Guidelines on Child Participation

During its 34th Ordinary Session, the African Committee of Experts on the Rights & Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) made a decision to develop Guidelines on Child Participation. The decision was made after presentations and consideration of the findings of a mapping study conducted on child participation in Africa, which notes implementation gaps at the national level, and limited systematisation of children’s participation in the activities of the Committee.

The focus of these Guidelines is to provide a guide for the effective implementation of child participation at Member States level as well as in the activities of the Committee. The Guidelines reflect the necessary institutional mechanisms and structures that State Parties to the ACRWC need to put in place for the effective and meaningful participation of children. This will inform the systematic process of children’s participation at the national level to ultimately enable child participation in the activities of the Committee.