Policymakers and experts have emphasized the importance of policy commitment and enhanced investment in improving the comprehensive development of African children.
A three-day international conference on African children concluded in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa on Wednesday.
The gathering mainly aims to identify challenges facing African children and recommend ways to help tackle poverty and inequality in Africa by particularly focusing on children.
According to Agnes Akosua Aidoo, representative of African Child Policy Forum, African children have witnessed better progress over the past few decades, in which the investment on youngsters has increased in the continent.
“African governments are nowadays investing relatively more in sectors benefiting children and are increasingly becoming child-friendly as compared to the situation ten or so years ago,” she said.
Aidoo suggested that in addition to political commitment, policy reforms in the tax system, access to credit and improvement in the agricultural productivity sector are necessary to change the lives of children in Africa.
Ethiopian Minister of Women and Children Affairs Demitu Hambissa stressed the importance to consider the potential differential impact of economic growth and poverty reduction policies on adults and children in order to tackle poverty in a holistic and child-sensitive manner.
“This conference is one of its kinds to put researchers, policy makers and policy implementers under one roof. This enables us to have the same… understanding of the status of our child protection systems to tackle the poverty and inequality of our children,” Hambissa said. Enditem
Source: Xinhua/NewsGhana.com.gh
