Organised by The African Child Policy Forum
Theme
Social Protection in Africa: Making it Work for Children
Where
UNECA Conference Hall, United Nations Conference Centre, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
When
27 - 28 October 2014
Overall aim
The overall aim of the Sixth IPC is to continue to build Africa’s agenda on child-sensitive social protection through strengthening political will, government commitment and partnership for comprehensive, sustainable, well coordinated and effective social protection programmes that contribute towards improved wellbeing for children in Africa.
Objectives
The objectives of the conference are:
- To elaborate and build on the outcomes of the African Union (AU) meetings on “Children and Social Protection Systems in Africa” held in 2014, and identify opportunities to further support and enable the AU and governments to fulfill their stated commitments.
- To share evidence and examples of good practices in social protection programmes or children in Africa, specifically those that have demonstrated effective institutionalisation within national polices and planning – particularly in the following three areas; building the economic and investment argument, building structures and systems to institutionalise social protection programmes and mechanisms to engage relevant stakeholders including CSOs.
- To enhance collaboration between different stakeholders and facilitate learning on specific aspects of child-sensitive social protection programmes.
In general, the design and outcomes of the IPC build on the AU-led Expert and Ministerial meetings held in April and May 2014, respectively, and support AU’s efforts to accelerate and scale up national interventions on social protection in Africa. The format of the Conference will include a keynote address by Head(s) of State. Speakers and presentations will be made by Government representatives, academics as well as representatives from the African Union, the United Nations and Civil Society Organisations. Background papers on the specific-sub themes will be prepared to inform the discussions and contribute to the knowledge-base. It is likely that three working sessions will be conducted simultaneously to cover the three sub-themes identified for the Conference.
Rationale
In the face of growing economic, social and environmental challenges, as well as shifting demographic trends and rising inequality, governments across Africa have begun to invest more in social protection programmes. There is growing – albeit far from sufficient – recognition of social protection policies and programming as an effective instrument to address not only poverty and inequality, but also children’s multi-faceted vulnerabilities and to enhance children’s development, protection and survival in Africa.
Evaluation evidence indicates that social protection programmes, if well designed, can have a significant impact on children’s wellbeing. In particular, there is impressive evidence demonstrating that social protection programmes enhance school enrolment, improve access to health services, protect children from HIV, improve household food diversity and consumption, and reduce child labour. The indirect benefits of social protection programmes are also significant, by enhancing the economic capacity of families thereby contributing to the reduction of intergenerational poverty. Furthermore, social protection programmes can potentially stimulate productivity and economic growth and are consequently regarded as an investment rather than a mere welfare or protective measure.
There is growing, albeit still insufficient, institutional and policy leadership for social protection in Africa. Since the launching of the African Union Social Policy Framework combined with the evidence of their effectiveness and impact, there has been growing momentum by governments to implement social protection programmes in Africa. A process of learning has begun drawing from a number of country experiences in Africa, with a particular focus on the technical implementation of these programmes (targeting, capacity, size of transfer, community involvement and co-ordination). Building on these achievements, the AU is now seeking further opportunities to gain greater political will and further expand government-led social protection programmes that support children across Africa. ACPF recognises that, in the context of Africa’s increasing economic prosperity, social protection policies and programmes can be an effective response to alleviate child deprivation and vulnerability as a long-term approach. The agenda for making social protection more child-sensitive has the potential to address not only specific life cycle risks and vulnerabilities of children, but also to benefit their families, communities and national development as a whole.
Indeed, ACPF has contributed to building the knowledgebase through the documentation of good practices in social protection in The African Report on Child Wellbeing 2013 and in collaboration with the Overseas Development Institute (ODI). ACPF produced a report on the challenges and opportunities surrounding social protection programmes in Africa. As elaborated in its publications, Towards A Common Position on Children and the Post-2015 Development Agenda (May 2013), and the 2013 and 2011 editions of The African Report on Child Wellbeing, ACPF identifies social protection as one of the twelve priorities that potentially benefit children in Africa. Current policy and programme dialogue on social protection in Africa – including the AU Experts and Ministers’ meetings held in 2014, highlights a number of evident gaps and residual concerns. Most notably, these include; strengthening the economic imperative of social protection, addressing sustainability and ownership challenges through national financing opportunities as well as institutionalising these programmes progressively, developing national capacities and enhancing coordination and accountability. These are relevant challenges that still limit the commitment to social protection.
In this context, the theme of ACPF’s Sixth International Policy Conference (IPC) will focus on “Social Protection in Africa: Making it Work for Children”.
How to register?
Contact Information