Spotlight on ROCH (Restoring Our Children's Hope)

This week I've got a great organisation to tell you about. They're called ROCH- Restoring Our Children's Hope and they work in Liberia.

"Happy Children, Happy Nation" is ROCH's motto. ROCH was set up in 2009 and now works in six Liberian counties, reaching around 15,000 children and young people.

After two decades of civil war, this entirely volunteer-run NGO is seeking to help children and young people overcome some of the challenges and difficulties that they encounter in their post-conflict communities. One such challenge is poor access to education and health services, especially for deprived and vulnerable children.

ROCH uses sports, games and interactive forums through which the children and young people can enhance their confidence and learn vital life skills like cooperation, mutual respect, team work and leadership. Furthermore, through activities and discussions the kids learn about health issues like HIV, malaria and tuberculosis.

All of this new knowledge is used by ROCH and the children to organise awareness-raising events in the local community around themes like peace-building, health promotion and children's rights.

Through its sports activities and educational programmes, ROCH and its team of 500 coaches hope to contribute to developing the physical, mental and social health of Liberia's children. Not only is ROCH's approach to empowering children holisitc, but it is also sustainable as whole communities are also empowered through ROCH's programmes and outreach work.