Author: Nicoletta Armstrong

On the 11^th of October 2024, I had an interesting conversation with Jeed Prakaikaew Phochan and Sara Sarawaree Lie. They both live in Norway, but their native country is Thailand which they visit a couple of times a year.  Our conversation was facilitated by Olav Skjerpeour who introduced us and assisted with translations. Sara is leader in the Youth Buddhist Federation, Jeed is Children’s Pastor in the Church of Norway.

Jeed and Sara are currently undergoing training both in Norway and in Thailand to become ICDP certified trainers. They travelled to Thailand to attend workshops organized by ICDP Thailand, whereas their practical projects are currently taking place in Norway among Thais. They are conducting the training in Thai. Jeed and Sara will have become certified ICDP by the end of January 2025. In my conversation with them they expressed keen commitment and desire to take the ICDP programme to others.

As part of their training they are forming new persons to become ICDP facilitators, namely, Mr. Phra,  Phichitchai Miphimol, Mrs. Lalita Chumpon and Mrs. Penprapha Skjæret. After attending the ICDP workshops, the trainee facilitators started rolling out the ICDP programme to Thai parents, accompanied by Jeed and Sara. This process is taking place at the Wat Thai Buddhist Temple in Norway and will be completed in November. Mr. Phra is a Buddhist monk, so for the first time we have a Buddhist monk becoming an ICDP Facilitator.

Olav, Jeed and Sara explained how the temple fulfills an important social function, acting as a safe place for fellowship among Thais. When Thai migrants experience challenges in their family lives, they approach the temple, but the temple has few tools to help with when it comes to family life and parent-child-relations. This is where ICDP comes in.  

Furthermore, the Buddhist temple feels that ICDP fits in their worldview and there is keen interest to spread ICDP more widely to reach the Thai diaspora in Europe. The abbot at Wat Thai Norway is the President of the Union of Thai Sanghas (Buddhist temples) in Europe and Jeed and Sara were invited to introduce ICDP to Thais living in different parts of Europe. ICDP will sign an agreement with Jeed and Sara once they have completed their training and we will keep in touch and observe future developments with great interest. – Nicoletta Armstrong, ICDP chair.

A workshop on “strengthening ICDP as part of Child Sensitive Social Protection (CSSP)” took place in Helsinki, Finland, from 12th to 16^th of September 2024. It was organized by Save the Children Finland who have been promoting ICDP internationally for several years now.

The workshop was attended by ICDP trainers who have been implementing the ICDP programme as part of the CSSP. Three ICDP trainers came from SC Nepal, two from SC Philippines, one from SC Zambia, one from SC Somalia, two from SC Finland and one ICDP trainer came from Normisjon Bangladesh. Nicoletta Armstrong from ICDP was also present. Disa Sjoblom, Mukesh Lath and Nicoletta facilitated the workshop.

The overall objective was to provide a forum for sharing between countries to ascertain ways of strengthening the work of ICDP, focusing especially on how to provide quality implementation and maintain the quality of the work after the end of the project intervention. Two days were dedicated to this, and on both days participants were split into small groups to explore the following two questions, with in-depth discussions afterwards in the big group:

1. How can you enhance the parents to practice 8 guidelines during the period of implementation? 
2. How to sustain caregivers’ practice after our involvement has finished/mechanisms of sustainability.

On the first day, the morning was dedicated to sharing about the work in respective countries. Here are some of the highlights from that session:

Nepal: The concept of CSSP, with ICDP as part of it, is currently in process of being institutionalized at 9 local government levels, as well as having national government endorsement for it. There are 142 facilitators who in addition to ICDP, also deliver sessions on nutrition and family budgeting. Evaluations of their work showed significant impact. Ten animated films about the 8 guidelines for good interaction were produced to be sent to caregivers as reinforcement after each session.

ICDP trainers from Nepal presented the programme Building Brains, role playing the part that ties in well with the Comprehension dialogue of the ICDP programme. These are play activities that encourage parents to use books and games to enhance children’s learning and cognitive abilities.

