COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD EXAMINES INITIAL REPORT OF NIGER

CRC
30th session
24 May 2002



Government Hopes Return of Stability Will Allow it
to Do More to Implement the Convention



The Committee on the Rights of the Child today examined an initial report from Niger, with a Government delegation saying that the previous situation of instability had undermined any measures taken to uphold the Convention on the Rights of the Child, but with the return of stability, things had changed and the Government hoped to do much more to implement the provisions of the treaty.
The report was introduced by Ibrahim Laouali, Secretary-General at the Ministry of Social Development, Population, Women's Promotion and Child Protection of Niger, who said that the Government had taken several economic measures and had increased the portion of the budget for the implementation of the provisions of the Convention.
Mr. Laouali said that at present, Niger had achieved political and economic stability which had enabled it to implement the treaty; the previous situation of instability had undermined any measures taken to uphold the Convention. With the return of the stability, things had changed and the Government hoped to do much more to implement the provisions of the treaty, he added.
In preliminary remarks, Committee Expert Awa N'Deye Ouedraogo encouraged the State to continue with its efforts to promote and protect the rights of the child despite the lack of funds. She said measures taken by the Government should be aimed at improving the well-being and life conditions of children, and although Niger definitely needed funds, it also needed political will and a lot could be done with political will.
Niger, which is among the 191 States parties to the Convention, was also represented by Salmeye Bebert, National Director for Child Protection.
The Committee will resume its work at 10 a.m. on Monday, 27 May, when it is scheduled to begin its consideration of the second periodic report of Belarus (document CRC/C/65/Add.15).

Report of Niger
The initial report (document CRC/C/3/Add.29/Rev.1) enumerates the measures undertaken by the State to implement the provisions of the Convention and the difficulties encountered in that area. It says that the State's determination to harmonize national law with the provisions of international instruments is reflected in the Ordinance establishing the National Commission on the Reform of Civil and Criminal Legislation. The Commission has just submitted a draft bill on minors; and has supported the establishment of prisons and prison quarters for juveniles. Niger's determination to implement the Convention is also reflected in the adoption of various administrative and judicial measures.
According to the report, another measure taken to help children exercise their rights was the establishment in 1993 of the Department for Children Protection in the Ministry of Social Development. Due to the emergence of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other associations concerned with the right to participation, a project to develop a national coalition for the defence of children's rights is under way, aimed especially at encouraging children's participation.
The report notes that the civil code sets the age of majority at 21 years; the Constitution, the electoral code and the criminal code provided for that majority is attained on reaching the age of 16; and custom does not provide for an age of majority. The stage at which certain communities begin to marry off their children is puberty. In such cases, the age varies from 9 to 16 years for girls and from 14 to 18 years for boys. Sexual consent is protected by both custom and law in that, on the one hand, rape is traditionally considered to be a shameful act rendering its perpetrator liable to exile and, on the other, rape is punishable under the criminal code, which defines it as a man having sexual relations with a women against her will; and punishment may entail a prison term of 15 to 30 years.
Despite Niger's clear determination, the exercise of the various rights recognized in the Convention is encountering real difficulties in practice, the report says. An analysis of the situation in the country reveals that there is a considerable gap between theory and practice, particularly in key sectors such as education and health. In matters of education, the State recognizes that every child has the right to education without distinctions to sex, race or religion. In reality, however, not every child has access to education, and disparities between girls and boys and between urban and rural children are still apparent.
Moreover, access to health care for all children is still problematic, the report says. The maternal death rate remains unchanged and infant/juvenile mortality rates are not declining at the pace hoped for. A large number of children experience growth difficulties due to malnutrition and lack of access to drinking water.

Presentation of Niger's Report
IBRAHIM LAOUALI, Secretary-General at the Ministry of Social Development, Population, Women's Promotion and Child Protection of Niger, said his country was among the first countries to sign the Convention. He said that the Government had taken a series of measures as a follow-up to the 1990 World Summit on Children and in accordance with the provisions of the Convention. It had created regional and subregional structures to better implement the rights of the child.
In order to have great success, the Convention had been translated into two languages so that it was accessible to all, the Minister said. However, due to the high rate of illiteracy, it was not readily available to all people.
Mr. Laouali said that 6 June had been declared "Children's Day" during which the rights of children, their well-being and their participation were made known to the public. Opinion and traditional leaders, as well as religious figures participated in the activities of the Day.
The Government had taken several economic measures and had increased the portion of the budget earmarked for the implementation of the provisions of the Convention, he said.
At present, the country had achieved political and economic stability which would enable it to implement the treaty, he continued. The previous situation of instability had undermined any measures taken to uphold the Convention. With the return of stability, things had changed and the Government hoped to do much more for the implementation of the Convention.

