PROBLEMS FACED BY CHH

Lee (2012) noted that the CHH usually move from household to household before deciding to settle on their own or with other children not related to them. Studies by Ward and Eyber (2009) showed that CHH face problems of isolation, rejection, a fear and perception that relatives and neighbours are generally not helpful and want to hurt them rather than help them. The CHH however create for themselves certain structures and systems that enable them to navigate the social environment to meet their needs (Thurman et al., 2006; Ward & Eyber, 2009; Lee, 2012). A study carried out by the Farm Orphan Support Trust of Zimbabwe (FOST) in 2002 revealed that the sample of CHH which were studied on commercial farms encountered problems, which could be grouped under the following categories:

Food security: Most CHH relied on food donations from the community. However, in most

cases the communities themselves were struggling to survive and this increased the vulnerability of the CHH. Hence, this safety net completely disappeared in times of general food shortages.

Educational opportunities: CHH family members are usually forced to drop out of school due to

lack of finances to pay school fees and other school requirements in terms of school uniforms and stationery. This unfortunately perpetuates the poverty cycle for the CHH in Africa where educational advancement is usually tied to economic and financial independence (Masondo, 2006). Some of the children in CHH drop out of schools well before they become orphans because they have to look after terminally ill parents (Kurebwa & Kurebwa, 2014).

Material needs: Most CHH lacked adequate basic survival materials such as clothing, food,

food and basic survival material and do not have time to continue with education (Ayieko, 1997; Kakooza & Kimuna, 2005; Richter, 2004; Robson & Kanyanta, 2007). In addition to not affording school fees, the CHH also fail to buy materials needed at school, for example, pens, books and school uniforms (Yamba, 2005). A study by Walker (2002) showed that 40% of children in CHH were not attending school due to poverty related reasons.

Psychosocial support: CHH have very few people, or no one, to whom they could turn for

emotional and social support. The study by FOST (2002) revealed a sense of helplessness by community members in terms of offering this type of support as most of the CHH’s emotional and social problems were tied to their lack of material needs as mentioned above, which the community was unable to supply. Kapesa’s (2004) observations led to similar findings where most orphaned children concurred that psychosocial support on its own without satisfying their material needs was not of much benefit. Betancourt, Meyers-Ohki, Charrow and Hansen (2013) however, indicated that although most children in the four African countries in which they carried out their study, wanted to share their problems with someone, their culture which encouraged perseverance in hardships as a positive coping strategy discouraged them.

Skills and knowledge: CHH do not have the opportunity to learn basic life skills nor acquire

cultural knowledge usually passed on to children by their parents. However, in a study by Yamba (2005) the eldest member of the CHH said that he frequently holds family meetings where he teaches his young siblings that which his mother, regarding good manners, had taught him.

exploitation in a number of ways and generally have no one to turn to for protection when at risk. Labour exploitation of orphaned children has been reported in a number of studies (Ward & Eyber, 2009; Lee, 2012; Evans, 2012). However Ungar et al. (2013) has shown that labour exploitation can viewed differently in different contexts and that in some cultures it can be a crucial resilience factor. In some contexts the children may need to work to provide for their siblings. Working therefore becomes a means of survival for the children.

Poor housing conditions: Many of the CHH were found to be living in overcrowded and

unhygienic living conditions. The housing conditions for CHH are generally poor and usually reflect the economic status of the deceased parents. If the late parents were relatively well off by the community standards, the houses will be roofed by corrugated iron. The grass thatched houses which are in the majority reflect generalised poverty of the deceased parents. However, the houses are generally in poor conditions as the structures lack rehabilitation and maintainance (Buzuzi et al., 2014). The HIV pandemic usually takes people in their prime and economically productive years (UNCEF, 2010). Most of the parents will be building their homes at this stage in their lives and after their death, no one in the extended family system will take up the responsibility, resulting in some CHH living in unfinished structures (Buzuzi, et al., 2014).

Poor access to health care and stigma: CHH usually lack knowledge in relation to health

matters and in addition they have no adult figure monitoring their health hence they become more vulnerable. They are also at risk of HIV infection because some engage in transactional sex due to their need to support themselves (Yamba, 2005). Many CHH experience stigma, social

isolation and rejection by their communities because their parents died due to Aids related illnesses (Segu & Wolde-Yohannes, 2000; Thurman et al., 2008).

Fear and sexual exploitation: Walker (2002) found that children in CHH in Zimbabwe

experienced a significant amount of fear about the future as was indicated earlier. Ritcher (2004) also noted a general fear about economic survival amongst the CHH. Kelso (1994) and Yamba (2005) reported that in most parts of Africa OVC are turning to transactional sex to obtain food and money on which to survive. This exposes them to the risks of human trafficking and contracting HIV/AIDS, the disease which may have killed their parents, and in this manner they (unwittingly) perpetuate the vicious cycle. Poverty, disease and various forms of abuse characterise the CHH’s daily lives in situations of crisis. Girls are more vulnerable to sexual abuse and exploitation and their chances of contracting the HIV virus is greater than that of boys of the same age (Vigh, 2006; Lee, 2012; Mabala, 2006).

The children in the CHH face a series of problems well before they become CHH. The problems they face usually depend on who would have died first between the parents. Table 2 below summarises the problems face by the orphans in the different categories. According to Buzuzi et al. (2014:115) maternal, paternal and double orphans face the following challenges as indicated in Table 2 on page 45.

