Children of India Foundation

CIF works to ensure that people find an increase in income through livelihood generation activities. It conducts job-oriented skills training for young girls in trades like tailoring, computer operations, four-wheeler driving and jewellery making among others and has also set up a revolving fund, which would help the women in times of financial need.

The women who require funds would borrow from the fund and would invest in income generation activities like agriculture and livestock development, paying back later with a small interest. This would keep the fund alive and all of the women are benefitted from increased incomes.

Partnering with Terre des Hommes Netherlands, CIF addresses the issue of children in Jharkhand and Bihar being put to work collecting Mica, a mineral used by the automobile industry. This work leads the children to drop out of school resulting in the discontinuation of education.

The programme empowers children to join back school and raise their voices against such exploitation by organising them into children’s clubs, engaging with Government, civil and private sectors, generating alternative income opportunities, education and providing social security.

The organisation works in the State of Telangana to help children of migratory brick kiln workers to join or rejoin mainstream education. It provides education, sports materials, bridge and remedial classes, raising concerns against child labour, lobbying with the local department of education to provide mid-day meals and engaging with local police, media and NGOs to ensure the beneficial activities go on without hindrance.

This programme in partnership with Terre des Hommes Netherlands sets out to save girls from the evil of exploitation and getting pushed into prostitution. It works against the tradition of the Devadasi community where post-puberty, girls are dedicated as sex workers, abused and exploited leading to their dropping out of school. The programme partners with law enforcement agencies and creates awareness in communities about this malpractice.

Vulnerable girls from these communities are grouped into Kishori clubs and are provided training on child rights, education, training on advocacy, vocational training, and community sensitisation and are led to participate in child-led interventions empowering them against this practice.

Its IMAGE programme, in partnership with Terre des Hommes Netherlands, aims to help victims of child marriage, the organisation calls these girls EMG’s(Early Married Girls) and they are helped in a phased manner. The first phase involves empowering the EMG's by providing healthcare, education, social protection, vocational training, creating awareness and information on sexual and reproductive health and advocating against gender-based violence.

The second phase includes nurturing a movement of these girls to transform them into agents of change by strengthening the movement, introducing behavioural changes, leadership development and capacity building, engagement with Government agencies and working on evidence gathering and communication strategies. The girls and their spouses are equally impacted by these initiatives.

Post puberty, adolescent girls from lower caste Devadasi communities are dedicated as sex workers. A practice deep rooted in socio-cultural exploitation, children of Devadasis are abused and discriminated against; most of them drop out of schools. Generations of women in the same family engage in the practice, making even the children who are not dedicated, vulnerable. We tackle child exploitation in the Devadasi community through child participation for advocacy, education and skill development, working with law enforcement agencies and by sensitising communities.

Jharkhand in India accounts for nearly 25% of the world’s mica supply. Families in the mica belt depend solely on the mineral for their livelihood. Lack of an organised supply chain has led to labour exploitation and families get bare minimum wages. As a result, children are forced to work, and are out of school. The working conditions are hazardous with children having to go down into dark pits and extricate mica. Lack of additional livelihood opportunities makes the families remain poor and vulnerable. Our Action We work to provide children (both vulnerable to and victims of child labour, girls and boys) access to quality education and a conducive environment to thrive and develop. Families are also provided access to additional livelihood opportunities, reducing their economic strain. We also link families to social security and strengthen child protection mechanisms. We advocate with the government, lobby with the private sector and mobilise CSOs to help address the problem. Our key approach includes training children as ‘agents of change’ where they are grouped into children’s clubs and sensitised on chid rights, child protection laws, life skills and reporting mechanisms.

Post puberty, adolescent girls from lower caste Devadasi communities are dedicated as sex workers. A practice deep rooted in socio-cultural exploitation, children of Devadasis are abused and discriminated against; most of them drop out of schools. Generations of women in the same family engage in the practice, making even the children who are not dedicated, vulnerable. We tackle child exploitation in the Devadasi community through child participation for advocacy, education and skill development, working with law enforcement agencies and by sensitising communities.