Our Projects
Children and Youth Ministry
Lesotho Durham Link works with vulnerable Youth and Children between the ages of 6-22 as the CORE of its business. Through the Youth and Children Department, the Link provides psychosocial support to the disadvantaged children and youth in 11 villages of Ha Mohatlane in the Berea District. LDL conduct the following intervention programmes in order to provide a holistic Discipleship Approach to Children, Youth and their Leaders:
- Child Headed Households (CHH) Camps
- Guardian Workshops
- BibleMax7
- Life skills
- Community Outreaches
- Youth Leadership Trainings
- Children and Youth Workers Trainings (e.g. Sunday School Teachers Training)
Ha Mohatlane Community Center
Lesotho – Durham Link has established a community centre at the village of Ha Mohatlane in the district of Berea. The centrepiece is a large hall, used for church services and community events as well as by the primary school, some of whose classrooms fan out from the hall. The main building also houses a library and a clinic. Around the large site, there are further primary school classrooms and also workshops of the Link’s training centre.
Shape (Schools HIV and AIDS Peer Education)
Lesotho has one of the highest rates of HIV and AIDS infections in the world. The impact on children has been particularly harsh. The number of orphans is high, and it is not uncommon for a teenager to be “head of the house”: looking after a mother who is too ill to work, as well as younger brothers and sisters, all while striving to keep up with their lessons at school. There is a need in Lesotho not just for education about HIV/AIDS but also to bring about a very real change in sexual behaviour. Lesotho – Durham Link has established a programme for Secondary and High School students with exactly those aims – SHAPE (Schools HIV and AIDS Peer Education). As well as learning themselves, students on the SHAPE course are also trained to be peer educators who will be able to return to their schools and pass on what they have learned to their fellow students. With this in mind, schools select the natural leaders among their students to send on the programme, knowing that their fellow students will heed what they have to say on their return.
The SHAPE course is an interactive programme that incorporates games, outdoor activities, role plays, dramas, art and much more into a week long programme that is taught by trained educators. During the week, the students are encouraged to develop self-confidence, assertiveness and leadership while reassessing their own values and behaviour. Students return to school from the SHAPE course trained to pass on what they have learnt, using the methods from the course, so that gradually a network of informed young people is being established throughout Lesotho. Schools usually establish a club, run by those who have been on the SHAPE course, where they pass on their knowledge and skills at weekly meetings. Through games and role plays, other students also learn to resist peer pressure and put into practice what they have learned to stop the spread of HIV and AIDS. The Link visits the schools about a month after the SHAPE course has been held to ensure these clubs are in place and working effectively. Our goal is to establish peer educators in every school in Lesotho and we welcome donors who are able to help us to achieve this aim.
Youth Activities Programme (YAP)
The Link’s Youth Activities Programme is an integral part of our SHAPE course and in our work with our Coalition partners. Through their participation in the YAP’s outdoor activities, young people are taught life skills such as: Communication, Leadership, Planning, Self-confidence, Working together and Helping each other. We have also found that our Programme is not only popular with young people, but has also been used by adult groups for team-building.
Youth Activities Programme (YAP) Outdoor Activities Klub (OAK)
Our Outdoor Activity Klub is aimed at young people from the age of sixteen years upwards. They meet fortnightly on Saturdays. As well as taking part in our range of activities, members have the chance to gain formal qualifications so that they can become trainers themselves. Once qualified, they can volunteer as instructors on our activity programmes, gaining further valuable experience.
Environment
It is often said that this generation holds the environment in trust for future generations. At Lesotho-Durham Link, we believe it is not enough just to conserve what we have, but that we should play our part in improving the environment and also educating the younger generation to want to do the same. Since launching our environmental programme at the beginning of 2007, Lesotho Durham Link has established itself at the forefront of education-based environmental activities in Lesotho. Leaves for Lesotho is an ambitious programme to re-introduce trees in the landscape of Lesotho. It works hand-in-hand with our broad educational programme, which builds close links with primary schools. Our Primary Environmental programme works with primary school teachers and students to increase their enjoyment and care of their environment. We are grateful to UNDP-GEF (the United Nations Development Progarmme – Global Environment Facility) for their financial support of the Link’s environmental programme.
Coalition Partners
Juvenile Training Centre, Kananelo Centre for the Deaf, Lesotho Child Counselling Unit, Lesotho Girl Guides Association, Lesotho Save the Children, Lesotho Society of Mentally Handicapped Persons, Mantilatilane Child Rescue Centre, Tsosane Support Group for Orphans, Special Olympics Lesotho, Lesotho Durham Link Outdoor Activities Klub,