About this topic
Governments around the world responded to the spread of COVID-19 by imposing lockdowns, quarantines and school closures. While these measures have contained the spread of the virus, they have also increased the risk factors for intimate partner violence and child abuse, leading to what the UN has described as “the shadow pandemic of domestic violence”.
Family for Every Child alliance members have been in close contact with children, families and communities during the pandemic. They have seen that domestic violence is being inflicted on children either directly in the form of child abuse, or through children being affected by the increased intimate partner violence within families.
In this How We Care series, we present the programming of 3 of our members who have been working on the ground on this issue. ChildLinK in Guyana, the Foundation for Innovative Social Development (FISD) in Sri Lanka, and the Association for Community Development (ACD) in Bangladesh.
Explore the models
Model 1: Family strengthening
Organisation: Foundation for Innovative Social Development – strengthening families and preventing separation; empowering women and promoting positive masculinity
Location: Mirihana, Sri Lanka
Model: Programmes to help families spend quality time together, strengthen their relationships and reduce the likelihood of violence (family recreational packs; home gardening; work with men to transform masculinities)
Model 2: Positive discipline in everyday parenting programme
Organisation: Association for Community Development – promoting the rights of women and children by advocating for social justice and developing community-care support mechanisms
Location: Rajshahi, Bangladesh
Model: Changing parents’ attitudes towards physical punishment and guiding children’s behaviour in positive ways (Positive Discipline in Everyday Parenting (PDEP) programme)
Model 3: Building family bonds
Organisation:ChildLinK – protecting children from abuse, exploitation and violence; empowering children, families and communities, and supporting government to create the best environment for children’s development
Location: East Bank Demerara, Guyana
Model: Strengthening bonds between parents and children and stopping abuse (Building Family Bonds workbook)
Latest resources
How We Care: Caring for children and families in indigenous communities
The bridge to belonging
