Children’s Rights and COVID-19 Responses under the African Union: Recent Developments and Challenges

2021 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rongedzayi Fambasayi ◽  
Hadiza Omoyemhe Okunrobo
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Regional Governance ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
African Union ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Thirtieth Anniversary ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Socio Economic Impact ◽  
Governance Processes

There is little doubt that children are at risk of being seriously affected by the socio-economic impact and the response measures to the COVID-19 pandemic that may inadvertently affect their rights, interests and well-being. UNICEF has declared that unless states act together, globally and regionally, to address this, it is possible that the pandemic will permanently cause damage to children and our shared future. The pandemic poses real challenges for children around the world, particularly the developing countries in Africa. Most African countries are already bedevilled by socio-economic frailties, corruption, conflict and institutional problems. In this article we explore responses to COVID-19 from the African Union (AU), to ascertain how regional responses have integrated the protection of the rights and interests of children. With the African Children’s Charter as a guide, it is argued that institutions at the AU continental and sub-regional levels are increasingly becoming aware of the importance of children’s rights as a distinct issue rather than being part of women’s concerns. The AU celebrated the thirtieth anniversary of the African Children’s Charter in 2020, and this occasion provides a timely opportunity to reflect on how regional institutions are integrating the principles of children’s rights in regional governance processes and decision-making.

scholarly journals Crisis, Childhood and Children’s Rights: A Modern Sociological Approach

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dimosthenis Daskalakis
Keyword(s):  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Close Relation ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Sociological Approach ◽  
Current Economic Crisis ◽  
The Social ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Theoretical Evolution

Discussions around the current economic crisis have primarily focused on how it affects children’s well-being, ignoring its consequences on the conception of childhood. Following the modern sociological approach to childhood, which argues that it is not just a biological fact of life but a product of the social context and that children have to be seen as social agents, it is examined how the current socio-economic situation affects the construction of childhood and whether this hinders children from being active subjects of social structures and processes. Similarly, taking into account the close relation between conceptions of childhood and perceptions on children’s rights, this paper also examines the consequences of the economic crisis on the contemporary theoretical evolution of children’s rights, which is mainly specified by the ascription of autonomy rights to children. The conclusion common to both the sociology of childhood and children’s rights is that modern social reality fails to meet the expectations that have been raised by recent developments in the above fields, as crucial concepts, such as dependency, agency and capacity, are undergoing complex transformations.

scholarly journals Integrating Sustainable Development and Children’s Rights: A Case Study on Wales

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 100
Author(s):  
Rhian Croke ◽  
Helen Dale ◽  
Ally Dunhill ◽  
Arwyn Roberts ◽  
Malvika Unnithan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Deliberative Processes

The global disconnect between the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), has been described as ‘a missed opportunity’. Since devolution, the Welsh Government has actively pursued a ‘sustainable development’ and a ‘children’s rights’ agenda. However, until recently, these separate agendas also did not contribute to each other, although they culminated in two radical and innovative pieces of legislation; the Rights of Children and Young Persons (Wales) Measure (2013) and the Well-being and Future Generations (Wales) Act (2015). This article offers a case study that draws upon the SDGs and the CRC and considers how recent guidance to Welsh public bodies for implementation attempts to contribute to a more integrated approach. It suggests that successful integration requires recognition of the importance of including children in deliberative processes, using both formal mechanisms, such as local authority youth forums, pupil councils and a national youth parliament, and informal mechanisms, such as child-led research, that enable children to initiate and influence sustainable change.

scholarly journals Multiple Practices of Social Pedagogy: The Case of The Smile of the Child , a Non-Profit Organization Dedicated to Children’s Protection and Well-Being

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Costas Yannopoulos ◽  
Stefanos Alevizos ◽  
Marina Kavallieraki
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Health ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Voluntary Organization ◽  
Non Profit ◽  
Social Pedagogy ◽  
Physical And Psychological Health

The Smile of the Child is a Greek non-profit, voluntary organization in the field of social pedagogy. It has been an NGO active in the field of child protection and children’s rights since 1996. It began as the dream of 10-year old Andreas Yannopoulos, who, shortly before losing his own battle for life, documented his vision in his journal. The Smile of the Child, empowered by committed employees and the support of hundreds of volunteers, provides services 24 hours a day throughout the year, including programmes for children’s welfare and protection of their physical and psychological health, as well as for the safety of thousands of children in danger in Greece.

scholarly journals Family Support as a right of the child

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 8-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Dolan ◽  
Nevenca Zegarac ◽  
Jelena Arsic
Keyword(s):  
Family Support ◽  
Family Environment ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Legal Standards ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Relationship

This paper considers Family Support as a fundamental right of the child. It examines the relationship between the well-being of the child as the core concept of contemporary legal and welfare systems and family as a vital institution in society for the protection, development and ensuring the overall well-being of the child. Considering the fact that international legal standards recognise that children’s rights are best met in the family environment, the paper analyses what kind of support is being provided to families by the modern societies in the exercising of children’s rights and with what rhetoric and outcomes. Family Support is also considered as a specific, theoretically grounded and empirically tested practical approach to exercising and protecting the rights of the child. Finally, international legal standards are observed in the context of contemporary theory and practice of Family Support, while the conclusion provides the implications of such an approach.

scholarly journals Children’s rights and the regulations on the transfer of young players in football

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Serhat Yilmaz ◽  
James Esson ◽  
Paul Darby ◽  
Eleanor Drywood ◽  
Carolynne Mason
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Monitoring And Evaluation ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Football Players ◽  
Transfer Processes ◽  
Regulatory Frameworks ◽  
The Status

