grants to beneficiaries on Income Generating Activities Continuous project monitoring/advisory visits Closure The SMAT-P project officially came to an end in March, 2021.
STEM Project
STEM is acronym for Stable, Trained, and Empowered Migrant, a project initiated and funded by German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) in 2020 for reintegration of returnee migrants. The programme began in September, 2019 under the CSOs assistance in collaboration with Caritas Nigeria and other sister agencies like COSUDOW (to provide shelter particularly for the female and general startup measures for reintegration); Salus Trust (to provide health insurance plans); and ADPRAP (to provide vocational skills, psychosocial support services, etc.) to returnee migrants. Following the success recorded in the first phase of the project, GIZ renewed the contract from December 2020 to November 2021 and further extended it to span through year 2022 to April, 2023 with the necessary working machineries to reach the set goal. {snippet stem-strategies} Achievements in Phase one of the project A total of 126 persons were provided with shelter services (91M, 35F); 335 returned migrants had psychosocial support through sound counsellors; 200 returned migrants were enrolled under the 1-year health insurance scheme; A total of 435 persons were provided with vocational and entrepreneurship training in fashion design, barbing, hair dressing, soap/fragrance production, ICT, graphic design, and web design; Achievements in Phase 2 (February 2022) 750 trained with different skills and provided with start-up kits; 200 beneficiaries to be sheltered and be provided 1year medical insurance; 435 returnee migrants, and internally displaced persons out of the 750 new beneficiaries supported with vocational skills training and provision of start-up tools and over 70% of them are in business; 435 (329 returnee migrants, 106 at-risk migrants and internally displaced persons) out of the 750 new beneficiaries targeted have been supported through vocational skills training and provision of start-up kits and over 70% of them are already entrepreneurs; 100 previously trained beneficiaries have been provided with additional support items to aid them in their businesses, many of which were affected by the Covid-19 pandemic; 150 persons were enrolled under Caritas Nigeria 1-year medical insurance and have been able to access medical care on needs basis; 76 persons were offered shelter services for the period of their training; 150 persons were enrolled under Caritas Nigeria 1-year medical insurance and have been able to access medical care; and last but the least; 76 persons offered shelter services for the period of their training. The STEM project is still active and it’s championed by Caritas Nigeria.
4GATES
4GATES, acronym for Global Action Towards HIV Epidemic Control in Subnational Units in Nigeria is a 5-year PEPFAR funded comprehensive HIV care, treatment prevention and support program, implemented across four states namely: Abia, Delta, Enugu and Imo States in Nigeria. The program works to scale up HIV and TB services efficiently and sustainably through effective GoN (Government of Nigeria) and inter-agency collaborations, leveraging resources to ensure cost-effective interventions and minimize duplication of efforts. The 4GATES program uses innovative strategies such as the SURGE for intensified HIV & TB case finding as well as new service delivery models (NSDM) to strengthen linkages between the community and health facilities and improve retention in care.
CARES Act Overview
CARES Act is a six months COYID-19 contact tracing and risk mitigation project awarded by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S. CDC) to Caritas Nigeria under the 4GATES Program. The project is being implemented in six states: Rivers, Lagos, Enugu, Kaduna, Gombe, and Plateau plus the FCT and seeks to support faith-based organizations and communities, working in close collaboration with relevant government agencies at various levels, to identify COVID-19 cases and their contacts, and link them to appropriate structures for effective and efficient management. The CARES Act project has four strategic objectives namely: To leverage existing faith-based platforms and relationships to strengthen identification and tracking of contacts of COVID-19 cases. To strengthen early notification systems for contacts of COVID-19 cases. To link identified contacts of COVID-19 cases to appropriate structures for risk categorization and management; To scale up-approaches to community-based reduction efforts for COVID-19. Key partners for the project include Nigerian Interfaith Action Association(NIFAA), Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and the Federation of Muslim Women Association of Nigeria (FOMWAN). The CARES Act Project is a sub-grant under Caritas Nigeria’s five-year comprehensive HIV prevention, care and treatment program in Delta, Enugu and Imo States funded by the United States’ President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) titled: Global Action Towards Epidemic control in Sub-national units in Nigeria (4GATES). The 4GATES program is supporting over 120,000 people living with HIV across these three states.
Overview of the PPM-TB Project
The Public-Private Mix (PPM) TB project is a two–year grant (January 2019 – December 2020) from the Global Fund (GF) aimed at increasing private sector contribution in TB case-finding. Caritas Nigeria is a Sub – Recipient to the Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN) who is the Principal Recipient (PR) for the grant. The project specifically aims at increasing private sector contribution in finding more people needing tuberculosis treatment from 11% in 2017 to 35% in 2020. PPM TB project targets the general public for TB screening, identification of TB suspects, Sputum samples collection from TB suspects for laboratory analysis using Gene Xpert technology, treatment and follows–up of TB infected cases. CCFN is working to achieve the project goals in twenty states namely Edo, Delta, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Benue and Oyo. Others are Ondo, Osun, Ogun, Kogi, Niger, Sokoto, Plateau, Nasarawa, Kaduna, Anambra, Enugu, Rivers, Imo and Abia. The FBO health facilities are supported to engage in community outreaches to identify TB suspects for diagnosis, treatment and follow–up. {snippet ppm-objectives}
Antihuman Trafficking
The Caritas Nigeria Antihuman Trafficking Thematic Area articulates interventions aimed at countering and mitigating the scourge from the menace of Trafficking In Persons and irregular migration and upholding the dignity of the human person in line with the Catholic Social Teachings. Activity in this areas began with the establishment of a desk in 2014 to understudy a sister Agency, Committee for the Support of the Dignity of Women (COSUDOW) in the ways of handling matters of trafficking in persons. Fired by the reports of the victims whose dignities were ripped off through acts tantamount to slavery added to calls from National and International bodies to respond to the plight of trafficked victims and irregular migrants, awareness about human trafficking increased remarkably. Due to the high prevalence of trafficked victims’ outflow from Benin City and its environs, the desk was domiciled in Benin City, Edo state so as to checkmate vulnerable groups through identification and possible preventive measures in the form of campaigns put in place to make them less vulnerable to traffickers. The desk worked closely in collaboration with the Dioceses in Edo State most especially Benin Province in the area of awareness creation in rural communities and involvement of vulnerable household to have a means of livelihood.
Overview of ICS
Institutional Development and Capacity Strengthening (ICS) is geared towards ensuring that the network of Church partners have the capacity to deliver high quality development interventions. This has been a core mandate of Caritas Nigeria right from the onset and falls squarely on ICS.
Overview of Health
Historically Health has been a key component of the Church’s mandate and has remained core in Caritas Nigeria’s activities right from inception. The Health portfolio focuses on interventions that promote the wellness of every individual and integral human development with a focus on both communicable diseases and non-communicable diseases as well as maternal and newborn children. Caritas Nigeria leverages the existing structure of the Church in her programming. This provides her with tremendous capacity to implement programs in hundreds of primary and secondary health facilities scattered all across the country. Interventions are delivered by teams broken into different Program Areas or health sub-specialties including Program Management; Grants; Clinical; Care and Treatment; Adherence/Prevention; Laboratory Services; OVC; Strategic Information; Pharmacy and Supply Chain Management. States Covered Communities Reached