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[ADDIS ABABA, 15 March 2009] - Session 15 of the African Committee on the Rights and Welfare of the Child opened on Monday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Setting out the agenda for the 15th session, Chairperson Ms. Seynabou Ndiaye Diakhaté from Senegal said the Committee would review the State party report of Uganda. The Committee was also due to examine reports from Rwanda and Niger, but both reviews were postponed. “I want to remind States that this is not a test or exam, but a space to exchange views”, said Ms. Diakhaté. Other items on the agenda this session include a thematic session on violence against children, a presentation of recommendations made by civil society organisations, the election of a new bureau, and a meeting with members of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child to discuss working methods. The Committee will also adopt its new plan of action for 2010- 2014. Commenting on the Committee's productive year, Ms Ndiaye Diakhaté added: “My ambition was to take this Committee to the highest level – I wanted to make it an effective Committee with your support.” However, she said, the Committee has not been able to do everything it had planned due to budgetary constraints. She expressed regret that, as a result of this, the Committee will only be able to hold one session this year, rather than the usual two, despite the Committee's heavy workload. The Committee hopes that something will be done so that it can at least hold an extraordinary session before the end of the year. Save the Children assured Committee members that they would be happy to work with them and other civil society organisations to ensure another session takes place this year. Child rights and the African Union Co-chairing the session, Adv. Bience Gwawanas, Commissioner for Social Affairs at the African Union spoke of upcoming opportunities for raising the profile of child rights within the African Union. This year, which has been declared the Year of Peace and Security by the African Union, is an opportunity to see how we can make a difference for children in conflict situations, she said. Referring to expectations of the African Union Summit on maternal, infant and child health and development, to be held in July, she said “we have had enough of declarations, the July summit must be about action”. Next month a continental conference on maternal and child health will be also be organised in Addis Ababa to review the status of the Maputo Plan of Action on Sexual and reproductive health and discuss strategies for improving women and children’s health, she announced. Members of civil society organisations then gave brief introductions to their work. A participant from CONAFE-Niger, expressed hope that the Committee's upcoming elections would be fruitful and that members would be selected on the basis of competence rather than politics. An update on the Committee's review of Uganda's report will follow. Further information