Orphans and Vulnerable Children - CRIN

Introduction and Objectives for Topic 1

One of the greatest challenges facing orphans, other vulnerable children and the households

which care for them is making sure that the children receive adequate food and nutrition.

When adults in a household fall ill or die, they are no longer able to tend to crops, cook meals,

or generate income to purchase food. Households who have taken in orphans may find that

there is not enough food to go around. If the community is suffering from other threats to

food security, such as drought or famine, the impact may be especially harsh for OVC, the

community’s most vulnerable members.

Vulnerable children thus may face all the three components of food security: availability,

accessibility and utilisation. Food security may lead both adults, and the children in their care,

to adopt risky survival strategies such as, sex for food and money, child labour, crime and drug

abuse. The purpose of this topic is to help community members think about some of the

dimensions of food security for vulnerable children; and to generate ideas about how the safety

net for these children can be strengthened.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this topic, participants will be able to:

 Explain the meaning of food security.

 List threats to OVC food security.

 Discuss possible community initiatives to enhance OVC food security.

 Discuss what home visitors can do to promote food security in OVC households.

(^216) Unit 2, Module 3 Guide to Mobilising and Strengthening Community-Led Care for Orphans and Vulnerable Children