Committee on the Rights of the Child Examines report of the Gambia

Committee on the Rights of the Child

  16 January 2015

The Committee on the Rights of the Child today concluded its consideration of the combined second and third periodic report of The Gambia on its implementation of the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
 
Fanta Bai Secka, Director of Social Welfare of The Gambia, introduced the report and said that remarkable achievements for children and their communities had been realized: immunization coverage was at 99.5 per cent, polio was on the verge of being eradicated, free maternal and child health services had greatly reduced infant and child mortality, and the basic education cycle was declared free and compulsory in 2014.  The Gambia was developing its national child protection strategy and a minimum package on social protection which would address the issues of child poverty and vulnerability.  Challenges still existed in the area of water and sanitation, malnutrition, inadequate health and welfare personnel, and human and financial resources.
 
Committee Experts expressed satisfaction with the progress made by The Gambia in adopting new legislative, institutional and policy measures, in particular for enacting the 2005 Children’s Act, and said that challenges still existed in the enforcement of the existing legal framework, in the awareness of the law among the police and other professionals working with children, and the failure of the Act to provide sanctions for violations of several of its provisions, such as harmful traditional practices and early and child marriages.  The Constitution did not set the minimum age for marriage, which was still subject to personal laws, and this was an issue of concern, since 8.5 per cent of married girls had been married before the age of 15.  Experts also spoke about the lack of the application of the principle of the best interest of the child, high rates of child mortality, and rampant sexual abuse of children in communities.
 
Maria Herzog, Committee Expert acting as Country Rapporteur for the report of The Gambia, in her concluding remarks referred to issues that needed further attention, such as improvement of the institutional structure and coordination, inclusion in the child protection work of the non-governmental organization sector, and the need to deal with traditional practices that affected the well-being of children and operationalize the National Child’s Rights Commission.
 
In closing remarks, Ms. Secka expressed gratitude for the frank and detailed discussions which were an opportunity to clarify issues and dispel concerns, and which inspired the delegation to continue with the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
 
The delegation of The Gambia included representatives of the Directorate of Social Welfare, the Gambia Bureau of Statistics and the Ministry of Justice.
 
The Committee will reconvene in public on Monday, 19 January, at 3 p.m. to consider the combined third and fourth periodic report of Jamaica (CRC/C/JAM/3-4) in Chamber A; in Chamber B, it will examine the combined third to fifth periodic report of Uruguay (CRC/C/URY/3-5).
 
 
 
Report

The combined second and third periodic report of The Gambia can be read via the following link: (CRC/C/GMB/2-3).

Presentation of the Report

FANTA BAI SECKA, Director of Social Welfare of The Gambia, introduced the report and said that remarkable achievements for children and their communities had been made in The Gambia: immunization coverage was at 99.5 per cent, polio was on the verge of being eradicated, while free maternal and child health services had greatly reduced infant and child mortality, by 32 and 36 per cent respectively.  Malnutrition among children had been reduced, but there were still challenges, and a birth registration strategic plan had been developed to strengthen the birth registration system in the country.  Girls had reached educational parity with boys at the basic school level and the rate of school attendance overall had increased.  Since 2014, the education basic cycle was free and compulsory.  In its fight against all forms of violence, abuse and exploitation of children, The Gambia had enacted the Sexual Offences Act and the Domestic Violence Act in 2013, which had further strengthened the Children’s Act of 2005 and the children’s courts in a bid to create a protective environment for children in The Gambia.  Children in difficult circumstances and those in conflict with the law were provided with free legal aid; an After Arrest Procedure for children in conflict with the law had been put in place and a National Plan of Action on sexual commercial exploitation of children was being implemented.
 
In 2013, with support from the United Nations Children’s Fund, The Gambia had embarked on its child protection system strengthening the assessment capacity of the Department of Social Welfare.  A country wide mapping and analysis of child protection systems and services had been conducted and the national child protection strategy and action plan for capacity development for social workers were now being developed.  The Gambia was developing a minimum package on social protection which would address the issues of child poverty and vulnerability.  This year, a national social protection platform would be created which would offer a social safety net for vulnerable children and their communities.  Challenges still existed in the area of water and sanitation, malnutrition, inadequate health and welfare personnel and human and financial resources, which would be addressed through the programme-based budgeting and the introduction of vision 2016 for food self-sufficiency and food security, while the remapping of the primary health care service would address the challenges in the health sector.  Communities were engaged in the promotion of child rights and protection through the community child protection committee to carry out sensitisation, advocacy and awareness.  For the past three years, the Government had held social protection and juvenile justice forums to discuss issues of child vulnerability with stakeholders, community members and children and to map the way forward; the implementation of recommendations from those forums was monitored by the Juvenile Justice Steering Committee and Advisory Board and the Social Protection Advisory Board. 
 
