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Abstract
Family constitutes more than simple living arrangements, and these systems are of pivotal development importance in sub-Saharan Africa. The diversity of family structures and types in sub-Saharan Africa has warranted an examination of the various policies and laws in the region. This paper examines all policy and laws related to families in the South, West, East and Central regions of sub-Saharan Africa. The paper highlights the sundry of policies and laws that are influenced by cultural and religious differences within and across regions. Issues relating to patriarchy and…
Abstract
Background
There is an urgent need to understand how best to prevent and respond to violence against children with disabilities as they are at a high risk for violence because they are marginalized, isolated, and targeted and have little power within their communities.
Objective
Guided by social-ecological theory, this study explores responses to violence against children with disabilities, including preventative measures and treatment of victims in the West African countries of Guinea, Niger, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Participants
Participants…
This report documents the developmental journey taken by the Government of Sierra Leone (GSL) towards the protection, promotion and fulfilment of the rights of all of its children as protected by the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC). It briefly covers the first generation of post-war measures aimed at addressing the immediate needs of its most vulnerable children affected by the war, after which it describes the progressive emergence of the universal child welfare and development framework that underpins the current Agenda for Prosperity. The report charts the…
This Strategic Plan for the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children Affairs (MSWGCA) covers a five-year period 2014 – 2018. Its preparation process was highly participatory, and aligned with the Government’s Agenda for Prosperity 2013 - 2018. A three-day strategic planning workshop was conducted facilitated by consultants. Through various exercises involving the ministry’s personnel and representatives from partners, outputs were produced and incorporated into the final strategic plan. Prior to the workshop, the consultants reviewed a number of background documents provided by…
ABSTRACT
Using inter-agency action research in Sierra Leone, this chapter provides a case study on how a highly collaborative approach can enable child protection research to achieve a significant national impact. The chapter describes how the inter-agency research facilitated a communitydriven approach to addressing teenage pregnancy. The promising results obtained before the Ebola crisis helped shape a new Child and Family Welfare Policy that featured the role of families and communities rather than formal structures. Then it examines how the social process of the research enabled it to…
The Child Rights Act of 2007 provides for the promotion of the rights of the child compatible with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 20th November, 1989, and its Optional Protocol of 8th September, 2000, and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, and for other related matters. The Act includes a section on the right of children to grow up with parents, among others.
Introduction
Communities are at the forefront of efforts to address and prevent the harms to children caused by violence, exploitation, abuse and neglect. The objectives of this study, which was conducted from January-April 2011 in Sierra Leone, were: to learn about local beliefs and values concerning children, childhood and harms to children; to explore the actions that communities take and the mechanisms that they use for children’s protection; and to understand if and how these actions and mechanisms are linked to the government-led child protection system. This study is part of a four-…
This presentation describes research undertaken in Sierra Leone by an inter-agency group to map the child protection system in the country, including the community-based child protection mechanisms (CBCPMs) in place. The presentation asks "have we mapped CBCPMs adequately in mappings of national systems? Which CBCPMs do people actually use, and how they are linked with and supported by formal aspects of the national child protection system?"
Executive summary
This paper presents the findings and insights generated through the mapping and assessment of national child protection systems in five West African countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Niger, Senegal and Sierra Leone. 1 The research process began in July 2009 and was completed in January 2011. The goal of the country research was to provide national actors with a profile of their existing system and an initial assessment of its contextual appropriateness and relevance to the populations being served. The need to undertake this research was prompted by the recognition that…
This mapping and analysis was conducted in late 2009 in Sierra Leone to analyze the existing laws, structures and services for child protection in the country and found them to be falling short of reaching their intended impact. According to the report, “although actors at several levels are committing considerable resources to child protection initiatives, indicators demonstrate that a large percentage of children still face abuse, violence, neglect, and exploitation in their daily lives. Strong leadership is required to bring together various efforts into a well-articulated and common…