Philippines: The CSSP work has been integrated in the 4Ps country programme, which consists of education, health, nutrition and ICDP. In 2018, 1429 parents were reached in region 8. The 2019-2021 impact study showed positive results, and in 2022 the work received government endorsement by region 8. In December 2022, an agreement was signed between SC Philippines and the Ministry (DSWD) for national scale up of the CSSP. There are 1068 facilitators, 18,031 parents were reached so far – the future seven-year plan is to reach 4 million. A new group of 213 social workers have been trained as ICDP facilitators and they aim to reach 869 000 parent leaders/volunteers. There are 17 regions with 17 regional programme coordinators of the 4Ps and all have asked to be trained. Family Development Division cooperates on materials. Animated videos were made on the 8 guidelines to enhance the quality of implementation by caregivers, as is was done in Nepal. 

Zambia: The project (2022-2025) works with government cash transfer, promoting transparency and accountability, implementing ICDP parenting sessions, as well as resilience building sessions, in the districts of Kalulushi and Lufwanyama, in the Copperbelt province. A total of 59 groups of caregivers were trained, in these two districts; 1066 caregivers were reached. Cooperation is with the Ministry of Social Affairs, who have a volunteering policy, so many facilitators are volunteers. A concept note will be sent to the Ministry for a scale up.

Somalia: The work of CSSP (2022 – 2025) has so far reached 625 households in two districts of Somaliland, namely working in 3 IDP camps in Hargeisa and in Berbere village. The milestones achieved include the first ever review of Social Protection in the country, the signing of the policy for Social Protection by the President of the country in 2024, and the recognition of Social Protection by the National Development Plan. Preparations for scaling up of the CSSP that includes the ICDP programme is in planning.  A study of the impact of ICDP is in process, involving 400 persons in the experimental and 200 in the control group.

On the following day, an interesting presentation by Mark Millrine from CUBIC introduced participants to behavioural science as a way of increasing caregivers’ engagement on parenting programmes.

On the last day a visit took place to the premises of The Federation of Mother and Child Homes and Shelters (ETKL) in Helsinki, to meet Miia Pikulinsky from ETKL and the vice chair of ICDP Finland, Petra Zilliacus.  Miia, welcomed everyone and presented a power point which showed a wide range of services, many of which included the ICDP programme. After that, Petra shared about the implementation of ICDP in Pargas. A pleasant and meaningful exchange of ideas took place and the workshop ended with a small ceremony when Nicoletta presented ICDP Trainer level diplomas to two new trainers, Adam Nyundo from Zambia and Abdilladif Ismail, from Somaliland.

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In August 2024, Nicoletta Armstrong, on behalf of the ICDP foundation board , has established cooperation with the Gdansk Centre for Health Promotion and Addiction Prevention (GOPZiPU). The Centre is committed to improving public health through various municipal programmes focussed on promoting healthy lifestyles and preventing addictions to psychoactive substances.

The ICDP programme is piloted from January to June 2025, and it will be rolled out to pre-school teachers. The plan is to train approximately four groups with all activities funded by the local government, with no cost to participants. ICDP facilitator Lidia Wasik will be delivering the ICDP programme to teachers at caregiver level.

In November 2024, Marek Jankowski, director of GOPZiPU signed a contract with Izabela Wojtowicz, who will support Lidia in developing ICDP in Poland – it is a contract of mandate for the duration of the pilot.

Dr Marek Jankowski, said:

– Implementing the ICDP aligns with our mission and allows us to strengthen relationships between parents, professional caregivers and children, thereby addressing the essential needs of children in Gdansk. We aim to integrate this programme into our offerings and we believe that our cooperation with ICDP will bring significant benefits to our community and contribute to the global mission of ICDP. We are eager to work closely with ICDP international. I am pleased to support this initiative to enhance child development and caregiver interaction in our community.

In Nepal, the ICDP programme is being implemented with mothers who receive the government Child Grant cash transfer programme. A study of the impact on parenting behaviours was completed in 2024 and the results have been published by Save the Children.

