CCF supports projects that give children access to technical and vocational training.
Children involved in armed conflicts are generally prevented from finishing primary and/or secondary school, leaving them uneducated and unable to generate income. To complement the Colombian government’s role in providing alternative schooling, CCF supports training in income-generating programs, bearing in mind the difficulty that traumatized children have in concentrating. All projects will require a sustainability strategy, which may include partnerships with local companies to provide work opportunities for new graduates, part payment for the course by students, etc.
Many children and youth involved in conflicts often have the ambition, skills and ideas to start up their own businesses but have limited access to resources required. These resources may include start-up funding, business skills, office space and so on. In countries such as Colombia, resources required to do this are often minimal, but could significantly change the lives of all beneficiaries in a sustainable way. For this reason, CCF supports projects that provide resources to start up micro-businesses of Colombian children.
Finally, many Colombian NGOs teach children handicrafts in their projects, and often sell these handicrafts to subsidise income for the organization. CCF facilitates market access for the handicrafts being produced by children in the partner organisations both locally, nationally, and internationally to support these organisations.
