Teddy Bear Foundation use technology to help the vulnerable
PARKTOWN – The Teddy Bear Foundation collaborated with Teta to launch a free of charge app to be used by parents and children to access counsellors and report any issues of violation of their well-being.
With technology being the order of the day nowadays, the Teddy Bear Foundation decided to join the rest of the sailing ship and launched a partnership with Teta Mobile Chat on 30 May. The Teta app was developed to facilitate free communication even without data or airtime.
Themba Moyo and Lisa Phendla combined their skills in creating the free, groundbreaking cell phone app which was designed to be an interactive platform that allows people to stay in touch with each other.
“There was the question of social relevance as to how the app could be used for social good. We then decided to partner with people doing good for society and the foremost elements were how children were being helped. So, we did some research and came across the Teddy Bear Foundation,” Themba Moyo, Teta director stated.
He said they got in touch with the foundation around 2015 and established a relationship which focused on children having access to counsellors and being able to report any and all issues relating to the violation of their well-being.
“The minimum age group for participating children is 12 years and there is a simplified consent form made available for sign-up,” Moyo stated. It is open to everyone and is in fully complies with the laws of South Africa, such as the Rica and Popi Act, as well as the Consumer Protection Act.
These regulations ensure that parents of underage participants register the SIM cards used and Teta subscriber accounts are uniquely linked to the respective mobile numbers. Identity and data protection is achieved as the app monitors changes to the SIM card inserted in the mobile device – if the SIM card is swapped out, the account profile and data on the device is immediately deleted.
“In our outreach programmes we go to speak to children and we extend a hand towards healing progression. This is a major breakthrough because we live in a technology-filled millennia and we connect to the children and engage with them in a language they are already comfortable with,” Dr Shaheda Omar, director at the foundation said.
The partnership centres on the scheduled presence of foundation counsellors in the SOS chatroom in Teta. Teta will broadcast the schedules and alerts to their virtual community and subscribers will then join the SOS chatroom, if they wish, to speak with counsellors therein.
It is possible to enter into private chat with counsellors from within the public chatroom when chatroom participants have sensitive issues they need to discuss or report. Subscriber identity is also protected in these private chat sessions and serves as a key platform to anonymously report abuse and violence, without risking legal complications, exposure, and victimization.
“Many children have so many challenges and go through stuff and us as social workers will be able to refer them to the appropriate experts – for example, Sanca – for cases of substance abuse,” Faith Nkomo the foundation’s Soweto manager said.
The Teta app brought with it accessibility, decreased financial constraints and experienced counsellors from the Foundation at the subscriber’s disposal.
To download the app, go to www.teta5.co.za and click on the Google Play Store link.
Details: The Teddy Bear Foundation 011 484 4554
Have you used the app? Email your story of how it has helped you to naidines@caxton.co.za
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