PROTECTION FROM SEXUAL EXPLOITATION AND ABUSE (PSEA) PROTOCOL

CoELIB, Egerton University

Purpose of the PSHEA Protocol

CoELIB strives to offer everyone a safe and supportive learning and working environment. It has established the Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) Protocol for its employees and volunteers to promote the safety and security of fellow staff and direct and indirect beneficiaries, including youths and children (under 18). CoELIB recognizes that children and other programme participants may be vulnerable and at greater risk of violence due to their intersecting identities, such as age, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic origin, disability, or illness. Our Protocol, explained below, helps us ensure we do all we can to ensure they stay safe and protected when they engage with us and with those who represent us. 

1. Legal Framework on Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Prevention

This Protocol should be read together with Egerton University’s Code Of Conduct And Ethics Policy (http://bit.ly/3YPEssX), which draws its power from the Constitution of Kenya 2010. The policy mirrors the following legal frameworks.

1. The Constitution of Kenya 2010
2. The Kenya National Children’s Policy (2010)
3. The Children’s Act (2001)
4. Kenya National Guidelines on Management of Sexual Violence (2014)

2. Applicability

This Protocol applies to all partners and collaborators performing services for/with CoELIB. CoELIB has a special obligation to ensure the safety and dignity of all beneficiaries. CoELIB staff and collaborators will uphold the highest standards of timely and appropriate misconduct identification, reporting, and addressing.

3. CoELIB Commitment

CoELIB commits to complying with the legal frameworks under section 1 above by promoting the complete protection for all staff and beneficiaries following the law, participation of, and equalization of opportunities for individuals with disabilities in its strategies, activity designs, and implementation. Accommodations for persons with disabilities —youth participants or adults — may be requested by contacting the CoELIB staff at least 48 hours before any CoELIB event. Requests received after that time will be honoured whenever possible.

4. Definitions

Child abuse, exploitation, or neglect constitutes any form of physical abuse; emotional abuse or ill-treatment; sexual abuse; neglect or insufficient supervision; trafficking; or commercial, transactional, labour, or other exploitation resulting in actual or potential harm to the child’s health, well-being, survival, development, or dignity. It includes but is not limited to any act or failure to act which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm to a child, or an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm to a child.

Physical abuse: Constitutes acts or failures to act resulting in injury (not necessarily visible), unnecessary or unjustified pain or suffering without causing injury, harm, or risk of harm to a staff or beneficiaries’ health or welfare, or death. Such acts may include but are not limited to punching, beating, kicking, biting, shaking, throwing, stabbing, choking, or hitting (regardless of the object used) or burning. These acts are considered abuse regardless of whether they were intended to hurt the child.

Sexual abuse: Constitutes fondling a staff, youth or child’s genitals, penetration, rape, sodomy, indecent exposure, and exploitation through prostitution or the production of pornographic materials.

Emotional abuse or ill-treatment: Constitutes injury to the psychological capacity or emotional stability of the staff or beneficiary caused by acts, threats of acts, or coercive tactics. Emotional abuse may include but is not limited to humiliation, control, isolation, withholding of information, or any other deliberate activity that makes the staff or beneficiary feel diminished or embarrassed.

Exploitation: Constitutes the abuse of staff or beneficiaries where some form of remuneration is involved or whereby the perpetrators benefit in some manner. Exploitation represents coercion and violence detrimental to the beneficiary’s physical or mental health, development, education, or well-being.

Neglect: Constitutes failure to provide basic care for beneficiaries by designated individuals that are responsible for care in the absence of caregivers.

5. Vulnerable Populations

CoELIB acknowledges that some children and youths may be at an increased risk of abuse. Many factors can contribute to this, including prejudice and discrimination, disability, isolation, social exclusion, communication issues, and reluctance on the part of some adults to accept that abuse can occur. Youth and children with disabilities may be more vulnerable to abuse, exploitation, or neglect and have less access to or capacity to communicate with others who can help. Youth and children with disabilities are also significantly more likely to experience sexual violence than non-disabled ones.

To ensure that they receive equal protection, CoELIB staff will give special consideration to those who are exposed to the following, among other vulnerabilities:

• Living in a domestic abuse situation
• Living with a disability
• Out of school
• Teenage mother
• Involved in child labour
• Involved directly or indirectly in sexual exploitation.
• Affected by parental substance misuse.

6. Procedures

The following process should be implemented to ensure compliance with these guidelines:

1. Annual team member training on sexual exploitation, abuse, and personal responsibilities under this Protocol, including identifying staff and beneficiary abuse and proper reporting procedures. All team members certify that they have understood this policy and agree to abide by it.
2. Where appropriate, and when in direct contact with children, consultants,
   experts, contractors, agents, representatives, grantees, and visitors (including researchers) will be informed of the requirements of this policy.
3. CoELIB will identify the potential risk of harm to youths and children and incorporate reasonable risk mitigation measures into the design and operations of the project to ensure the threat of harm is minimized to every extent reasonably possible.
4. Contractual agreements or memoranda of understanding with partners will include obligations to adhere to this policy and any additional donor-required provisions relating to child safeguarding. Partners will also be able to ensure compliance with this protocol, including, if necessary, retraining and additional monitoring.
5. Images, interviews, and videos of children are only taken after parental consent has been obtained and guarantees that these will not have adverse effects on the child's safety, dignity, and well-being and that there is respect for the children's privacy as provided in Kenyan laws.
6. Identifying beneficiaries' information will not be disclosed without their and their caregiver’s written permission unless the sole reason for such disclosure affects the well-being or protection of the child.
7. Personal identifying information will be stored confidentially and securely.
8. CoELIB activity computers, cameras, telephones, videos recorded, network systems, or other electronic devices will not be used to view or share sexually explicit images of beneficiaries.
9. Beneficiaries will be informed about CoELIB activity’s commitments under this policy and how to report any suspected abuse or exploitation by CoELIB staff, partner, or visitor.
10. All reports will be confidentially, independently, and thoroughly investigated in a manner that ensures the child's protection and well-being to the extent possible.
11. All reports will be disclosed to the donor as and when the donor requires. If reports include allegations of criminal misconduct, they also will be disclosed to local authorities unless doing so would put a child at risk of harm.