At the counseling center, women receive comprehensive care, counseling, therapy services, and also the opportunity for vocational training. Info At the counseling center, women receive comprehensive care, counseling, therapy services, and also the opportunity for vocational training. Guatemala Support for teenage mothers and women affected by violence Programs The Women's Counseling Center (CAIMUS) of the local partner organization ASOGEN in Chimaltenango offers comprehensive care for women and adolescent survivors of mostly sexual and gender-based violence. Most of the women cared for at CAIMUS are mothers. In recent years, the number of teenage pregnancies has steadily increased, with 62,306 registered births to mothers aged 10-19 in Guatemala alone in 2023. Pregnant teenagers and young women in Guatemala receive little social support and face many obstacles that hinder their access to education and employment. This creates a vicious cycle of poverty and dependence. Caring for and counseling the very young mothers presents a significant challenge for the CAIMUS team, as many of the girls and young women have also experienced violence and abuse. Medical, psychological, and social care must therefore be approached in a very individualized and sensitive manner. Restoring emotional balance is a prerequisite for developing and sustainably pursuing a new life perspective. This also requires specialized staff and a specific program approach, which has been developed for this pilot project. In addition to the growing number of very young mothers, the counseling center team faces the ongoing challenge of high demand for care and counseling. The new project by action medeor and ASOGEN makes it possible to expand the services of CAIMUS to include a training center, as well as a childcare room for the supervision of children, allowing mothers affected by violence to focus on their counseling, therapy, and courses aimed at economic empowerment. Both additions represent a significant long-term achievement for the Women's Counseling Center and its users, with the added benefit of strengthening the capacity of CAIMUS staff. Furthermore, a pilot project tailored to the needs of teenage mothers is being implemented, which will serve as a model for future care of teenage mothers, including training for economic activity. In addition to regular comprehensive care, they receive special support measures, such as additional individual and intensive group therapies, self-help groups, a series of workshops on personal empowerment, as well as close social and individual support until they begin an economic activity. Additionally, prenatal medical care for pregnant teenagers and nutritional and pediatric care for babies born to teenage mothers is provided. Project descriptionProject Focus: Mother-Child Health and Women's RightsTarget Group: Direct Target Group: 30 teenage mothers participating in the pilot project, along with their children 350 mothers and pregnant women receiving comprehensive care at CAIMUS, benefiting from the expansion of services and increased care capacity 20 core CAIMUS staff members, whose workload will be reduced to a normal level, and whose capacity to care for the target group will be strengthened Indirect Target Group: Approximately 150-200 new potential users annually who will benefit from the training center and childcare roomProject Area: Chimaltenango, GuatemalaProject Duration: October 2024 - September 2025Financial Volume: 122,060 EurosPartner Organisation: ASOGENFunding: Aktion Deutschland HilftProject Number: 6000244 Your Contact Person Andrea Drost Programme Manager Latin America Phone: +49 2156 9788-133 TPL_EMAIL This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.