In recent years, so much research, writing and action has been directed towards the girl child, but little or practically nothing was done for the boy child. In fact, the phrase “boy child” has only come to prominence recently. Even in the FutureLife-Now! schools, there is a lot of work done by other organizations specifically for girls. For example, one of these organizations has recently built a state-of-the-art girl’s toilet in one of the schools.

Such work is, of course, salutary and necessary, but FutureLife-Now! recognises that boys too have needs; they too are vulnerable. To truly address gender-inequality, those vulnerabilities also need to be addressed. Boys and young men feeling neglected later causes many of the gender-related problems that we see in our communities.

FutureLife-Now! in Zimbabwe started boys mentorship clubs, the main purpose of which was to give boys a platform to talk and discuss the issues that they face, and then to find solutions together. But the boys themselves need to be heard. So, here, in their voices, are what some of the young men, members of the mentorship clubs, have to say.

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Since its adoption by SADC Ministers of Education in 2008, the Care and Support for Teaching and Learning (CSTL) Framework has been instituted within the South African Department of Basic Education as a guide for mainstreaming care and support. An evaluation of CSTL was planned for 2019/2020, but with the advent of the coronavirus in early 2020, this was not possible. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic and related government lockdowns have resulted in numerous consequences for the education sector and the children it serves. It was thus determined necessary to conduct a rapid evaluation of CSTL implementation in schools, to determine how schools have coped during the COVID-19 period. 

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