By Patricia Kapulula

Lilongwe, September 13, Mana: Minister of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare, Jean Sendeza, has expressed concern that the country continues to register cases of child rights abuse and violation despite having a lot of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other stakeholders working in child rights.

She was speaking in Lilongwe on Friday during the swearing-in of commissioners for the National Children’s Commission (NCC).

She appealed to the newly sworn-in commissioners to ensure that there is accountability among stakeholders in safeguarding child rights and wellbeing.

“My message to you Commissioners is that; today you have assumed the overall coordination on all matters concerning children hence you are expected to hold different stakeholders accountable for failing to offer their services.

“I, therefore, expect positive action to achieve excellency in the provision of child rights,” she said.

She appealed to stakeholders implementing programmes related to children to ensure that resources meant for children’s programmes are put to good use and for the benefit of the children.

UNICEF Deputy Country Representative, Gerrit Maritz, concurred with Sendeza saying despite having many institutions working on children’s issues and delivering great services, there has been no robust mechanism for accountability of institutions and the resources they receive.

He said the Commission will fill the existing gap of ensuring accountability towards the fulfilment of duties and obligations towards children.

“A dedicated body to coordinate actors working on children’s issues and monitor delivery of service is critical. The Commission is a very important body in as far as realization of child rights and promotion of their welfare is concerned,” he said.

The five-member Commission, which is chaired by Bishop Vincent Mwakhwawa, will co-opt two children.

One of the commissioners, Benedicto Kondowe, said the Commission has a role to ensure that services that support the needs of children across the country are meaningfully promoted.

He said they will make sure that institutions working in the children's sector implement their programmes to meet the best interest of children.

“We have a role to ensure that every stakeholder complies with provisions of the law under the NCC Act. We believe that we can contribute towards bringing sanity in the children sector by making sure that NGOs are coordinated and are complementing their efforts,” Kondowe said.

The Commission plans to develop a plan of action to define priority areas in the sub-sector and hold a series of consultations and discussions with stakeholders to understand their challenges and limitations.

In 2019, government through Parliament enacted and gazzetted the NCC Act to monitor the implementation of child-related activities, protect and promote children’s rights programmes in the country.