What is CT-OVC Programme?
The CT-OVC Programme is a government initiative supporting very poor households that take care of orphans and vulnerable children to enable them take care of those children and help to grow up in a family setting.

the programme is financed by the Government of Kenya with support from development partners that include World Bank, UNICEF and DFID (IDA).

Who is an orphan or a vulnerable child?
An orphan is a child who has lost one or both parents while a vulnerable child is one whose safety; well being and development are for various reasons, threatened. This includes children who are emotionally deprived or traumatized.

Goal
The main goal of the CT-OVC programme is to strengthen the capacity of poor households to protect and care for orphans and vulnerable children to ensure these OVC receive basic care within families and communities.  

Specific objectives
Specifically, the Programme seeks to:
•    Provide regular and predictable cash transfers to households living with OVC to encourage fostering and retention of the OVC within families
•    Improve civil registration of guardians/caregivers and OVC
•    Promote human capital development among OVC
•    Enhance guardians’ knowledge on appropriate care for OVC

OVC situation in Kenya
The population of OVC has steadily grown at an alarming rate in the recent past largely due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic.  In 2004 the number of orphans in the country was estimated at 1.8 million. Since then the number has steadily grown to the current 2.4 million. Most of these children lack access to basic needs due to high levels of poverty. In view of 46% of Kenyans living below poverty line with children accounting for 19 %, the OVC are more prone to different forms of abuse and exploitation due to their vulnerable circumstances.

Priority response
The Government recognizes the family as the natural unit for proper socialization and growth for every child. It aims at strengthening the capacity of facilities/households to care for OVC within the community as the key strategic response in addressing the OVC situation in the country. It is in this spirit that the CT-OVC Programme was introduced in Kenya in 2004.

Who qualifies for this Government support?
Programme beneficiary households are identified and selected through an elaborate community-based selection process. To qualify for selection and enrolment, a household has to meet a selection criteria that includes being very poor, taking care of an orphan or vulnerable children under the age of 18 years and not receiving cash assistance from any other Programme.  The process begins with the sensitization of the community on the nature, operational procedures and benefits of the Programme. The role of the community in the selection of the beneficiaries is clearly articulated to enable community members participate effectively in the selection process and general delivery of the Programme community members in the selected geographical area are sensitized through chiefs barazas, community sensitization meetings and chiefs barazas (meetings).

Programme coverage
The selection of Programme districts is based on the magnitude of the problem of OVC they present as manifested by their OVC population and their subsequent needs. Thus, to qualify a district should manifest a heavy burden of orphanage and or vulnerability as demonstrated by the following indicators:
Level of HIV/AIDS prevalence and number of OVC, Level of visible poverty and presence and quality of other interventions for OVC.

Implementation coverage
The programme is currently implemented in 60 districts supporting 102,000 households and benefiting 375,000 orphans and vulnerable children. It is envisaged that by 2012 the coverage will have grown to 150,000 households that will translate to benefiting 525,000 OVC.

Implementation structure
The Programme implementation is coordinated by an OVC Secretariat housed in the Department of Children Services in the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Development. The process is managed through a series of committees at the national, district and community levels and their roles are clearly defined in the Operational Manual that serves as the programme reference document.  The Manual defines the structure of the Programme and procedures and processes to be followed in the implementation process.

At the national level there is a national steering committee that provides policy guidelines while the district Area Advisory Committee, AAC manages the community level implementation with the assistance of a location orphans and vulnerable committee, LOC at the community level. The membership of the national steering committee comprises of policy makers drawn from other relevant line ministries and national offices of development partners. The LOC members are the regular agents of the Programme that the beneficiaries interact with.

Care givers responsibilities
The care givers and guardians are required to fulfill their roles and responsibilities to ensure effective programme delivery at the household level. The performance of these roles and respobilities ensures that the children enjoy the full benefits of the programme. These roles include ensuring:
OVC aged 0-5 years are taken for immunization and growth monitoring; OVC aged 6-17 regularly attend basic education; OVC acquire birth certificates; Care givers attend awareness sessions.

Payment of Benefits
Enrolled caregivers receive a cash payment of KSH. 1,500/= per month paid every two months through the Post Office and district treasury.

Monitoring and evaluation
Internal and external monitoring mechanisms are used to monitor the evolution of the implementation of the Programme, a process that involves the participation of programme staff as well as independent external consultants. The data thus generated is feedback to the implementation process to improve the quality of Programme delivery. To date an impact evaluation seeking to identify the impact of the programme on the lives of households and orphans and vulnerable children was conducted in 2009-10 to evaluate the welfare and economic impacts of the pilot amongst those who benefit from it and the operational effectiveness of the pilot programme. In general the programme has had very positive impact on the beneficiaries. It has ensured the OVC receive regular feeding, clothing, shelter, attend school regularly, access health care and acquire national registration documents like national IDs and birth certificates.

Future plans
The future of the programme looks bright. The Government commitment to the programme as demonstrated by its consistent allocation of more financial resources to the programme indicate that the programme is affordable and the Government intention to keep scaling up is a dream within reach. The current plan is to carry out internal scaling up of the programme where more beneficiaries are incorporated into the programme in selected districts before moving out to cover larger geographical areas. The impact evaluation results will provide crucial data for future planning.

Beneficiaries of the CT-OVC Programme

Orphans our responsibility lets all support them.


FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
THE OVC SECRETARIAT
DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN’S SERVICES
P.O. BOX 46205-00100 Nairobi
TEL. +254-20-2228411 EXT 30040
EMAIL: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it