Table 2: Problems faced by orphaned children

Maternal orphans Paternal orphans Double orphans

Abuse by the stepmother if the father remarries

Inadequacy of basic items like clothes, food and school fees

Forced to work at an early age due to poverty

Neglect by the father who may not regularly stay at home

Children resorting to selling their labour to survive

Early marriages for girls due to poverty

Dropping out of school Dropping out of school Uncontrollable behaviour due to peer pressure

Vulnerability to rape Disobedience by children especially boys

Sibling separation

Absence of psychosocial support and care,

Shortage of basics like food and clothing

Lack of education on reproductive health on girls

Emotional disturbances

Strained relations with maternal grandparents when the fathers remarry

Absence of psychosocial support and care

Abuse by care givers, for example, rape, child labour, physical and verbal abuse

Loss of possessions

The children in CHH usually lose assets left behind by the deceased parents to greedy relatives who take the assets on the pretext of safe keeping them for the children. The assets in most cases do not benefit the children and the children risk being disowned by the extended family members if they claim the assets that rightfully belong to them (Ward & Eyber, 2009; Yamba, 2005; Donald & Clatchety, 2005).

Access to facilities and resources

Although there is the availability of health and education facilities, the challenge for most CHH is in accessing these facilities which require cash in terms of transport, medical fees and school fees. Although there are policies on free treatment of OVC in Zimbabwe, in reality this is not being implemented because healthcare personnel require cash upfront before treatment (Buzuzi et al., 2014). The selection of beneficiaries for various services and goods offered by NGOs is fraught with irregularities that sometimes leave out the intended beneficiaries (Kapesa, 2004). Children in CHH do not have access to financial resources and resort to selling their labour and some their bodies in search of this scarce commodity (Vigh, 2006; Yamba, 2005). The NGOs support the children materially and do not directly give out cash. This has resulted in some orphaned children selling material received from NGOs, for example, seed and fertilizers to raise money to buy other necessities (Buzuzi et al., 2014). A new cash transfer programme, where vulnerable families receive a certain amount of money from the government that is being run as a pilot project in some districts in Zimbabwe might rectify this problem. There is not much in terms of community resources for the orphaned children. The Zunderamambo (chief’s/community granary) is failing to adequately cater for the needs of the CHH because of

the increase in the number of vulnerable people in the community. The chiefs also report that although the labour to work in the fields is available, the required inputs like seed and fertilizer is not available (Buzuzi et al., 2014; Chizororo, 2005). This unfortunate scenario self defeats the whole concept and principles of the chief’s/community granary (Zunderamambo).

Role adjustments

Nkomo (2006) noted that after the death of the parents, children had to make the adjustment from being a child to being the head of a household and that this adjustment came with many challenges. Nkomo (2006) identified a number of challenges associated with this adjustment: these included a feeling of having lost one’s childhood and sense of self with the accompanying feelings of deprivation. The heads of the CHH also complained that they bore too much responsibility for their younger siblings although they themselves are also children. They also reported feelings of being abandoned by extended family members whom they feel should be taking responsibility for them (Ward & Eyber, 2009; Lee, 2012). Preoccupation and concern for surviving in the face of economic hardship was also a major challenge for the CHH heads. They also struggled with multiple and competing responsibilities and reported a sense of helplessness and uncertainty about the future, personal safety, family disintegration and discipline.

Mkhize (2006) concurring with Nkomo (2006) notes the multiplicity of adult roles that the heads of CHH undertake, for example, decision- making, leadership, economic provision, care giving, conflict management and housekeeping engendered a great deal of stress. Similar findings emerged from studies on CHH by Masondo (2006) and by the Indian HIV/AIDS Alliance and

Tata Institute of Social Science (2006). The CHH interviewed in these studies all reported that the process of adjusting roles was stressful for them.

Emotional distress

The lives of the CHH are charaterised by chronic distress which affects them emotionally and socially. Donald and Clacherty (2005) found that children in CHH reported 92% negative events in their lives as compared to 55% negative experiences in children living with both parents. Kurebwa and Kurebwa (2014) reported that communities in which the children lived did not have much experience in helping the children to deal with psychological trauma. Poverty also exacerbated the children’s problems and it is difficult to separate the children experiences of poverty with their emotional problems (Kapesa, 2004). The unavailability of trained counselors in the communities and schools worsen the problem.

Unavailability of continuous adult support

Children in CHH report that they lack guidance, protection, care and support from an adult and this exposes them to exploitation and abuse. The heads of the households report that their immaturity hinders them from providing appropriate care and support to their siblings (Kurebwa & Kurebwa, 2014; Masondo, 2006). The children who need guidance are put in a position to provide guidance to their siblings. This compromises their position as children who also have similar needs of care, love and security. A study on CHH in Uganda showed that the children in CHH rarely had time to play (Dalen, Nakitende & Musisi, 2009).

Problems related to power dynamics in CHH

According to Chistiansen et al. (2006), as the children in CHH move through the life phases, they inevitably interact with positions of power and authority. In the midst of these interactions and negotiations with the powers that be, the youth try to find ways of having some control over their lives. They realise that their starting point is a position of relative powerlessness due to their age. They however show resilience by socially navigating through the maze of positional power and show ‘an ability to envision the unfolding of the social terrain and plot to actualise one’s movement from the present into the imagined future’ (Vigh, 2006:52). This view is supported by the Social Suffering Theory by Pedersen (2002). According to this theory, social suffering is a result of the effects of political, economic and institutional power on people’s lives. These effects influence people’s responses to problems. People respond to problems by analysing the social terrain and strategically navigating this terrain in ways that meet their needs (Vigh, 2008). Hence social navigation becomes a useful lens through which the CHH aim to get what they want from a social environment that may not be forthcoming in meeting their needs (Lee, 2012). They envision opportunities that they need to explore in the context of adversity and strive towards these opportunities to meet their respective needs. However, according to Ungar et al. (2013:351), this navigation to resources that promore well-being is mediated by ‘gate keepers to the resources’ who can either constrain or facilitate the navigation process.