By Esnart Chingwalu

Youth Net and Counselling (YONECO) says it has doubled its efforts to enhance protection and promotion of the rights of children in the country in the year 2022. 

YONECO executive director MacBain Mkandawire said the organization faced a lot of challenges in the just ended year including the COVID-19 pandemic which slowed down in its work.

“COVID-19 has not spared YONECO so much that in the year 2021 we saw the pandemic hitting our staff thereby leading to reduction of our services to the public,” he said.

“COVID 19 also impacted the organization due to inadequacy of resources as our donors too were affected with the pandemic as well.”

Mkandawire said due to the challenges, the organization has planned to start supporting itself financially in its work this year as it clocks 25 years of its operations in the country.

“We have planned a 11 year strategy which among other issues will make the organization to be independent from donors that will help us build systems and generate our own income resources to sustain our programs in the country,” he said.

Mkandawire has assured the public that the organization will work tirelessly to fight child rights violations and gender-based violence in the country.

“We are looking forward for support from government, YONECO staff as well as its volunteers and different organizations to help the organization in the implementation of child protection interventions in the country,” he said.