The parenting intervention aimed to boost parenting behaviours that are recognized as crucial for children’s socio-emotional and cognitive development.

Based on direct observation of mother-child interactions, the findings indicate that the programme was successful in significantly improving parental behaviours related to all four domains studied, i.e., affection, responsiveness, encouragement and teaching.

Click here to read.

A short article about the success of the ICDP programme was recently published, titled: Ivory Coast – AIP/ A community project strengthens family communication in homes in Taoudi. Here is the link to it:

https://www.aip.ci/89946/cote-divoire-aip-un-projet-communautaire-renforce-la-communication-familiale-dans-les-foyers-a-taoudi/

The English translation of the original text of this article in French, follows below:

Bondoukou, July 31, 2024 (AIP) – The agent of the social center of Taoudi (101 km from Bondoukou) and focal point of the project initiated by the organization Save the Children”, Brou Edoukou Jean Charles, praised the merits of the International Program of Child Development (ICDP), in strengthening communication between children and their parents in Taoudi.

This community initiative aims to improve parenting practices and thus the development and well-being of the child.

According to Brou Edoukou Jean Charles, this project has improved family relationships in his locality. “The beneficiaries have learned that they must devote time to their children and interact with them, have moments of intimacy with them,” he said.

The repercussions are visible with a reduction in the number of cases of child abuse, according to these registers and a positive impact on populations.

For the director of this social center, N’Dri Affoué Clémence, this project gave the children the joy of living again.

“They are happy and live in perfect harmony with their parents,” she greeted, during a contact tour, from Monday July 22 to Saturday July 27, 2024.

This vision is part of the programs, “towards an inclusive and violence-free environment for the most vulnerable girls and boys in Bondoukou and “child-sensitive social protection”, launched on March 24, 2022.

Amounting 1.2 million euros, or 787,148,400 million FCFA for a period of four years, these programs are intended to increase and promote the rights and well-being of children in the region. of Gontougo.

July 2024: In Colombia, a project called “Women with a Soul” is currently developing in the village of Santa Teresa, in the eastern part of Antioquia. The objective is to strengthen socio-emotional capacities in the women as the basis for the strengthening of family relationships and the development of rural entrepreneurship processes in the area.

In the village of Santa Teresa in the Municipality of Rionegro, Antioquia there are more than 500 families, 80% of whom belong to strata 1, 2 and 3, with low economic income and unsatisfied basic needs.

Among its main problems are: a macho culture, problems of alcoholism, in some cases domestic violence, school dropouts, conflicts between families, unemployment, the growing consumption of psychoactive substances in young people and adults.

The village has many opportunities for growth such as the Community Action Board that works for the development of its inhabitants, the rural school that is financed by the Secretary of Education and a group of women that for 4 years has been advancing in processes of empowerment and personal growth, some of them have managed to consolidate processes of entrepreneurship and financial autonomy (this with the support of social entities such as ICDP Colombia and Fundación Club Campestre).

This project “Women with Soul” seeks to strengthen and give continuity to the effort and commitment of some women in the village who have managed to develop socio-emotional skills and leadership, strengthen their family relationships and consolidate enterprises.

The project allows multiplying the experience of women like Mercedes Carvajal, who through the Alma Botánica entrepreneurship and with the support of ICDP Colombia want to impact other women in the area, giving continuity to the training and personal growth processes.

The beneficiaries of the project are 20 women, from the village of Santa Teresa in the Municipality of Rionegro, between 25 and 60 years of age, The women are illiterate or with low schooling, they are economically dependent on men, and they are dedicated to domestic work including the upbringing of children and grandchildren. All have available land to produce home gardens, crops and other uses in favour of self-consumption and entrepreneurship.

In this project, the community contributes the soil, its ancestral knowledge for the development of productive projects and the experiences of clean production with organic fertilizers, such as bocashi, for the care of nature and protection of the natural reserve in which they live.

The ICDP Colombia Foundation has joined this project by contributing its knowledge to improve family relationships through the implementation of the ICDP programme. Three ICDP volunteers who accompany this community. Abel Salazar, ICDP trainer, is overseeing the work.

