June 12, 2024

Child Protection Services in Marginal Neighborhoods of Santo Domingo Norte, Dominican Republic

Location

Santo Domingo, D.N.

Cristo Rey Neighborhoods, Villas Agrícolas, Ens. Luperón, La Zurza, Capotillo, Simón Bolívar, April 24, Espaillat, María Auxiliadora, Guachupita, Los Guandules.

Participants

1199 fathers and mothers have been made aware of the risks of violent education.
7528 parents they have been made aware of the risks of violent education indirectly through the distribution of educational material.
386 minors at risk of abuse.
334 families have been treated in therapy at the CTIJ.
has been trained 533 professionals and volunteers from the neighborhoods of the north zone of the National District.
has been trained 334 professionals at the district level.

Funding Sources

Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation, AECID. Spain.

Government of Navarre, Spain.
Caja Madrid / Social Work, Spain.

Navarra New Future Association, Spain.

This project contributes to the protection of children's rights and the reduction of child abuse in the Dominican Republic, strengthening services for children and adolescents in special vulnerability.

Achievements

The program’s initiatives have complemented the educational and preventive services provided by seven local community centers, creating a child protection and therapeutic care unit that has offered outpatient, home-based, telephone-based, and network-coordination interventions. In addition, training activities have been conducted for professionals involved in the care of minors, including doctors, psychologists, pediatricians, gynecologists, nurses, healthcare workers, teachers, and school principals, among others. The community has also been involved through the training of volunteers from the community centers, and institutional coordination and collaboration—essential for ensuring the project’s viability and sustainability—have been strengthened. A study was conducted on the rate of child abuse in the slums of the northern part of the capital, and a comparative study was carried out on child protection models and policies in Europe and Latin America; both reports were submitted to the Institute for Population and Development Studies of the Dominican Institute for Integral Development. In addition, media-based awareness campaigns on child protection have been designed, reaching more than 25,000 people in the target neighborhoods. The project has also included recreational and educational activities for children and adolescents at risk of child abuse, as well as workshops for parents, teachers, and other key community stakeholders. Cases of child abuse in these neighborhoods have been monitored, involving 600 young people between the ages of 50 and 65%.