Child rights action with informed and engaged societies

After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. 

Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future. 

On the transfer, co-founder Victoria Martin expressed her pleasure to see this work continue under Wits' leadership, knowing that co-founder Warren Feek (1953–2024) would have felt deep pride in The CI Global's Africa-led direction. 

As Wits, we honour the team and partners who sustained The CI for decades and look forward building from that strong base. This includes co-founders Warren Feek (1953-2024) and Victoria Martin as well as La Iniciativa de Comunicación (CILA), which continues independently at lainiciativadecomunicacion.com with links to The CI Global site. We are also eager to forge new partnerships and entertain new ideas as we consider how best to contribute to social and behaviour change in our rapidly evolving environment.

If you are joining the International Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) Summit in Panama, please join Wits and CILA on Monday, 22 June, to share your thoughts and suggestion for the relaunch of the Communication Initiative. We will be in Pacifica 5 from 12-1:25 for the Refuel, Reflect, and Renew Lunch Series: The Communication Initiative: celebrating a driving force for Communication for Social Change and the way forward. We will reflect on the legacy of Warren Feek and family in creating the Communication Initiative, consider the contributions of CI over the years and then turn our attention towards the future in this dynamic session. 

If you are unable to join us in Panama, we still want to hear from you. Please contribute your thoughts by following this link: https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026 or reaching out to ci_surveys@commint.com

You can also follow the QR Code:

 https://redcap.link/CommunicationInitiative2026

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Kenya's cash transfer program: protecting the health and human rights of orphans and vulnerable children

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Bryant, J. H. (2009). Kenya's cash transfer program: protecting the health and human rights of orphans and vulnerable children. Health Hum Rights, 11(2), 65-76.

Background: In Kenya, as in other countries of sub-Saharan Africa heavily burdened by HIV/ AIDS, orphans and vulnerable children (OV/C) face poverty and despair. There is an urgent need to provide a comprehensive response that supports families and communities in their efforts to care for children and safeguard their rights. The government of Kenya has established a cash transfer program that delivers financial and social support directly to the poorest households containing OV/C, with special concern for those children with or affected by HIV/AIDS. The Kenyan effort builds on lessons drawn from research and program development on cash transfers in Latin America, Asia, and Africa, and the Kenyan program offers an opportunity to examine the challenges faced by Kenya, and its responses in the context of international experiences.

Objective: This paper-based on observation of and interviews with key actors involved in the origins, development, evaluation, and continued strengthening of Kenyas cash transfer program and on the analysis of technical program documents obtained from those key actors--describes the Kenyan cash transfer program in light of human rights issues as they relate to childrens health. It offers one example of how caring for society's most vulnerable members is a collective responsibility to be shared by a country's government, local citizens, and the international community.