An article is available about the impact of ICDP on school achievement. It was published in the Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, Volume 65, 2021 – Issue 3. The article is called A First Examination of the Role of the International Child Development Programme in School Achievement. The authors are: Lilian Berggren, Lene Lindberg, Terese Glatz and Therese Skoog.

Download this article as pdf file.

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to explore whether the classroom implementation of the International Child Development Programme (ICDP) for secondary school students (grade 9) was linked to better school achievement. The goal of the ICDP is to increase school achievement by promoting positive teacher-student relationships. The study, performed in Sweden, applied a pre–post design (four years) with matched intervention and control schools (N = 148). The post-intervention assessments showed that there were significant differences in school achievement in Grade 9 between the intervention school and the control school. Specifically, a greater proportion of students at the intervention school demonstrated improvement in school subjects and achieved the competency requirements to enter an upper secondary school programme. Based on the results, the ICDP can be considered an important intervention to promote student learning by promoting positive teacher-student relationships.

Link to the full article online: A First Examination of the Role of the International Child Development Programme in School Achievement (tandfonline.com)

ICDP is being implemented by our partner organization, Ark and Mark. Update from their report:

Since parenting is still crucial in Botswana, Ark and Mark Trust has benefited from financing received from the Department of Social Protection (DSP) to reach additional communities in the nation. ICDP made significant strides in promoting child development in various villages in Botswana. The programme was implemented in Thamaga, Molepolole, Ramotswa, Gabane, and for the first time, Lobatse. Lobatse notably became the first town to self-sponsor its participation in the ICDP.

The Social Welfare & Community Development (S&CD) office of Lobatse Town Council identified the need for a follow-up intervention programme to address the issue of negligent or absent parents affecting street children in Lobatse. They requested theICDP programme for this purpose. Consequently, the town council sponsored the training of 42 facilitators to implement the ICDP in their community. Inspired by the success of the ICDP in other villages, Lobatse Town Council took this proactive step in June 2023. By leveraging the trained facilitators, the council aimed to drive local development and improve community well-being.

Read the full report here.

“I am excited to share with you an update up to mid June 2024! As part of the project, we are in the process of conducting training of six gorups of facilitators, four inside the valley and two outside the valley. All these groups participated in second workshop, so they are now conducting the eight ICDP meetings with caregivers. In addition, we are training three other groups of facilitators through private funding, and we plan to form three more groups of facilitators during the year. A great achievement this year is that we succeeded in organizing the ICDP Nepal Facilitators Network Meeting outside the valley for the first time! There were 88 participants. We also plan to hold a netowrk meeting inside the valley, this year too. Furthermore, we have developed in our yearly plan, a refresher programme for the ICDP trainers. We have already revised the Nepali version of the ICDP handbook for the facilitators and we started revising the caregivers’ booklets.” – Anupama Mukhiawrites.

From the report by Anupama Mukhiawrites, from ICDP Nepal/ECEC:

A major objective of ICDP Nepal is to increase psychosocial well-being of children in the country through improved parent-child communication. To achieve this objective, ECEC collaborates with educational institutions, local government and civil societies. Since the project’s inception in year 2015, a total of 967 facilitators were formed, who belong to more than 50 different organizations working for children. There is a total of 38 trainers in the country, including ICDP trainers under Save the Children. Through their work ICDP Nepal was able to reach many parents in remote areas of the country, empowering them as parents and enhancing their participation in civil society.

Testimony

ICDP Caregiver Sunita Buda, Bhume 5, Serawang, Rukum East: “I am 22 years old, and I have been married for 4 years. I have five members in my family. My daughter is now 3 years old. Prior to ICDP caregivers’ meetings, I mistreated my daughter. I used to prioritize daily chores and force my daughter to study by shouting, spanking, and threatening her. I did not validate her emotions. However, after participating in the caregivers’ meeting, I have become aware of my negative behavior towards my daughter. Now I look at her from a positive perspective.

Read the full report about acitivities in 2023.

Click here to read the ICDP report about its activities around the world.