Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) is a severe human rights violation today that afflicts both developed and developing nations. A review of 58 prevalent studies found that globally, CSA involving physical contact could affect up to 56% girls and 44% boys (UNICEF 2014). Studies have also shown the significant impact of CSA on the physical & mental well-being of children worldwide.
Therefore, the issue needs to be tackled right in the beginning, at the earliest signs of abuse.
70% of children who are sexually abused may never seek help due to the lack of awareness or social stigma surrounding the issue; as a result, they do not receive adequate intervention at the right time (UNICEF 2014). Further, while organizations around the world are working on the issue, they continue to work in siloes; their interventions often lack scalability & effectiveness.
To build a standardized approach on the issue, our Master in Public Policy student, Palak Rawal and graduates of Master in Public Policy, Anmara Shabir and Anjali Shivananda have collectively developed a three-step Safety Kit, called SafeJoy which aims at increasing the awareness, capacity, and willingness of children to identify and report sexual abuse.
The need for designing this came at a time when the issue of child sexual abuse was at an all-time rise. As a team, they applied for the Global Public Policy Network 2019 conference hosted by LKYSPP and won the 'Best project' among 32 teams from leading policy schools.
_high-res---314.jpg?sfvrsn=644e790a_0 "LKYSPP (GPPN Conference Day 2)_safejoy")
They then received funding from LKYSPP to pilot the tool-kit on ground. Pilot test have been conducted with more than 300 children and 25 teachers across diverse communities of Delhi, Bangalore (India) and Lahore (Pakistan).
How does it work?
A one of its kind tool-kit, SafeJoy entails an interactive and tangible game-based approach on the issue. It constitutes three stages:
- Facilitator’s Guide: A comprehensive guide with all the rules, instructions, and resources required for an adult facilitator to introduce the kit to a child. The facilitator would first ask every child to make a list of 2-5 adults in their life who they completely trust.
- Graphical booklet on Safe and Unsafe Touch: This is a comic strip to bridge the gaps in the understanding of a child on what constitutes safe and unsafe touch.
- Scenario-based Card Game: The final step is a 6-stage card game where at each stage the child has to pick a response based on what he/she thinks and feels at that step. The game is presented such that the child can build an understanding of sexual abuse, and in the event that it happens, the ability to share it with a trusted adult.
Given the overall positive feedback, the team is now considering expanding the pilot to other geographies.
The team will also present their learnings at the upcoming Festival of Ideas event hosted by LKYSPP on 20
th November 19. Click
here to find out more.
Content provided by team SafeJoy.