Questions by Committee Experts
 
YASMEEN MUHAMAD SHARIFF, Committee Expert acting as a Country Rapporteur for the report of The Gambia, expressed satisfaction with the progress made by The Gambia, including by adopting new legislative, institutional and policy measures, and in particular enacting of the 2005 Children’s Act with the objective of harmonizing domestic legislation with the provisions of the Convention.  Challenges still existed in the enforcement of the existing legal framework, in the awareness of the law among the police and other professionals working with children and the failure of the Act to provide sanctions for violations of several of its provisions, such as harmful traditional practices and early and child marriages.  The implementation of the Children’s Act had been hampered by the lack of appropriate child protection infrastructure and the lack of human and financial resources.  What were the plans to harmonize the Children’s Act with the Optional Protocol, to make it available in local languages and disseminate it among police, parents, teachers, village elders and other relevant actors? 
 
The County Rapporteur commended The Gambia for increasing its budgetary allocation to education and asked how the budgets allocated to other social sectors would be increased.  Concerning data and statistics, the delegation was asked about the plans to strengthen the statistical system and ensure the availability of quality data for planning and monitoring purposes.  How effective was the legislation on the child sex tourism and what measures were being taken to address this problem?  With regard to the minimum age of marriage, the Constitution did not stipulate it and marriage was subject to personal laws.  Children born out of wedlock still faced discrimination in birth registration, while refugee children remained without documents until of age, putting them at risk of statelessness. 
 
The Committee was concerned about the lack of the application of the principle of the best interest of the child; it was difficult to gauge how this principle was implemented because children were seen and not heard.  The delegation was asked to comment on the training of Kadi or Muslim judge courts, parents, village elders, magistrates and other relevant actors in children’s rights and the Convention, and about monitoring the implementation of the best interest of the child principle in administrative and judicial decisions.  More information was requested on child mortality, freedom of expression, domestic violence, and the rampant sexual abuse of children in communities.
 
Other Experts asked when the Office for the Rights of the Child would be made operational and provided with a budget, how the mandate of the new Ministry for the Rights of the Children would be evaluated, and about the awareness campaign among children about their rights.  They noted that the cost of birth registration was an obstacle for many parents, as was the late registration fee.  Quoting the statistics on early and child marriages - 8.5 per cent of married girls married before the age of 15, and 46.5 per cent before the age of 18 – they asked about the prohibition of the marriage of girls and boys under the age of 18.  
 
Replies by the Delegation
 
Responding to these questions and comments and others, the delegation said there were no payments for birth registration, but a fee had to be paid for late registration.  The problem was not the registration; traditional birth attendants had an obligation to record the date and time of birth and share the data with health centres.  The strategic plan for birth registration which had been put in place would increase the rates from the current 55 per cent to 100 per cent.  The father’s identity card must be presented if his name was to figure on the birth certificate.  Because of the stigma, a large majority of Muslims failed to register their children born out of wedlock.  Most children received upon birth a vaccine immunization card which was also used to access to services.  Birth registration was a very easy process.
 
There had never been an extensive study on the issue of child marriage in The Gambia; recently, ActionAid had undertaken a rapid assessment and the data would assist the Government in understanding the dimensions of the problem and reviewing programmes and policies to address the issue.  The Constitution stated that the age of majority and voting rights was 18 years of age and so recognized that a child was a person under the age of 18.  Child marriage was not prohibited by the law and it was hoped that the rapid assessment would provide sufficient data to see this law enacted.
 
Kadis or Muslim judges were being trained in the legislation and administration of courts, including on custody, and this was not a major problem at the moment.  In custody cases, kadis acted in the best interest of the child and did not automatically award custody of male children to fathers.  Law enforcement forces, including the police and the army, received regular annual training in child protection based on the Children’s Act 2005.
 
The Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee had been established recently to support children’s courts in their implementation of juvenile justice issues contained in the Children’s Act 2005.  The Gambia was careful about legislating against the practice of female genital mutilation because this would drive the practitioners underground and it had in place a national plan of action against female genital mutilation; “Dropping the Knife Campaign” aimed at changing attitudes and mind sets and raising awareness and educating communities on the issue.  Circumcisers were well known and respected community leaders and the challenge in the fight against female genital mutilation was to maintain their voice and status in the community.
 
