7 FXB After-School Model Programs

Reinforcing the capacities of orphans and vulnerable children affected and/or infected by AIDS and limiting the impact of the pandemic on their lives

AIDS has a devastating impact on South Africa. It plunges families into misery and constantly weakens the social fabric. Often left to fend for themselves, many children are simply struggling to survive. They are vulnerable to the risk of missed opportunities for education, ill-health, malnutrition, abuse and exploitation. They are often unintentionally ignored and have nobody to talk to and help them deal with their own emotions and fears, especially in the event of a parent’s illness or death. This psychological distress often leads children to drop out of school, thereby jeopardising their future.

To minimize the impact of HIV on children’s lives and especially on their future, FXB implements  community-based programs near Johannesburg in Alexandra, Orlando, and Soweto; near Witbank in Jeremiah Mdaka, Moruti Makhuze, and Dunbar; and near Cape Town in Khayelitsha.

STRATEGIES

• Help children pursue or resume their primary and secondary education.
• Provide after-school support so that children can study in a peaceful and conductive environment.
• Provide basic nutritional support to those who cannot obtain foodstuffs regularly.
• Provide psychosocial support to youth through individual and collective interviews organized to help beneficiaries develop coping strategies to deal with the health and social consequences of the disease.
• Prevent HIV by organizing training and/or information sessions on hygiene, basic care, nutrition, reproductive health, STDs, HIV prevention, screening and treatment.
• Empower and inform young people about the significant role they can play within their communities through a leadership program which encourages them to educate other young people and give back to the community.

After three years and with the constant support of FXB coordinators, many youth become peer-educators, helping their counterparts prevent HIV and AIDS and cope with its negative effects. The FXB Model thus has a “snow-ball” effect. It helps youth help themselves and help others.

FXB operations in this country are supported, through financial or in-kind donations, by:

• Anglo American Chairman Fund
• Anglo American & De Beers
• Brian Adams Foundation
• Firelight Foundation
• Fondation Air France
• Fondation Suez
• Trafigura Foundation
• Juniper Networks Foundation Fund
• Momentum / Discovery
• Private donors