“Whenever I return from work, he brings me the ball as a sign that he wants us to play together.”
Every day when Jovin returns home from work, his 16-month-old son brings him a homemade ball. It is a simple invitation to play and a sign of how much their relationship has changed.
Before joining Familia Imara, Jovin, a 30-year-old father from Geita, Tanzania, saw caring for young children as primarily a mother’s responsibility. He rarely made time to play with his son and did not recognize when the child needed comfort or connection.
Reflecting on his parenting practices at the time, Jovin recalls, “Whenever my child cried, I would say, ‘Keep crying, you will stop on your own. Those tears are just water anyway.’ I did not understand the harmful effects of leaving a child to cry without comforting him.”
Rethinking His Role as a Father
Familia Imara, which means “Strong Family” in Swahili, works with families to help prevent violence against women and children while supporting family well-being and child development.
The project is funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and is part of the global What Works to Prevent Violence: Impact at Scale program, also known as What Works 2. Familia Imara operates across 15 districts in Tanzania’s Mwanza, Mara, Dodoma and Geita regions.
Through Familia Imara parenting sessions, Jovin learned about positive parenting, child development, child protection and the role of play in early learning.
The sessions prompted him to reconsider what fatherhood could look like in his own home. He learned that children are better able to learn and grow when they feel safe, loved, and engaged.
Jovin decided to put the lessons into practice. He made a ball from materials he had at home and began playing with his son each day after work.
“Since I started receiving this education, playing ball with my child has become a regular activity. My child has become much more active and cheerful. Whenever I return from work, he brings me the ball as a sign that he wants us to play together.”
Creating a Safer, More Caring Home
The changes soon went beyond play.
Jovin and his wife began responding to their son with more patience and affection. They paid closer attention to his emotional needs, supervised him more carefully and worked to create a home where he would be safe from neglect and abuse.
For Jovin, child protection is now a central part of being a parent.
“Protecting my child is now one of my priorities. Compared to before joining Familia Imara, my understanding of child protection has increased tremendously.”
Community leaders have recognized Jovin’s consistent participation in Familia Imara sessions and the example he is setting for other fathers.
By helping parents like Jovin build stronger relationships with their children, Familia Imara demonstrates that violence prevention begins at home through nurturing care, positive parenting, and safe family relationships. For Jovin, one homemade ball became much more than a toy. It became a symbol of a stronger bond between a father and his son and a reminder that every child deserves to grow up feeling protected, valued, and loved.
About Familia Imara | Familia Imara, Swahili for “Strong Family,” is funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office as part of What Works to Prevent Violence: Impact at Scale, also known as What Works 2. Working across 15 districts in Tanzania’s Mwanza, Mara, Dodoma and Geita regions, the project brings together organizations involved in nutrition, child development and violence prevention. Familia Imara supports families in creating safer, more nurturing homes while contributing evidence and learning to inform violence-prevention efforts across Tanzania. Global Communities works on the project with Kivulini, the National Institute for Medical Research and Emory University.