Governments and NGOs across Africa have been making significant progress in tackling the numerous challenges facing children in Africa, particularly in the health sector, Clemence Tauya Nhliziyo, a Zimbabwean education policy expert and child rights specialist, says.
“We have seen African governments […] trying to invest more in health infrastructure to make sure that we [Africa] fight these diseases that are affecting children,” the expert explains.
Emediong Akpabio, CEO and founder of the Child Solidarity Group, a Nigeria-based non-profit that focuses on the economic and social rights of children and women across the continent, explains that there is still a long way to go because these issues vary in different regions of Africa.
“Issues differ from region to region […] The Sahel region is faced with issues of political conflicts. It's also faced with issues of armed conflicts, terrorism […]. Now, for all of these things, in whatever dimension you want to think of it, children in the region of Sahel are affected differently from children in other parts of sub-Saharan Africa,” he stresses.
In conclusion, the Nigerian expert says that governments need to pay more attention to “child-focused” institutions in order to address the vulnerabilities of children and bring them out of crisis. Meanwhile, Nhliziyo emphasizes the need for governments to strengthen policies that protect children's rights on the continent.
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