NHF-Zimbabwe's child  human rights advocacy project focuses on 3 areas:

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1. Provision,

2. Protection and

3. Participation.

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Through our projects, the local environment and rights of children are directly improved. We believe that the success of  any project dealing with children hinges on making it child centred, children must own and co-decide on all project activities. NHF-Zimbabwe recognizes that the strength of its interventions depends on the participation of  children, their caregivers and community leaders. This helps in finding total solutions to challenges  being faced by children in their life and  is key in building the economic base that will support the fulfilment of every child's rights.

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Promoting Child Rights

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Around the world, in every country child rights are a topic of concern. The coming in of COVID-19 has brought with it more  challenges to their lives. Children, regardless of age, race, gender, wealth, or birthplace, deserve not just to live, but to thrive. Yet millions of children’s basic rights are denied and their childhoods are stolen from them by abuse, exploitation, or slavery.

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Many rights violations children face are a consequence of exploitative practices and education gaps in both developed and developing communities. But poverty, exploitation, and violence are not inevitable. With enlightened support from governments, civil society, and religious groups, vulnerable children can flourish and reach their highest potential.

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1. Provision: 

Children have the right to an adequate standard of living, health care, education and services, and to play and recreation. These include a balanced diet, a warm bed to sleep in, and access to schooling.

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2. Protection: 

Children have the right to protection from abuse, neglect, exploitation and discrimination. This includes the right to safe places for children to play; constructive child-rearing behaviour, and acknowledgment of the evolving capacities of children.

 

3. Participation:

Children have the right to participate in communities and have programs and services for themselves. This includes children's involvement in libraries and community programs, youth voice activities, and involving children as decision-makers

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NHF-Zimbabwe's advocacy work is central to the following: Sexual abuse,  child labour, juvenile justice, orphans, abandoned children, refugees, street children and corporal punishment. 

 

 

What are child human rights?

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Children's human rights are a subset of human rights with particular attention to the rights of special protection and care afforded to minors. (Not to be confused with Youth Rights). The 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) defines a child as "any human being below the age of eighteen years, unless under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier." Children's rights includes their right to association with both parents, human identity and the basic needs for physical protection, food, universal state-paid education, health care, and criminal laws appropriate for the age and development of the child, equal protection of the child's civil rights, and freedom from discrimination on the basis of the child's race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, religion, disability, colour, ethnicity, or other characteristics. Interpretations of children's rights range from allowing children the capacity for autonomous action to the enforcement of children being physically, mentally and emotionally free from abuse, though what constitutes "abuse" is a matter of debate. Other definitions include the rights to care and nurturing. There are no definitions of other terms used to describe young people, such as "adolescents", "teenagers", or "youth" in international law, but the children's rights movement is considered distinct from the youth rights movement. The field of children's rights spans the fields of law, politics, religion, and morality.

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How are children deprived of their rights?

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Child labour, child marriage, children recruited into armed conflicts, and other forms of oppression deprive children of their rights. Children are also deprived of their rights when their birth is not recorded, so they don’t have a birth certificate, or when they are forced to flee conflict.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that 152 million children are working as child labourers around the world. These children are denied the opportunity to go to school, play with friends, or receive the right nutrition and care for a healthy and fulfilled life; instead, they are forced to work long hours for little reward.

Millions of children are being exploited through mentally and physically dangerous work that involves hazardous workplaces and other exploitative acts such as slavery, drug trafficking, prostitution, and armed conflict. These environments negatively impact a child’s well-being and development and often deny the child’s right to health and survival, protection, and education.

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Is progress being made in protecting children’s rights?

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Yes, improvements in child mortality, healthcare, and school attendance are some of the signs that children’s rights concerns are receiving greater recognition. These are aspects of human development that give children a brighter future.

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Globally, progress is also being made against some of the worst violations of children’s rights. For example, in the past decade, 25 million child marriages have been prevented, according to UNICEF, the U.N. children’s agency.

The U.N. reported in June 2019 that 13,600 child soldiers were released and participated in reintegration programs in 2018, up from 12,000 children the year before. Still, nearly 240 million children live in countries affected by conflict, and many are at risk of being recruited as child soldiers. Sadly, 12,000 children were killed or maimed in the conflict in 2018. Child labour and female genital mutilation are also declining, but progress against the practices varies greatly in different countries.

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READ ABOUT THE STATE OF INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN’S RIGHTS

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What is NHF-Zimbabwe doing to promote and protect children’s human rights?

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NHF-Zimbabwe believe that every child deserves a childhood, surrounded by protective families and communities, free from violence, with the opportunity to thrive and the experience of abundant life.

 

We are a national leader in empowering families and their communities to protect children’s rights. We have put in place a community engagement model that enables us to address the complex root causes of problems that rob children of their childhood. We engage all people who have a responsibility to protect children, starting with families and faith communities, and extending to teachers, local and traditional leaders, police officers, hospitals, government agencies, and courts of law.

 

We have established community social clubs across Zimbabwe through which art and cultural activism on Child Human Rights is being practised. Children gather after school, on weekends and holidays a time they show case their talents in art and culture with all results focusing on child human rights, these activities will be natured until one has developed a talent that can become their career as they grow up. 

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What Changes Do We envision to Bring: 

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The results of our interventions must help improve child protection laws and accountability in dealing with children, through: 

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• Establishing safety nets,

• Creation of safe spaces,

• Increasing social services and associated social support,

• Encouraging behaviour and attitude change, and

• Strengthening child resilience.

• Establishment of  family and community economies. 

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NHF-Zimbabwe advocates for the protection of children's rights to ensure they are healthy, protected, and thriving. We will continue to call on the government of Zimbabwe, communities, parents, religious groups, and citizens to “speak up and defend the rights of the poor and needy in their society. It is up to all of us to do all we can to protect the most vulnerable in our communities.

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When children’s rights are protected, they stand a much better chance of growing up in a society that allows them to thrive.

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NHF-Zimbabwe, sees children as agents of change and transformation. We therefore partner with communities on citizen- and child-led projects to help them escape abuse, forced labour, and conflict. We work to equip and mobilize faith-based leaders and communities to challenge harmful norms and injustices against children. We help them to build a brighter future for themselves and their children. Our Child Rights project uses Art, see our two Child Friendly Rights coloring books here