HEARD Project implementers: East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community (ECSA-HC); Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; LVCT Health; US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Together for girls, presented on the topic, "Groundbreaking research on Violence against Children in East, Central and Southern Africa" on a panel at the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse & Neglect (ISPCAN) 2023 congress on September 27 at Edinburgh, UK. 

Results of the national Violence Against Children and Youth Surveys (VACS) highlight the high prevalence of physical, sexual and emotional violence in the ECSA region. A resolution of the 71st and latest Health Ministers Conference urged member states to use context-specific violence data to inform and drive system-based actions within the health and other key sectors. Over the past decade, a growing area of research led by governments, local and international researchers and multisectoral and regional agencies has generated groundbreaking data on prevalence, nature and drivers of violence in childhood and young adulthood, provided insights into countries’ experiences in translating VACS data into policies and programs and tracked progress resulting from implemented strategies. On Sept. 27, the panel had in-depth discussion-based learning on the latest and future research on violence globally, in the ECSA region, and in one country to showcase action and impact. Discussants included experts and lead researchers from a range of backgrounds. Click here to learn more about the presentations 

Positioning for cross-regional learning on what works and how

The Implementation Science Collaborative (ISC) and Institute for Psychiatry and Neurology (based in Warsaw, Poland) held a consultation to address evidence-informed community-based mental health interventions targeting vulnerable, and conflict affected contexts. The discussion shaped ISC’s current community-based mental health activities, including (1) a global Landscape Analysis to identify interventions, policies, and stakeholder networks currently underway, and (2) a call for small awards to investigate ongoing interventions. 

Consultation participants included colleagues from IPIN (Poland), Jagiellonian University (Poland), Nicolae Testemitanu State University of Medicine and Pharmacy (Moldova), Polissia National University (Ukraine), School of Public health of Kyiv Mohyla Academy (Ukraine), and University Research Co., LLC. Support was provided through USAID’s Health Evaluation and Applied Research Development (HEARD) Project.

In June, HEARD continued its support to national-level efforts to prevent violence against children in Moldova, including through participation in a Technical Discussion with the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection (MLSP). The discussion was led by MLSP, and attended by USAID, UNICEF Moldova, Data for Impact Moldova, Changing the Way We Care Moldova, NGOs including Partnership for Every Child, and more. State Secretary, Vasile Cușca, and Head of the Child Protection Directorate, Igor Chișcă, shared updates on the Second Objective within Moldova’s National Child Protection Programme for 2023-2026, which includes 11 main actions and an overall objective of zero tolerance of violence against children in Moldova. MLSP shared that a decision had been passed to establish working groups to manage each Objective, led by the National Council for Child Protection. The Working Group for Objective 2 on preventing violence against children will be a critical component of the next MLSP-led roundtable on prevention of VAC, which is slated for later in 2023, in follow up to last year’s HEARD-facilitated Roundtable.

HEARD also participated on June 20-21 in the International Annual Conference on Financing Family Strengthening and Child Protection Services in the Context of Moldova-EU Accession Agenda, organized by Changing the Way We Care Moldova. This was a technical conference with high-level participation including from Moldova’s MLSP, key Moldovan NGOs working on child protection, and international and bilateral donor and technical partners including USAID, UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank. Conference sessions explored Moldova’s progress in strengthening child protection systems and transitioning children out of institutional care, Moldova’s pending social assistance reform legislation (‘Restart’), and how to establish and finance quality minimum quality standards for child protection services, well-trained human capital, and strong parental support programming. Click here to access the conference report.

In June, URC visited the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy School of Public Health and Polissia National University in Kyiv, Ukraine to foster collaboration in the area of community mental health.

The MOU signing preceded a consultation on community-based mental health in Warsaw, Poland, supported by the URC-implemented USAID Health Evaluation and Applied Research Development (HEARD) Project and Implementation Science Collaborative partner network. The Institute for Psychology and Neurology (IPIN) (Poland) and URC hosted the consultation, which included colleagues from Jagiellonian University (Poland), Nicolae Testemitianu State University of Medicine and Pharmacy (Moldova), and the two Ukrainian universities mentioned above. Click here to read more.

Implementation Science Collaborative (ISC) is a multi-stakeholder network addressing a range of health and development priorities through the better use of evidence to inform implementation. The ISC leverages USAID's Health Evaluation and Applied Research Development (HEARD) Project partnership to advance priorities across diverse thematic areas, such as woman-centered care, mental health and psychosocial support, protecting children from violence, and assistive technologies.

We acknowledge support from the Health Evaluation and Applied Research Development Project funded by United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under cooperative agreement AID-OAA-A-17-00002. The project team includes prime recipient, University Research Co., LLC (URC) and sub-recipient organizations. The information provided is not official U.S. Government information and does not represent the views or positions of the U.S. Agency for International Development or the U.S. Government.