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Summary: Save the Children Uganda has appealed to the 8th parliament to expeditiously implement the children’s manifesto. They also called for the establishment of a parliamentary committee on northern Uganda to enable the House to better oversee improvements carried out in the area and to raise public awareness when more action is required. The NGO said in a statement on Wednesday that Universal Primary education should be completely free and mandatory so that all children in Uganda, irrespective of their location, can receive primary education and qualified teachers.
A new cabinet has been named and will soon start conducting government business to improve the lives of all citizens, but who is putting the children on the agenda? The decisions of cabinet doubtless will yield better prospects for the children of Uganda. ‘Each member of the Cabinet holds the duty to ensure that all policy decisions that guide the future of Uganda address the situation affecting the development of our children” Says David Wright, Director of Save the Children in Uganda. Drawing on work with children, parents, community leaders and district and national level officials, Save the Children in Uganda wish to highlight some of the areas that require Cabinet leadership during its tenure. The conflict in northern Uganda and its effect on the lives of thousands of children remains one of the major challenges for the government. Save the Children in Uganda is encouraged by the renewed peace efforts marshaled by the President and hope that this will be followed by a comprehensive plan of action for peace, in cooperation with the neighbouring countries, to resolve the conflict. The support to establish a select Committee of Parliament to investigate in greater detail the situation of children in northern Uganda and to report regularly to Parliament will clearly demonstrate Cabinet commitment to end the plight of these children. Save the Children in Uganda looks forward to the Joint Monitoring Committee (JMC) establishing a concrete timeline for the achievement of measurable benchmarks that clearly focus on children’s issues to demonstrate real improvement of the situation in the north. It is urgent to improve the conditions of those living in the camps while awaiting return to their homes. Infant mortality, chronic malnutrition and all preventable diseases should be eradicated. Another major aspect of equal importance is to support the view that Universal Primary Education (UPE) must be made completely free and mandatory so that no children in Uganda, irrespective of their location, are left behind in their educational development. Cabinet should bring a bill to Parliament to make UPE compulsory. Save the Children in Uganda trusts that these efforts will be backed by an increase of the national expenditure on UPE, so that qualified teachers of both sexes, receiving competitive salaries, are present in every school; the provision of sanitation facilities, safe drinking water and nutritious mid-day meals is catered for; and the removal of all physical and economic barriers to education, such as the cost of uniforms, meals and scholastic materials, is realized to build a protective environment for all our children, our present and future.
In order to meet the special protection needs of children in the conflict areas, Government could consider establishment of a child protection system in the affected districts to prevent, investigate and address comprehensively all forms of violence against children. Save the Children in Uganda believes that strengthening the justice system and increasing the deployment of law enforcement agents of both sexes with the required child protection skills will be crucial to achieve this.