CHESO
The Children Education Society (CHESO) was registered on 29th August 2006 under the Tanzania Non-Governmental Organizations Act No. 24 of 2002 as a local, private, voluntary, non-partisan, not for profit making, non-governmental organization to combat causes of most vulnerable children and to support realization of the children’s right to education.
Their mission: to combat causes of most vulnerable children through research, capacity building, dialogue, advocacy and to support the realisation of children’s right to education.
CHESO has developed and successfully implemented 9 different projects in the country reaching more than 10 million people including the following:
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Protecting the Rights of children living with HIV and AIDS: CHESO produced an awareness raising publication in Swahili and held a workshop on the use of Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) as a precaution to prevent HIV infection. (October 2009)
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Promoting Human Rights Compliance in Private Schools: CHESO conducted an awareness raising workshop and visited 5 schools. There has been an improvement in human rights compliance.
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Promoting the International Criminal Court (ICC) for Child Justice: An estimated 90% of all casualties of armed conflicts are civilians and about half of them are children. Between 1986-96, over two million children were killed around the world in war and as many as five million were injured or permanently disabled. Tanzania hosted one of the largest refugee population in the world including refugee children. Many perpetrators of international crimes were arrested in Tanzania and convicted, by the International Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in Arusha. CHESO has conducted awareness raising sessions with members of civil society, parliamentarians, the media and the general public urging them to ensure effective implementation of the Rome Statute on the ICC.
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Campaign for realization of the Millennium Development Goals(MDGs): CHESO translated into simple Swahili “The Education (Imposition of Penalties to Persons who Marry or Impregnate a School Girl Rules, GN No. 265 published on 5/9/2003” and used it as an effective awareness raising material and advocacy tool in Dar es salaam, Mwanza and in Chato district in demanding the government and the general society prevent School Girl drop-outs due to pregnancies and marriages by ensuring and supporting effective application of this law. Follow-ups are under way to see if the school girl drop-outs have reduced in districts covered.
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“Stand Up and Take Action”: CHESO mobilized more than 50,000 people (in 2008) and 170 000 (in 2009) in Tanzania as part of the international record breaking mass mobilization on a single issue; for world leaders to end poverty and to meet the unfulfilled Millennium Development Goals remain.
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Legal Aid Support Project: CHESO provides legal Aid and support to children, their indigent parents and guardians to obtain redress of their violated rights through court and non-court processes. In 2010 and 2011 CHESO played a leading role in the Tanganyika Law Society Legal Aid Day by providing legal aid to more than 400 people including children.
Contact Information for CHESO:
Richard Shilamba, Executive Director, Children Education Society (CHESO), Vikunai Street, Plot No. 1003,Tuangoma Ward-Temeke Municipality, P.O.Box 7013, Dar Es Salaam, TANZANIA
E-mail: chesociety@yahoo.com
