Day of the African Child — In Cameroon, UNICEF is mobilizing to ensure that nearly 6 million children have their rights fully guaranteed.
YAOUNDE, 16th June 2024 — On the occasion of the Day of the African Child 2024 and Cameroon Children’s Month, UNICEF Cameroon is reminding of the major challenges that more than 13 million children aged 0 to 17 are facing, and the main priorities guiding its actions to ensure that Cameroon’s children enjoy all their rights.
Although Cameroon ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in 1993, then the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child in 1997, “nearly 6 million children still do not have their rights fully guaranteed,” says Nadine Perrault, UNICEF Representative in Cameroon. In addition to the structural challenges, a decade of crises (crisis in the North-West and South-West, the Lake Chad Basin and refugees from the Central African Republic) combined with the impacts of climate change are hindering the continuity of basic social services for children.
Nearly one child in two (47.5% of children aged 0–17) suffers from multiple deprivations (food, health, protection, access to water, etc.) that affect their development.
Deprivation particularly affects girls and women. There are marked differences in terms of education and per capita income. 27.3% of rural children suffer severe deprivation, compared with just 3% of urban children.
The impact of climate change on children amplifies their vulnerability. In very different climatic zones, the changes and shocks are varied, leading to droughts, floods and disruptions to the rainy season cycle, which damage livelihoods and put pressure on demand for basic social services.
Every year, 336,000 children die before their 5th birthday, and almost 28/1,000 die on their first day of life. The main causes are HIV, acute respiratory infections, diarrhea and malaria. In addition, only 69% of births are attended by qualified staff and only 65% of pregnant mothers undergo the recommended 4 prenatal consultations.
One child in four cannot assert his or her right to a legal identity, to benefit from protection programmes, or to be able to certify his or her schooling.
Nearly 32% of children suffer from stunting (40% of children in the Northern region). The main cause is the lack of early breastfeeding (only 40% of children) and food diversification. Added to this is the lack of access to water, which makes feeding and hygiene practices difficult. The level of access to sanitation is also low, with only 18% of rural households having access to improved solutions.
Immunization coverage is not optimal, at 82.5%. 3 million children do not complete the vaccination schedule, and 112,326 children have never received a dose of vaccine. The Far North is worst affected.
85.6% of children aged 5 to 11 attend school, but in some regions (North), 35% of children do not receive any education at all. In addition, 69% of schools have no access to drinking water, and 59% have no adequate latrines.
Girls are more likely to be excluded from school (26.6% compared with 7.8% for boys), and for those who drop school, the worst alternative is often marriage. Nearly 10% of girls under 15 are married, and 24% of girls aged 15–19 have begun their reproductive lives, jeopardizing their future autonomy and leading to health problems.
47% of children aged 5 to 17 have worked and 40% are engaged in work that is harmful to their health and development.
33% of 12 to 17 year olds suffer multiple deprivations. Child labour increases with age, and the transition to secondary school is only around 60% (in the North-West 88% of children are not in secondary school).
In response to these challenges, UNICEF Cameroon is supporting the authorities in the priorities set out in its 2022–2026 Country Programme Document, which addresses the structural and crisis-led causes undermining the well-being of children:
- The first thousand days of life: medical support for expectant mothers from the start of pregnancy, access to health care, vaccinations, legal identity, appropriate nutrition and decent sanitation facilities are the main thrusts of this multi-sectoral programme, which is being rolled out by UNICEF with the relevant national authorities at all levels, right down to local level. In 6 municipalities, UNICEF is implementing a “child-friendly municipality” label, under which mayors undertake, with UNICEF support, to create living conditions conducive to the development of children.
- — UNICEF also supports the development of services to make birth registration a reality for all children in the country through proven strategies involving health services (health centres, community workers, vaccination activities, etc.), particularly at municipal level. UNICEF welcomes the recent initiative of the Mayors’ Forum held on 26 and 27 April 2024 in Yaoundé under the high patronage of the President of the Republic to commit Cameroon’s 374 mayors to facilitating parents’ access to civil status services, as well as the Government’s efforts to “catch up” with children who are at school but not registered through mobile court hearings to issue birth certificates.
- — Support for immunization and health services, through infrastructure, inputs — particularly vaccines — and training for health workers. In particular, UNICEF has been very active in supporting the introduction of the new malaria vaccine into routine immunization programmes last January. UNICEF is also supporting the authorities to vaccinate all children, and is implementing strategies to reach all children, including the most vulnerable and in the most remote areas.
- — To strengthen access to and the quality of education, UNICEF is calling for increased national investment in primary education to bring it up to international standards, and is supporting school infrastructure — in particular through the construction of classrooms, drinking water points and latrines, solar energy systems, the supply of school materials and the development of digital education. To enable out-of-school children to continue their education, through protected and safe spaces, radio lessons, and alternative ways for teenagers to gain access to vocational skills.
- Finally, to reduce the harmful impacts of climate change on children, UNICEF is integrating climate action into all its programmes, in particular by making education an entry point for developing the skills needed to adapt to droughts, extreme weather events, heat waves and biodiversity loss.
“While welcoming the efforts made by the country’s authorities, UNICEF is calling for more sustained and better-directed investment in health and education in particular, and also for emergency situations, which put children at immediate risk, to be better funded by donors”, concludes Nadine Perrault.
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NOTE TO THE EDITORS
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UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do. Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere. UNICEF has been working in Cameroon since 1975.
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For further information:
Anne Fouchard, Chief of Communication, Tel.+237 657750532/ E-mail: afouchard@unicef.org
Salomon Beguel, Communication Officer, Tel. +237 699770569/ E-mail: smjbeguel@unicef.org
