South Africa government’s ratification of ICESCR

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.pdf

Civil society campaign for the Ratification of ICESCR 2013.pdf

Related resource: 

Press statement on South Africa government’s ratification of ICESCR

South African government finally ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCTR). 

ICESCR recognises that many people do not enjoy some of the most basic rights and responds to the fact that vast numbers of people live in poverty, go hungry, do not have adequate shelter and do not have access to education.

The rights in the ICESCR include:

• The right to work and for everyone to earn a living through freely chosen work
• The right to just and favourable conditions of work
• The right to social security, including social insurance
• The right to family protection
• The right to an adequate standard of living, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and the continuous improvement of living conditions
• The right to enjoy the highest possible standard of physical and mental health
• The right to education, including compulsory primary education

Economic, social and cultural rights are important for everyone, particularly society's most vulnerable groups such as children.

The ICESCR provides for the rights of children through its articles on protection of the family, protection of children from economic and social exploitation, the right to education and provision for the reduction of still-birth rate and infant mortality. Its other provisions are important for children too, such as the right to self-determination, the right to social security, the right to an adequate standard of living, the right to be free from hunger, the right to the highest standard of physical and mental health, the right to take part in cultural life, the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and others.

Although the South African Constitution provides for a comprehensive package of social, economic and cultural rights, the provisions of the ICESCR are far more extensive. Ratification of the Covenant has made it binding and serves as a call to action to afford the people of South Africa a broader spectrum of entitlements.

National plan of action for orphans and vulnerable children 2006-2010: Kingdom of Swaziland

National plan of action for orphans and vulnerable children 2006-2010: Kingdom of Swaziland

Swaziland, like other Sub-Saharan Countries, continues to be deeply affected by the HIV and AIDS pandemic, which poses a threat to the country's economic and social development. In 2004, Sentinel Surveillance results from 17 Antenatal clinics identified an HIV and AIDS prevalence of 42.6 percent. An estimated 17,700 people died of AIDS-related deaths in 2003. The pandemic combined with widespread poverty, a weakening economy and regional drought, has left nearly one-third of children living in conditions typical of disaster situations. This especially affects orphans and vulnerable children left destitute and often forced to fend for themselves. With legislation and policies to protect children's property and rights still incomplete, too many cases continue to occur of children being disinherited and impoverished after the loss of parents.

A 2004 “rapid assessment” determined the magnitude and nature of the OVC challenge through analysing and summarising existing data. The analysis engaged key stakeholders who: examined available data; assessed critical gaps and constraints on leveraging OVC programmes; identified key actions and resources required to address these gaps; and mobilised leaders, partners and resources around a series of actions and follow-up that resulted in this National Plan of Action for OVC.

ENUMERATING STREET CHILDREN

Retrak Enumerating Street Children Oct2014.pdf

Understanding the size of the street children population in a city or country can help inform the policy and practice designed to assist these children.

It can also form a baseline from which to track the impact of interventions and enable learning about the quality and appropriateness of interventions. This information is greatly lacking at the moment and many studies that do exist are not able to establish the accuracy or reliability of their results. This paper presents an approach to counting children on the streets which is methodologically reliable and accurate and takes into account the challenges of such an undertaking.

This paper is a contribution to building the evidence base of good practice in determining the number and characteristics of street children. Our aim is to outline an approach to counting children on the streets that is methodologically reliable and accurate and take into account the challenges outlined above.

ENUMERATING STREET CHILDREN

Retrak Enumerating Street Children Oct2014.pdf

Understanding the size of the street children population in a city or country can help inform the policy and practice designed to assist these children.

It can also form a baseline from which to track the impact of interventions and enable learning about the quality and appropriateness of interventions. This information is greatly lacking at the moment and many studies that do exist are not able to establish the accuracy or reliability of their results. This paper presents an approach to counting children on the streets which is methodologically reliable and accurate and takes into account the challenges of such an undertaking.

This paper is a contribution to building the evidence base of good practice in determining the number and characteristics of street children. Our aim is to outline an approach to counting children on the streets that is methodologically reliable and accurate and take into account the challenges outlined above.

Human Rights Approach to Social Protection

To date, a human rights framework to social protection has been a critical component absent from documentation on social protection. Recently, Dr. Magdalena Sepulveda (UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty) and Ms. Carly Nyst have developed such a framework.

This publication constitutes a summary of the analyses and arguments presented by the Special Rapporteur in her reports to the Human Rights Council and General Assembly over the past three years with regards to the human rights approach to social protection. It is intended to be an articulation of the fundamental elements of the human rights framework applicable to the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of social protection systems, and to provide some concrete examples of obstacles that arise when implementing social protection.

The full framework is available here.

Convention on the rights of the child

Convention on the rights of the child.pdf

The States Parties to the present Convention,
Considering that, in accordance with the principles proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations, recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Bearing in mind that the peoples of the United Nations have, in the Charter, reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights and in the dignity and worth of the human person, and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Recognizing that the United Nations has, in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the International Covenants on Human Rights, proclaimed and agreed that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth therein, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status,

Recalling that, in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations has proclaimed that childhood is entitled to special care and assistance,

Convinced that the family, as the fundamental group of society and the natural environment for the growth and well-being of all its members and particularly children, should be afforded the necessary protection and assistance so that it can fully assume its responsibilities within the community,

Recognizing that the child, for the full and harmonious development of his or her personality, should
grow up in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding,

Considering that the child should be fully prepared to live an individual life in society, and brought up in the spirit of the ideals proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations, and in particular in the spirit of peace, dignity, tolerance, freedom, equality and solidarity,

Bearing in mind that the need to extend particular care to the child has been stated in the Geneva Declaration of the Rights of the Child of 1924 and in the Declaration of the Rights of the Child adopted by the General Assembly on 20 November 1959 and recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (in particular in articles 23 and 24), in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (in particular in article 10) and in the statutes and relevant instruments of specialized agencies and international organizations concerned with the welfare of children,

Bearing in mind that, as indicated in the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, "the child, by reason of his physical and mental immaturity, needs special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth",

Recalling the provisions of the Declaration on Social and Legal Principles relating to the Protection and Welfare of Children, with Special Reference to Foster Placement and Adoption Nationally and Internationally; the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (The Beijing Rules) ; and the Declaration on the Protection of Women and Children in Emergency and Armed Conflict, Recognizing that, in all countries in the world, there are children living in exceptionally difficult conditions, and that such children need special consideration,

Taking due account of the importance of the traditions and cultural values of each people for the protection and harmonious development of the child, Recognizing the importance of international cooperation for improving the living conditions of children in every country, in particular in the developing countries,

Have agreed as follows

APPROACHING OUTREACH WORK

Retrak Outreach Work Oct2014.pdf

ENUMERATING STREET CHILDREN

This paper outlines principals of outreach work with street or homeless children. 

These principals include: Following a rights based aproach; Understanding each child and his/her situation; building relationships; being flexible; building in reflection and ensurging staff care and protection. 

These principles provide the foundation to which outreach workers can return as they apply Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in their work. The aim in using this SOPs is to get to know children on the streets and begin to build trusting relationships with them, so that they can be safer on the streets and choose to access further services which could lead them to an alternative to street life.