Kinshasa Fight Against Sex Trafficking

Background

In 2007, the Salvation Army in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SA DRC) launched its first project to combat sex trafficking in Mpasa, located in the Kimbaseke district of Kinshasa. The two-year project was organized around four principle themes: schooling for young girls involved in sex trafficking, access to vocational training, psychosocial support, and community mobilization and outreach as a tool for prevention.

Building on the successes achieved, SA DRC, in partnership with The Salvation
Army in Norway (SA N), developed a second intervention phase, which, over a five year period (2009-2013), allowed for the consolidation of the results achieved the
initial project phase, while extending them to new neighborhoods in Kinshasa and to new groups of girls aged 12 years and older.

Purpose/objective

Evaluation objective: to use the intervention’s logical framework, results and qualitative and quantitative indicators as reference points to evaluate the relevance, efficiency, efficacy, impact and sustainability of the project, provide for each of these precise and documented analyses, and formulate recommendations necessary to strengthen future Salvation Army interventions.

Methodology

The methodology used for the evaluation relied primarily on triangulating the quantitative and qualitative data gathered from 1) SA DRC (document review, workshop to launch the evaluation, bilateral interviews), 2) key stakeholders and 3) beneficiaries and groups targeted directly and indirectly by the intervention (bilateral interviews, focus groups discussions, collecting testimonials and direct observations).

Key findings

The evaluation mentions a number of constraints to the gathering of information. Most notably:

• A serious problem regarding documents, tools, and management and monitoring records for the project and activities.
• A problem with the formulation of the project, including the results and indicators.
• Lack of representation in the focus group discussions by girls who dropped out of the program.

Regarding the project’s relevance and implementation

• Awareness raising and community mobilization had only mixed results in relation to prevention. The enrolment of girls in the vocational training cycle appeared to be the best strategy for both reintegration and prevention (the training was also open to other girls).
• There has at times been a significant drop-out of vulnerable girls from the vocational training; hence a strategy to support the most vulnerable families should be developed. As it is the micro-credit component does not achieve this. Post-training support needs to be an integrated part of the strategy.
• Lack of a functioning monitoring and evaluation system have been observed to be a significant and recurring weakness, which posed major problems during this evaluation process.

Regarding results/impact

• In terms of real employment and alternative income generation, the results remain mixed. However, though the girls earn very little money through their new activities, all of the girls consulted in the evaluation have returned to their families and affirmed, with a certain pride, that they have definitively abandoned prostitution.
• The interviews conducted in the field, especially with local leaders, parents of girls and project facilitators, however, show a real awareness about the extent of prostitution, its social and health consequences, and the need for concerted prevention efforts, awareness and action, supported by all community actors.
• In terms of voluntary testing, the results are significant and in line with expectations: 937 girls and other community members were tested. Note that this service simply does otherwise not exist in Kinshasa neighborhoods, reinforcing the high added value the services made available by SA DRC. Added value was also linked to the health facilities managed by the SA DRC and to the referral of positive cases to these facilities. Lacking a compilation of data, it is however not possible to say precisely how many cases were actually referred, as well as the nature and duration of the treatment they received. This element deserves more systematic monitoring in the future.
• Regarding the remaining components – the consultant was not able to determine exactly the degree to which this result was achieved due to the difficulties encountered in the collection and compilation of data.

Recommendations

Based on key findings, the following recommendations are given:

• Increase the capacity of the training center.
• Put a strategy in place to ensure the training center’s financial independence.
• Strengthen the quality of education and training
• Further integrate the different intervention components
• Considerably improve post-training support
• Literacy and the organization of internships
• Professionalize the micro-credit system considerably
• Link phases II and III with regard to the education component
• Considerably strengthen and develop the monitoring and evaluation system

Comments from the organisation, if any

Though some of the issues identified in this evaluation were already known to us, and addressed in new project plans, this has been a valuable experience, and serves to build momentum when it comes to improving our work, as well as giving us concrete steps on how to move forward. Conclusions and recommendations from this evaluation will be taken into account and used to further develop and improve our work with young vulnerable women and victims of sex trafficking and prostitution in Kinshasa.

The evaluation identified several significant weaknesses in the project. However, as is also mentioned in the report, some of these have already been addressed in a new project started in January 2014. TSA DRC has already developed and started putting in place a new monitoring system, and now individual files are kept on all girls that are active in the project – containing all information that is relevant to the project and the activities they are involved in