Programme

Child protection

Every child needs protection

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Challenges

The Child Protection Program Component, under the banner "Every Child is Protected from Abuse and Exploitation," is committed to ensuring increased protection for children through promoting birth registration and safeguarding girls and boys, notably adolescent girls, from violence, abuse and exploitation by 2027. This program integrates with national priorities, regional and global strategies.

Birth Registration

The increase in the rate of children under 5 registered at birth from 75.2% in 2010 to 84% in 2016-2017 might appear promising. However, this optimism masks a deeper issue: 34% of children under 5 still lack a birth certificate, their identities rendered invisible due to cost, distance, or the turmoil of forced displacement.

Violence & Exploitation

90% of children aged 1-14 years have faced violence, while 31% aged 5-17 are economically exploited. Whether it's artisanal gold mining, agriculture, or commercial sexual exploitation, the vulnerability is pervasive. Amongst children in street situations, 90% are boys.

Adolescents at the Crossroads

With 1.7 million adolescents aged 14-19 being particularly vulnerable—70% face food insecurity, limited skills training, inadequate sexual and reproductive healthcare, and a lack of supportive services. Sexual violence against adolescent girls is high.

Despite prioritization in the National Development Plan and a budget allocation that comprises 48.5% of public spending, there's a chasm between policy intent and the realization of child welfare.

Solutions

The strategic priorities of this program include a focus on the prevention of violence, emphasizing the transformation of social and gender norms; on the strengthening of the child protection system to increase the availability and quality of prevention and response services for all children at risk or victims of violence, abuse and exploitation; on the strengthening of the civil registration system to ensure universal birth registration; and on improving access to child-friendly justice for children in contact with the law (including victims, witnesses and children in conflict with the law).

The program adopts a socio-ecological approach, intervening at various levels including children, families, communities, services, and the legal and policy framework.
The key outputs of this program involve (i) shifting norms and practices through information sharing on child protection, access to justice and birth registration, providing psychosocial support to children and caregivers, and implementing behavioral and societal change interventions and collaborating with the social protection sector to strengthen household income; (ii) improving access to quality child protection services by strengthening the social service workforce, child protection case management and the coordination and collaboration between community and institutional actors, improving the civil registration system, and promoting multi-sectoral programming for violence prevention and response. It also promotes access to child-friendly justice notably the application of alternatives to detention and improved access to legal aid; (iii) enhancing the legal and policy environment through advocacy for the development, revision, and implementation of child protection laws and policies. It also aims to increase domestic investments in child protection and generate evidence to inform policy and practice.
The program contributes to Early Childhood Development (ECD) by promoting birth registration and addressing violent discipline at home as part of the integrated multisectoral ECD package. It strengthens community mechanisms for identifying and supporting cases of violence, abuse, and exploitation.
Additional strategies of the program include advocacy for the integration of child protection activities into communal planning and budgeting and monitoring key indicators like birth registration rates and the prevalence of violence against children. In conclusion, this component aims to protect children from violence, abuse, and exploitation by enhancing the child protection system, shifting social and gender norms, improving access to quality services, and creating a supportive legal and policy environment. It emphasizes a multi-faceted approach, integrating strategies across various levels of society and the child protection ecosystem.