This is a 21 session community-based parenting programme jointly implemented by the Child Health and Development Centre, Makerere University, and The Medical Research Council/UVRI, for the early prevention of gender based violence and child maltreatment in Uganda. It addresses four familial processes associated with such violence: poor parental bonding and child attachment; harsh parenting; gendered socialisation; and parental conflict.
In 2013 we embarked on developing a manual to facilitate training of six parental groups in the formative phase in Kigungu near Entebbe and Bweya, Ssissa sub-county in Wakiso district. Kigungu is largely a fishing community and Bweya is peri-urban. In Kigungu two gender-specific groups comprising 15-20 parents were recruited and trained by an expert trainer, assisted by a trained local facilitator for 10 sessions, and mid-way through the programme, the men-only and women-only groups were mixed and trained for another 11 weeks on various aspects of parenting and spousal relationships. In Bweya, four groups have been identified and sessions are currently underway. A large scale pilot with a before-and-after outcome evaluation is planned in Luwero district. The programme promises to improve some skills and social norms around parenting and spousal relationships.
