About

The Trinity Project works with orphans and vulnerable children in the Bulawayo and Matabeleland Provinces of Zimbabwe to tackle the birth registration crisis. Nearly half of all children in Zimbabwe lack a birth certificate and are unregistered, with the issue being far worse in the poorer and more rural areas in which we work. Crucially, this acts as a barrier for Zimbabweans against accessing their most basic human rights. Without a birth certificate, these young people struggle to access education, healthcare or welfare services. Later in life, the lack of a birth certificate affects formal employment opportunities and their rights to vote. The Trinity Project adopts a holistic approach to tackling the crisis; we work with multifarious agents within society, from individual children and their families, to the lawmakers, to the institutions themselves.

We have helped thousands of children over the past decade obtain their birth certificates. We do this by providing legal support and representation to orphans, vulnerable children and their families. This process is complex and expensive, so external support is often the vital difference in successful registrations. We also work within communities to raise awareness of the rights and protection a child is entitled to, and how to claim them. This is incredibly important; children are frequently not registered because the parent or guardian is unaware of how important a birth certificate is, or because they do not understand the registration process. So far, we have worked with up to 50,000 parents and community members, but with your donation, we could expand our reach.

We are also advocating to make the birth registration process more accessible. The hidden costs and legal barriers within the registration process make it a difficult procedure, but almost impossible for an orphaned or impoverished child. By lobbying for institutional change we intend to reform laws, reduce fees and adapt the processes to make it more user-friendly. We lead an advocacy coalition and are forming a network of likeminded partners to ensure collaborative, effective change; alliances include health clinics and NGOs, such as Disabled Women in Africa and SOS Children’s Villages. We also work closely with, and have the support of, relevant government ministries. These include: the Ministry of Education, the Local Government Health Department, and Social Services & Child Welfare. One of our key successes to date includes being invited by the Government to draft a parliamentary motion on birth registration in Zimbabwe. This coalition has the potential to drastically transform the birth registration context, improving the lives and prospects of hundreds of thousands of young people.

The vast majority of Trinity’s beneficiaries go on to access the education, healthcare, welfare and social services, demonstrating the importance and potential of registration in realising basic human rights. More importantly, the children and families we work with report a better understanding of their rights and entitlements and how to claim them; we leave those we work with empowered to support themselves in future. One example of the power of this project is Thembi, who was orphaned as a young child. Despite her parents passing down both their house and an inheritance, she was unable to claim a single because of her unregistered status. She was left dependent on her uncle, who subjected her to abuse and attempted to steal her inheritance. Until she found the Trinity Project. We were able to provide her not only with legal advice, but also with financial and psychological support, getting her back on her feet. Thanks to the Trinity Project, Thembi was able to register her birth, take her uncle to court and claim her inheritance. We are happy to report that she was able to return to school and start supporting herself. Thembi’s case is just one example that shows the transformative power of this project.

Please see our ‘Incentives’ section to show what difference your donation could make to The Trinity Project.

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