Experts' Questions on General Measures and Definition of the Child
A Committee Expert said that the report was prepared in accordance with the guidelines of the Committee; non-governmental organizations (NGOs) had also participated in preparing it; and it had been distributed to the public at large. She asked if a bill had been adopted on the rights of the child since the submission of the report. She requested more information on the status of the "national youth charter"; and asked about the Government's policy on youth. Which body was monitoring the implementation of the provisions of the Convention? Was there a liaison office for the coordination of activities on the rights of the child?
How did tribal leaders react when they were asked to become involved in the subregional committees for the promotion of the rights of the child, she continued to ask. Did the involvement of traditional leaders help to speed up a change of attitudes towards the rights of children? How did the Government resolve conflicts arising between customary and positive law? Was there any intention to increase the girls' age limit for marriage from 15 to 18? What provisions were available against the recruitment of children by the "resistance army"?
Other Experts also asked about the status of the Convention within domestic legislation; and the implementation of the plan of action on the rights of the child.
An Expert asked why the Government did not establish a right-based approach towards the promotion and protection of children rather than concentrating on survival and development. According to the delegation, the Convention was translated into two languages; however, there were 10 recognized languages in the country; was enough being done to disseminate the Convention? Given the high rate of illiteracy and the language barriers, the majority of the population might not understand the Convention. Were there any other ways, other than the written form, to disseminate the treaty?
After a decade of grim violations of human rights due to political instability, the situation was now improving, an Expert noted. The Government had emphasized its strategy to eradicate poverty. What was the objective of the economic policy, which was important for the implementation of the provisions of the Convention? The budgetary allocation for education, health and social development had declined; how did the Government collect revenue to finance its budget?
An Expert said that most schools were outside the control of the Government and asked what measures were being envisaged to reverse this situation. The body for the protection of child rights was under the Ministry of Social Development; how was coordination carried out with other bodies?
Other Experts expressed concern about the various age limits for different criteria. They asked about female genital mutilation; the role of the National Committee on the Rights of the Child; regional leaders; the intention of the Government to ratify the two Optional Protocols to the Convention on the involvement of children in armed conflict and on child sale, child prostitution and child pornography; and the poverty eradication strategy, among other things.

Niger's Response
Responding to the questions raised by the Committee Experts on general measures and the definition of the child, the delegation said that the National Committee on the Rights of the Child had been the focus of a debate among Niger's authorities. Its competence and composition had been questioned, in addition to its status -- to which Ministry should it be attached.
Niger had so far not created a parliament for children, the delegation said; however, there was a similar institution -- the Council for Childhood.
The law on minors had been enacted in 1999; however it was not fully applied because of the lack of expertise among judges, the delegation said, adding that the application of the law was not perfect. Judges had to be trained to judge minors. So far those judges who were examining adult cases were also judging minors. Many of the judges were not aware of the existence of the law itself.
With regard to the national charter of youth, which was adopted in 1998, the delegation said that a regular programme was being carried out on the participation of children and on awareness increasing campaigns.
Concerning the involvement of traditional leaders, the delegation said that the Government had been relying on their assistance in the fight against HIV/AIDS, early marriage and forced labour; and also to help with the vaccination campaign.
The Ministry of Social Development had proposed a family code that was rejected because of the traditional and Islamic values of the society, the delegation said. Niger's customary law was detrimental not only to children but also to women. The Government was still endeavouring to undertake reforms on the status of children and women.
The National Committee on the Rights of the Child would look into the age difference between girls and boys for marriage, which was 16 for girls and 18 for boys, the delegation said. In accordance with the Bamako directives, the Government was intending to raise the age limit of girls for marriage to 18.
The resistance army had been dissolved and the personnel had been demobilized, the delegation said.
The Government had the intention to ratify the two Optional Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the delegation said.
Since 2000, Niger had had no national plan of action for children, the delegation said; it had recently participated in the Special Session on Children and it intended to include the outcome of the meeting in its future action plan.
Many children were working in mines and some NGOs were intervening in favour of those children in application of the directives of the International Labour Office, the delegation said. The Government had been collaborating with NGOs, however, there were frictions at times because some NGOs did not want to work in the rural areas. There was also lack of specialization on the part of NGOs B they wanted to cover many areas at the same time. About twenty NGOs were working on the protection and promotion of the rights of the child.
The Convention was in fact translated into four national languages but it was published only in two languages, the delegation said. The Government believed that printing and distributing the Convention was not enough. Verbal translations had been carried out via radio broadcasting and television transmissions.

