In July 2016 IB will start the implementation of the project "Pro-Child" in Burkina Faso on behalf of the German International Cooperation (GIZ) and the German Ministry for Economic Development and Cooperation (BMZ) in cooperation with the partner company Ambero.
Burkina Faso has a young population. Over half its citizens are below the age of 18 and as such are considered children under the terms of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Burkina Faso has ratified all key international agreements on child protection and child rights. Despite the positive legal framework, children are exposed to a wide range of violations of their rights.
Objective of the project is to strengthen the national system in order to protect children from trafficking, the worst forms of child labour and gender-related violence (child marriage, forced marriage and female genital mutilation).
At the decentralised level, the programme helps to set up child protection networks and define roles and responsibilities. Here, too, the actors involved are given training on children’s rights, child protection and coordination of child protection networks. The programme supports municipalities with integrating measures to protect children into their municipal action plans. As the main target group, children are actively involved in the process of setting up child protection activities.
In cooperation with the IB and the consulting company AMBERO, the programme raises awareness of the aforementioned issues among the population. In addition, parents, children and members of the municipalities are given information on available counselling and support services.
