Standard Group and UNICEF Kenya announce partnership to advocate for child rights in Kenya

Nairobi, 7 May 2021 - The Standard Group and UNICEF Kenya signed a partnership agreement today to champion children’s rights in the media. The agreement will see Standard Group use its TV, radio and print platforms to highlight critical issues for children. These include the impact of COVID-19 on children, ending violence against children, access to sanitation in rural areas, and parenting skills for young children.

These issues are critical and timely. In 2020, school closures interrupted learning for over 17 million children, who missed six to nine months of formal education. They also faced increased risks of violence, child labour and child marriage, and to their mental well-being.

Around one in two young adults in Kenya experienced violence as a child, according to the 2019 Violence Against Children Survey. This found that 49 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds faced at least one type of violence – physical, emotional or sexual – during their childhood. Access to safe drinking water in Kenya is 59 percent, but to basic sanitation just 29 percent.

Speaking at the Partnership Agreement signing, Standard Group CEO Orlando Lyomu said that media reporting on child rights was integral to protecting children and promoting their best interests.

Standard Group is committed to championing children’s rights through our reporting on issues that affect them,” he said. “As a leading media house, we are committed to providing information on children’s rights – both where these are being met and missed – and to include children’s voices in our programming. We also provide safe platforms where children can access information and participate in awareness-raising programmes.”

UNICEF Representative to Kenya Maniza Zaman thanked Standard Group for their commitment to child rights and noted that the partnership will focus on issues that are most critical for Kenyan children in 2021.

“As we enter the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic in Kenya, it is more important than ever for children’s rights to be upheld and for their voices to be heard,” she said. “Children have seen their rights to an education, to be healthy and to be protected from violence under threat as never before. The media has the reach, power and responsibility to help shine a light on these threats, put out balanced reports, show what needs to be done and amplify ongoing positive work for children. I would like to thank Standard Group for working with UNICEF to protect and uphold children’s rights in Kenya.”