Children who interact with football’s recruitment and transfer processes encounter a complex web of regulations and practices. Debates over how to ensure that the interests and well-being of young football players are adequately protected, and that risks to their rights and welfare are identified and addressed, have become a topic of academic, political and media concern. This commentary article provides an overview of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) regulations concerning the mobility and representation of minors in player recruitment processes, in particular the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players and the Regulations on Working with Intermediaries. We examine these regulations through the lens of the United Nations Children’s Rights Conventions (UNCRC). In so doing, the article demonstrates how football’s regulatory frameworks and commercial practices inadvertently yield consequences that operate against the best interests of children involved in the sport. To counteract this, it is proposed that all planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of regulations involving the recruitment and transfer of young people should be explicitly informed by globally accepted standards of children’s rights, such as the UNCRC. More specifically, it is argued that FIFA should adopt an approach that places the child at the centre of regulatory frameworks and characterises the child as a ‘rights holder’.

scholarly journals Does the Differential Criterion for Vesting Parental Rights and Responsibilities of Unmarried Parents Violate International Law? A Legislative and Social Study of Three African Countries

2011 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-229
Author(s):  
Julia Sloth-Nielsen ◽  
Lorenzo Wakefield ◽  
Nkatha L Murungi
Keyword(s):  
Common Law ◽  
Social Study ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Customary Law ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
African Countries ◽  
The Face ◽  
International Obligations ◽  
The Right

AbstractThe right to non-discrimination for all children is established in international human rights law. International children's rights law further provides for the common responsibility of parents for the maintenance of their children. African customary law and common law have always made a distinction between children born in and out of wedlock so far as the duty to maintain them is concerned. The resilience of this customary and common law approach is evident in statutory provisions of the countries discussed in this article. This is despite international obligations under children's rights treaties ratified by these countries. On the face of it, the distinction of responsibility based on marital status seems harmless. However, in view of gender inequities and resource distribution between men and women in society, such a distinction has serious implications for the rights of affected children.

Advances in children’s rights and children’s well-being measurement: Implications for school psychologists.

2014 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanita Kosher ◽  
Xu Jiang ◽  
Asher Ben-Arieh ◽  
E. Scott Huebner
Keyword(s):  
School Psychologists ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Children’S Rights

Children's Rights: How Much Do Zimbabwe Urban Secondary School Pupils Know?

2011 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 195-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pesanayi Gwirayi ◽  
Almon Shumba
Keyword(s):  
Secondary School ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Empowerment Theory ◽  
Urban District ◽  
Female Age ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Being There ◽  
Age Range

Abstract Research shows that the violation of the rights of the child manifests in various forms in our society. is study sought to investigate children's awareness about their rights and organisations which deal with their rights in Zimbabwean schools. The study is informed by the Empowerment Theory. Data were collected from a randomly selected sample of 376 secondary school children (200 male, 176 female; age range 12 to 16 years) from 3 schools in Gweru Urban District of Zimbabwe. Children were asked to list their rights and organisations which deal with child rights on given worksheets. The study found that most of the children were not aware about their rights and organisations which deal with their rights. The introduction of Children's Rights as a subject in schools can help increase children's safety, protection and well-being. There is also need to put more thrust on workshops and seminars on Children's Rights in Zimbabwean schools.

scholarly journals CHILD'S HEALTH CARE: LEGAL FRAMEWORK AND ONGOING CHALLENGES

2020 ◽  
Vol 73 (12) ◽  
pp. 2789-2794
Author(s):  
Oleksandr V. Petryshyn ◽  
Marianna I. Liubchenko ◽  
Oleksii O. Liubchenko
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
International Law ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Private Life ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Dialectical Approach ◽  
Legal Method

The aim: Is to analyze the development of the modern legal framework for child's health care, to clarify the benefits of a human rights-based approach, which is now is mainstreaming for understanding the right of children to health and means of its protection. Materials and methods: To achieve this goal, as well as taking into account the specifics of the topic, the following research methods became relevant: the application of a dialectical approach and historical method made it possible to understand the patterns of formation and development of ideas of children's rights and health within the international community and national states; formal-legal method was used when studying legal texts (international law acts, both of universal and regional level, interpretation and clarification of human rights treaty bodies, expert reports and research, case law), and comparative-legal was used to compare different approaches on health protection in various international human rights mechanisms (US Supreme Court, Council of Europe). Conclusions: Today, perceptions of children's rights at the doctrinal and jurisprudential levels are quite developed due to a broad understanding and openness to progressive interpretation. In particular, the inclusion into the legal context such determinants as the inviolability of the dignity and private life of the child, proper understanding of the stages of adulthood, and an assessment of the child's developmental environment has made modern international law and national legal systems to become more viable in sense of protection of child's well-being in today's world.

scholarly journals Bycie dziecka w Polsce „dobrej zmiany”– między Konwencją o Prawach Dziecka a rzeczywistością

2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 114-124
Author(s):  
Małgorzata Dagiel ◽  
Małgorzata Kowalik-Olubińska
Keyword(s):  
Child Welfare ◽  
State Policy ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Political Reality ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Family State

The aim of the authors is to show the situation of the child in contemporary Poland at a time of a policy of ‘good change’ viewed through the lens of children’s rights guaranteed by the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The authors analysed a discourse of the Ombudsmen for Children’s interventions in order to reconstruct the image of being of the child in a new socio-political reality in Poland. The analysis shows the disagreement between the assumptions of the pro-family state policy and the situation of the child in Poland. Concern about child welfare presented by the governmental authorities is apparent and insufficient, which adversely affects children’s well-being and the quality of their lives.

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