Ministry hails Creccom for empowering men
The Ministry of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare has commended Creative Centre for Community Mobilisation (Creccom) for its initiative to engage men in fostering early childhood development (ECD).
The ministry’s ECD quality control officer Chikondi Chiumbuza Mponda said this in Ntchisi on Wednesday when Creccom awarded certificates to 20 men who completed a mentorship programme in Chaferapanjira Village, Traditional Authority (T/A) Kalumo.
Through the programme, the men, called Real Fathers, participated in a Tostan male engagement model-based training which uses non-formal education to empower communities and address social challenges through reflection and dialogue.
Mponda described the programme as important, having included men in the promotion of early childhood and girls’ education by training them in areas such as positive parenting, child education and child rights.
“The men will become change agents in their community, addressing issues that previously seemed to affect women only,” she said.
Creccom, which had previously focused more on women, decided to target men to achieve new outcomes.
Creccom executive director Alinafe Chibwana said the organisation decided to target men to achieve different outcomes.
She said: “It is important to involve men in ECD and other issues impacting women and girls. Men are often the decision-makers in households. By empowering them, we aim to sustain these interventions.
“Men need to understand these issues at a grassroots level to contribute to their children’s growth.”
One of the participants, Matthews Medson said the project made him realise that as men, they also need to be involved in their children’s care.
T/A Kalumo committed to ensuring that more men in his community become involved in such initiatives.