The Social Protection Policy aimed at ensuring free health insurance schemes for everyone. The Government was very keen on children’s participation and they were consulted and heard on all Government programmes.  Child protection focal points had been created in selected schools in most vulnerable communities; they received training and were linked to child protection committees in communities.  
 
The delegation said that there was a 199 helpline which was operational 24 hours a day and that all persons responding were trained in child protection.  All video and internet clubs were registered, while television programmes were censored to ensure child appropriate content.
 
Turning to corporal punishment, a delegate said that it had been expunged from prisons; it was not legally prohibited in schools and there were procedures that needed to be followed in the administration of corporal punishment.  Gaps remained in homes and there was a need to educate parents on the negative impact of corporal punishment.  The Gambia intended to review its Children’s Act 2005 and develop a comprehensive child protection strategy, during which the explicit ban on corporal punishment would be considered.  As part of advocacy efforts, a parenting manual had been developed, to assist parents in learning about alternatives to corporal punishment.
 
The Domestic Violence Act had requested a setting up of an Advisory Committee which would advise the Ministry of Women’s Affairs.  The one-stop centre on gender-based violence was a network of Government and non-governmental agencies; it was based in the central hospital in the capital and the plan was to expand it to other hospitals in the country.  Doctors and nurses had been trained in dealing with victims and survivors of gender-based violence and were linked with shelters.  The Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the Ministry of Children’s Affairs would be kept separate; the Children’s Ministry had already been set up by the Presidential decree, but had yet to be made operational.
 
It was not in the mandate of the Gambia Bureau of Statistics to collect data, but it was created to coordinate all data collection systems and ensure that the data produced and consumed conformed to standard.  The National Strategy for Development of Statistics was being developed at the moment.  The society in The Gambia was highly patriarchal and male dominated; many families preferred sending their sons to school and not daughters.
 
Questions by the Committee Experts
 
MARIA HERZOG, Committee Expert acting as Country Rapporteur for the report of The Gambia, noted the change in the picture of the family and community in The Gambia, with traditions breaking down, and asked about the status of polygamy.  The delegation was asked about measures to deal with abandoned babies, access to contraception, and how pregnancies following rape and sexual abuse of children were dealt with, since abortion was prohibited in The Gambia.  The number of children in alternative care was very high, although 80 to 90 per cent of them were not orphans.  Most children were placed in communities and those seemed to be mainly informal; how were they supervised and monitored, and how were the reports of child abuse assessed?  Given the limited availability of alternative care, what were the plans to strengthen the community based care?
 
Other issues raised by the Country Rapporteur included the prevalence of malaria, the plans to increase the duration of free and compulsory education beyond the age of 12, out-of-school activities provided particularly to poor and vulnerable children, and the well-being of unaccompanied children who lacked access to basic services.
 
The delegation was also asked about the training of judges in juvenile courts, which were three at the moment, about children in prison with their mothers, how the children of inmates on death row were assisted, and about homosexuality and the new amendment to the Penal Law that severely punished it. 
 
Replies by the Delegation
 
Homosexuality was not among the values cherished by the Gambian society, said the delegation; it was a very sensitive issue for the population that was 95 per cent Muslim and attached to their traditional values.  There was a real challenge in bringing the concept of child rights and child protection into this system of traditional beliefs and values, and that was why the Government wished to tread lightly on the issues of homosexuality and move gradually towards change.
 
A Committee Expert said that the first step could be to ensure that the provisions punishing homosexuality were not included in the Penal Code. 
 
The delegation said non-governmental organization affairs were attached to the Office of the President not for censorship but for tax exemption reasons.  Polygamy was on the decline, mainly through the education of women and men and the economic situation which did not encourage it.  Babies were not abandoned only by teenagers, but also by married women; education and awareness activities on teenage pregnancies were being carried out in schools, youth forums and the media.  Family planning services were accessible through health centres, and there was a special programme in place to help the return to school of girls after having a baby.  In the case of rape, prophylaxes were given to prevent sexually transmitted disease; abortion was illegal even for pregnancies resulting from rape or sexual abuse.  Abortion was possible only if pregnancy presented a risk for the life of the mother.  The delegation said that this was one of gaps in the Children’s Act 2005, which would hopefully be closed during the upcoming review.
 
There were two systems of foster care; there were babies abandoned with someone and the system of foster care with view of adoption then applied, which involved fostering for three years, during which the person or the family was supported with parenting skills and assistance from social services, and the search for the biological mother was undertaken because child abandonment was a crime.  A second system applied to children abused by their parents or in conflict with their families, who were placed with the extended family; placement in alternative or institutional care was a measure of last resort.  This so-called kinship fostering was regulated and ordered by courts.
 