Questions of Experts on General Principles; Civil Rights and Freedoms; and Family Environment and Alternative Care
An Expert asked about the status of children born out of wedlock and whether they were discriminated against or were socially integrated? What was being done about illegal abortions and the killing of unwanted children? What did the Government do to register new births? Was there a mobile service for nomadic people? Polygamy had a structure that was not convenient to children; what was the situation in Niger? What had been done to prevent domestic violence?
Another Expert said she was worried about the situation of disabled children, whose number had been indicated to be 24,000. Because of the lack of adequate assistance and structure to help them, they ended up in the streets begging.
Other Committee Experts also raised questions on such issues as discrimination against girls; participation of children in family affairs; Government measures against infanticide; the prosecution of women for infanticide; respect of the views of the child; and sexual liberty and early pregnancy, among other things.

Response of Niger
In response to questions on general principles, civil rights and freedoms, and family environment and alternative care, the delegation said the share of the budget devoted to the promotion and protection of the rights of the child was subsidized by external assistance. If the Government had the necessary resources, it would have financed all programmes in that regard. Unfortunately, that was not the case at the moment. With regard to health, education and social issues, the budget had been decreasing.
Concerning the proportion of divorce and the protection of children, the delegation said the issue was not divorce but rejection. When a husband rejected his wife, the fate of the children became complex. If the mother was not able to take responsibility of the child, custody normally went to the father. In the case of divorce before the court, alimony was allocated to the parent taking custody of the child.
The shameful act of infanticide was, unfortunately, occurring in many regions of the country. Infanticide was also attributed to the lack of contraceptive methods. In 1992, only 4.4 per cent of women had access to contraceptives; the rate had been increased to 14 per cent in 2000. Nominal prices were requested for contraceptives. It was observed that infanticide was committed by women who were already serving prison terms. In general, abortion was allowed in the event where the health of the mother was jeopardized. Prison terms were handed down for illegal practice of abortion.
Alluding to a question on the proportion of the Muslim population, the delegation said that 90 to 95 per cent of the population was Muslim; however, there was a strict separation between the State and religion.
With regard to children born out of wedlock, the delegation said that it was the mother who became a victim and not the child. The father could recognize the child and the situation would be resolved. Concerning inheritance, the mother had more rights in the northern part of the country, under the prevailing customary law, than in the south.
The situation in which women were suppressed by men was a concern to the Government, the delegation said. Women in the remote regions suffered most because of their unawakened conscious and the lack of knowledge to bring their cases to court. In the name of custom or Islam, men inflicted suffering on women, and women accepted it. Men used false Koranic assertions to deprive women of certain rights such as ownership of real estate, saying that the Koran prohibited land ownership by women, which was untrue.
In 2000, the registration rate of newborns had increased to 45 per cent, the delegation said; however, in some areas it was rather low. Registration in maternity wards and other places where delivery services were carried out had been encouraged and had been followed. Thanks, to the assistance of UNICEF, the registration system had been improved.
The rate of assisted home delivery did not improve during the last few years, the delegation said; in 1998, it was 14.8 per cent while in 2000 it was only 15.7 per cent; and prenatal service did not evolve much with the rate of 30 per cent in 1998 and 40 per cent in 2000.
The Government had undertaken a number of measures to help children with disabilities, the delegation said, adding that the fight for non-discrimination had also been intensified. In addition, a number of NGOs had been working with disabled children by providing them with education and vocational training.
The National Committee on the Rights of the Child had failed in fulfilling its mandate, the delegation said. Its failure was attributed mainly to the lack of funding.
The issue of polygamy in Niger was intertwined with tradition and Islamic religion, the delegation said. Although the majority of the population was Muslim, hardly 20 per cent knew Koranic verses. The only thing most men knew of the Koran was that it allowed them to have four wives. Men forgot the responsibilities they faced by having four wives.
With regard to adoption by alternate families, the delegation said that in 1997, the Government signed a protocol with one French organization based in Pas-de-Calais, north of France, which monitored the situation of children adopted outside the country. National adoption had no place in the society because of the extended and traditional family. The Government had not ratified the 1993 Hague Convention on inter-country adoption.
Concerning the opinion of children, the delegation said that the 1991 law provided for the judge to taken into consideration complaints lodged by children.
Acts of rape were severely punished and prison sentences could be inflicted against those who perpetrated the crime, the delegation said. However, there was a growing rate of young girls being raped in the society. The Government had been conducting a study on the issue of sexual exploitation of children. Niger was present at a recent conference on the sexual exploitation of children and had taken some measures on the basis of the debate.
Asked about the prohibition of pornography involving children, the delegation said that there was no specific law prohibiting such acts; however, legal provisions had been put in place.
Primary education was compulsory and free of charge, the delegation said; however, due to the lack of an adequate infrastructure, the Government was unable to fulfil its obligations in that area. Private schools were operating in major cities which children attended after paying fees.

