Day of the African Child: No child labour, exploitation and abuse

MONKAGEDI GAOTLHOBOGWE
Staff Writer | Friday June 18, 2010 00:00

BNYC executive director, Fidelis Molao, said the commemoration of the day provides governments and stakeholders an opportunity to reflect on youth development issues.

However, the BNYC chief said, they will continue to urge government to put a substantial amount of funding towards children and the young people.

Molao said the commemorations should serve as a platform for decision-makers to ponder issues such as the rights of a child to health, education, life and identity. 

'We cannot run away from the fact that often children grow up with an identity crisis after they have been abandoned by their parents,' he said.

However, Molao sees the UN's adoption of a 10-year action plan for the global youth as part of the answer to developing the young person. He said the UN has set aside the period 2008-2018 as a decade for youth development.

This year's theme for the commemorations is: 'Planning and budgeting for the well-being of the child - a collective responsibility'.

Molao saluted the government for developing legislative instruments, such as the Children's Act, which, he says, advances children's rights to shelter, protection, and food, among others. 'We are proud that besides the Children's Act developed by our government we also have the African Youth Charter which also spells out the rights of the African child. It seeks to promote dialogue and compromise between government and other stakeholder institutions in planning and budgeting for the well-being of the child'.

Molao says he is happy that his organisation participated in planning for Botswana's June 16 celebrations, along with the department of social services in the Ministry of Local Government.

'This mutual relationships by stakeholders and government has resulted in the government coming up with laws and policies that ensure that we have laws to guard against child exploitation, child trafficking, child labour, harmful cultural practices and sexual abuse, amongst others.