There were no women with children in prison; women delivering in prison were usually released by Presidential pardon and no children were held in prison with their mothers.  Breastfeeding used to be an issue and a law had been passed in 2010 allowing 6 months paid leave to mothers to support exclusive breastfeeding, while campaigns and educational activities to promote breastfeeding had been undertaken.
 
Minimum standards for alternative and institutional care setting had been developed and they prohibited corporal punishment.  Sanitation in the rural areas was still a challenge and the Government was developing a strategic plan to address the issue.  Most schools were now within walking distance, while the donkey cart programme had been introduced for schools that were further away.  The quality of teachers was a challenge, especially for teachers dealing with children with mild disabilities who were not being integrated in mainstream schools.  Children with severe disabilities could attend special schools; they were mainly located in the greater area of Banjul and plans were underway to open additional ones in other areas of the country.
 
Annual training was being provided to social workers and judicial and prison officers in the matters of child rights and juvenile justice.  Arrests of and interviews with juveniles in conflict with the law were conducted in accordance with international standards.  The concept of juvenile justice was rather new, but quite a high degree of awareness about it had been created.
 
In further response to the issues raised by the Committee Experts, the delegation said that The Gambia was part of the West African network for children on the move, together with another 15 countries from the region.  Unaccompanied minors were put in the care of social services who undertook assessment as to their placement in foster families, alternative care or return to their country of origin. 
 
An Anti-Corruption Act had been enacted and an Anti-Corruption Commission been set up; currently Parliament’s Public Finance Committee was meeting with the authorities to scrutinize the State budget. 
 
The Trafficking in Persons Act and the National Trafficking Agency were in place, while the national plan of action focused on child trafficking.  Regular reports were submitted to the Economic Community of West African States Committee on Children.  Border control officers received regular training in human trafficking and community child protection committees were mandated with monitoring the across-the-border movements.
 
Concerning measures to increase school attendance, the head of the delegation said that focus was on ensuring that the school environment was protective for boys and girls.  As far as children working in the street were concerned, their parents were sensitized to ensure they were in school by September 2015. 
 
The Gambia was currently considering the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on a communication procedure, which would happen soon.
 
There were no children on death row in The Gambia and no child had been executed.  Magistrates and judges were trained in child protection, while social services provided adequate support to minors whose parents were on death row.
 
In response to follow-up questions raised by the Committee Chairperson, the head of the delegation said that special needs schools would be expanded into rural areas and the mapping had been done to identify areas with greater numbers of children with disabilities.  Most schools were now being fitted with ramps, while the Special Needs Education Unit was part of the Ministry of Education and was very dynamic.  Those programmes were funded by the United Nations Children’s Fund and a number of other partners.  All children born in The Gambia, be they nationals or refugees, were entitled to a birth certificate.  The national plan for accelerated elimination of female genital mutilation 2013-2017 had been endorsed by the Government and the work on the ground was ongoing.  The Social Protection Policy had been finalized two months ago and was to be sent to the Cabinet for the final approval.
 
The ongoing changes in the country regarding child rights and child protection enjoyed great political will and commitment and significant effort was focused on educating parents.  Challenges were not among the politicians but the communities and traditional actors and that was why they were being engaged in the process.
 
Concluding Remarks
 
MARIA HERZOG, Committee Expert acting as a Country Rapporteur for the report of The Gambia, said that The Gambia had made significant achievements in the field of health and education and noted the outstanding issues that needed further attention.  Previous concluding observations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child needed to be implemented, in particular those related to the improvement of the institutional structure, coordination between different governmental bodies and the inclusion of the non-governmental organization sector.  Child protection concerns were linked with and based on traditional practices which affected the work of the law enforcement agencies and the well-being of children on a daily basis.  Steps taken by the Government today would determine not only the future of children but also of the country itself, stressed Ms. Herzog and noted that the National Child’s Rights Commission was still not operational.  The Committee continued to be concerned about the situation of human rights defenders who were important contributors to the implementation of the Convention and the rights of children.
 
FANTA BAI SECKA, Director of Social Welfare of The Gambia, expressed gratitude for the frank and detailed discussions which were an opportunity to clarify issues and dispel concerns, and which inspired the delegation to continue with the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
 
KIRSTEN SANDBERG, Committee Chairperson, thanked the delegation for the fruitful dialogue and sent best wishes to the children of The Gambia.
 _________

For use of the information media; not an official record