Rural Volunteers Center - Child Friendly Spaces

Project Brief: 1. Promotion of 2 nos of CFS (semi permanent structures) in strategic location i.e. in location
where schools are been fully damaged or totally washed out flood 2020.
2. Equipping the CFS with playing, educational and recreatio
Project Type: Non-Formal Educational Centers (description)
Primary Focus: emergencies (description)

Secondary Focus: children of dalits/tribals

Area: Rural
Supporting Chapter Contact:
Silicon Valley
Status: CLOSED - ENDED
Project Steward: Niranjan Thontadarya
Project Partner(s): Luit Goswami
Project Address: Rural Volunteers Center - Child Friendly Spaces
Vill-Akajan, via-Salapathar
Salapathar, Assam 787059
Tel: 91 9954179520
Stewarding Chapter: Silicon Valley
Oct 2020Silicon ValleyUSD 6786

Total = $6786

RVC’s intervention (so far) to address the critical education crises due to flood:
• Rural Volunteers Centre (RVC), from the year 2016, has come up with the idea of promoting Child Friend Space (CFS)/Alternative Learning (ALC) with support from various support organizations (AFNA, UNICEF, Save the Children, National Foundation for India) immediate after flood particularly to ensure that the education of the flood affected children, whose schools get affected is not disrupted and in general other rights of the children viz “Right to survival”, “Right to Protection” and Right to Participation” are also ensured.
• In the process during the period 2016-2018, RVC has promoted 20 nos of CFS in 2-nos of development blocks namely Jonai and Sissiborgaon development blocks of Dhemaji District.
• The whole process involves construction temporary building (with bamboo, tarpaulins, CGI sheets etc) followed by approaching the Office of the Deputy commissioner to ensure that the teachers of the schools in which delivery of education gets disrupted due to flood, continue delivery of services in the CFS. It is worthy to mention that the District administration has extended full cooperation which directly benefited near about 100 children per CFS and in total 2000 children.
• Apart from contributing towards delivery education, this CFS also held the department of Office of the Social Welfare Officer and Office of the Jt. Director health to delivery services under ICDS and health schemes.
• The idea of the CFS has been well adopted by the community of the chronically flood affected areas and in the consequent years community contributed towards restructuring the damage infrastructures (temporary CFS buildings) and RVC contributed with Government frontline workers (teachers, AWW, ASHA workers) to provide services to the children in the period of distress (flood) at the CFS.
• The idea of CFS has been well adopted by the representatives of PRIs and in the process in the FY 2017-18 and FY 2018-19, three nos of temporary CFS structures (in Bodolpur Bodo, No.1 Uluwoni and No.2 Ulowoni village under Ramdhan Dikhari Panchayat, Jonai development block, Dhemaji). Promoted by RVC has been converted into permanent structures mobilizing resources from 14th finance fund following due procedures (through approval of Gaon Sabha).
• The engagement of RVC with District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), Dhemaji and Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) has ultimately influenced the ASDMA, GoA to undertake a pilot initiative to promote Child Friendly Space in Emergency (CFSie) in Government’s designated camps (school buildings) in Dhemaji and Majuli District with technical support of RVC and UNICEF during flood 2019 and same has proved immense success in 3 nos of relief camps (2 nos in Dhemaji and 1 no in Majuli).
• The success of the CFSie has largely influenced the ASDMA to promote CFSie in another 7-8 Districts of Assam, targeting the designated relief camps in coming years.