KUWAZA III

KUWAZA co-developed a culturally grounded prevention training toolkit for children, caregivers, teachers, and religious/community leaders. It integrated lessons from community engagement and was tested and adapted through ongoing feedback. 

The project trained community members to deliver curriculum-based sessions with children, their caregivers and teachers, and community and religious leaders. The sessions aimed to: 

• address the root causes of childhood sexual violence;
• strengthen adults’ child-protection, bystander, communication, and caregiving skills;
• increase children’s knowledge of their bodies, gender, and puberty; and
• build children’s agency, confidence, and awareness of where to seek help. 

Sources of practice-based knowledge

• Frontline expertise: Practitioners and community leaders contributed knowledge gained from years of direct work with children, families, and local groups.
• Real-time adaptation: Facilitators drew on practice experience to respond to participant feedback and community needs as they arose.
• Cultural insight: Work on Muhali (the cultural silence around abuse) revealed the need for trusted community members and familiar language to open dialogue.
• Faith-based community knowledge: Religious leaders, Madrassa teachers, and parents shared insights into how religious norms, moral authority, and trusted faith spaces could either reinforce silence around abuse or be used to legitimise open, protective dialogue about child safety. This knowledge highlighted the importance of engaging faith-linked actors to ensure that prevention messages were perceived as legitimate and acceptable within the local moral landscape.

Participant reflections, and project endline evaluation using surveys and focus group discussions with caregivers and children revealed: 

The toolkit is currently being rolled out in another region in Zanzibar, with implementation expected to run from November 2025 to March 2026. Additionally, KUWAZA III partners are engaging other stakeholders and calling on implementing, development, and funding partners to collaborate to implement the intervention across Zanzibar and potentially beyond. 

Why this matters: The value of practice-based knowledge

KUWAZA demonstrates the critical role of practice-based knowledge in contexts with limited formal research. It highlights that those closest to the issue, including community members, practitioners, and local leaders, often possess valuable insights into what works. It shows how practice-based knowledge can surface the critical role of faith-linked institutions and leaders as entry points for prevention in contexts where formal systems have limited reach and where moral authority strongly shapes community norms. 

By drawing on these insights, the project implemented a prevention strategy that was relevant, sustainable, and deeply rooted in local realities.  

The KUWAZA experience highlights practice-based insights that may prompt reflection in other settings. These are not models to copy, but questions to consider in your own context: 

• Faith and moral authority: Which faith-linked institutions or religious leaders hold trust in your context, and how might their involvement help legitimise conversations about child protection and safety?
• Silence and taboo: Are there cultural barriers or silences that make it difficult to talk about childhood sexual violence, and who are the trusted people who might help break that silence?
• Community ownership: Which community members hold influence with children and families, and how could their involvement strengthen prevention efforts?
• Parenting practices: How do local norms around discipline and communication shape the way children seek support and protection?
• Real-time adaptation: How can you create space to adjust your tools and methods based on what children, caregivers, and communities are telling you?