Questions by Experts on Basic Health and Welfare; Education, Leisure and Cultural Activities; and Special Protection Measures
The Committee Experts raised a number of questions under these clusters. They asked, among other things, about the low rate of breastfeeding; the act of scarring -- placing marks on the body; participation of children in campaigns against AIDS; integration of Koranic madrassas under the Ministry of Education so that they followed certain standards; the efforts against the practice of slavery; the situation of child beggars; the rate of literacy in rural areas; measures to train midwives to attend home deliveries; the lack of intravenous vaccines; the death sentence against minors; and the high number of children in prisons.

Niger's Responses
Responding to questions on basic health and welfare, education, leisure and cultural activities, and special protection measures, the delegation said that in two years time, there would be harmonized legislative provisions in the judicial system. With regard to education, schooling was free, but supply did not meet the demand for it.
With regard to health, it was of concern to the Government, the delegation said. There were 10-year development plans for health and education. In the health services, it was envisaged to increase the number of medical personnel. Although medical care was free of charge, the Government was unable to provide care for all. Recently, participation in medical cost was requested with the payment of a very small amount.
Under the motto of "justice for minors", the Government had been reforming its justice system, the delegation said, adding that it was rare that minors were put on death row.
Since 1997, it was not only the Ministry of Public Health that was running the programme against AIDS, the delegation said. A new strategic plan had been designed to include all governmental agencies in the effort to fight AIDS. The World Bank had been involved in the campaign by opening credit facilities for specific targets concerning the pandemic.
It was underlined that reform would be undertaken in the field of education to bring Koranic schools in line with the national educational system, the delegation said. However, those schools were contributing in the campaign to make the population literate. Emphasis had been made on the fact that Koranic students should come out with a profession to support themselves, which was not the case in many Koranic schools.
Niger's Commission on Human Rights and Basic Rights had been conducting studies, which would be concluded by the end of 2002, on incidents concerning contemporary forms of slavery, the delegation said. The Government did not spare efforts to monitor any occurrence of the practice of slavery.
The Government had ratified International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 182 on the worst forms of child labour, the delegation said; however, adolescents were encouraged to take apprenticeships and vocational training for their future professional life.
The authorities were conscious of the danger of the phenomenon of trafficking in children, the delegation said. They had taken legal measures against trafficking. Niger had also been used as a transit country.

Preliminary Remarks by Committee Expert
AWA N'DEYE OUEDRAOGO, a Committee Expert, expressed her satisfaction with the quality of the dialogue with the delegation which had been very open, frank and precise. The State should have sent additional information or a supplementary report before the arrival of the delegation, because the written report and reality were far apart as a lot had already been carried out since the report was submitted. She encouraged the State to continue with its efforts in promoting and protecting the rights of the child despite its limited means. Measures taken by the Government should be aimed at improving the well-being and life conditions of children, especially education and health. Niger needed funds definitely, but it also needed political will and a lot could be done with political will. Niger also had several ongoing initiatives which were worthy of being continued and she encouraged the Government to continue with its endeavours.
JAKOB EGBERT DOEK, Committee Chairperson, joined his voice in expressing his appreciation to the delegation for their answers and said that the discussion had been fruitful and informative and had helped the Committee to better understand the situation in Niger.
IBRAHIM LAOUALI (Niger) thanked the Experts for their comments, which, he said, would be helpful in improving the situation of children in the county. He said it was true that everything should not be related to the lack of funds. The Government had the will to use the funds available to it in a rational manner.



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