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ZAMBIA
Government not doing enough for
vulnerable children, says official report
An official report has found that the
Zambian government was not “giving sufficient priority” to orphans and
vulnerable children (OVC) and has called for universal access to
antiretroviral (ARV) drugs.
The study by the Ministry of Sport, Youth and Child Development (MSYCD)
reviewed the state of OVC in Zambia over the past five years and found
that assistance to the children was being hampered by inadequate funding
and a lack of coordination among policies.
“To change this, government at the highest levels needs to accept that
the OVC problem is perhaps the greatest challenge to future development
in Zambia. The risks presented by a generation growing up without
adequate physical and emotional care, or access to good education, are
grave,” the authors noted.
About 19 percent of Zambia's children aged below 18
have been orphaned by losing one or both parents to HIV/AIDS, according
to a joint report by UNAIDS, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the US
Agency for International Development, released last year.
The report urged the government to reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS in
the next five years by rolling out ARV programmes throughout the
country, thus providing accessible treatment to parents. “The costs of
accessing therapy must be fully understood, and issues of equitable
access for the poor must be addressed,” it stressed.
Programmes targeting HIV positive children should be put in place, also
as a matter of urgency, as most of Zambia's OVC have no access to care
and support besides their caregivers. “The government and international
community need to increase funding to expand the depth and coverage of
programmes targeting OVC, and the families they live with,” the
researchers recommended.
Government's decision to abolish health user fees for
children was cited as a successful policy that should be replicated. The
lack of cohesion within the government in tackling the crisis was
examined in detail in the report.
A National OVC Steering Committee, responsible for policy and legal
framework, and monitoring and coordinating all OVC programmes across
five ministries - MSYCD, community development and social services,
education, health and justice - was set up in 2001, but it had not been
effective. “Improved and consistent leadership from MSYCD, which serves
as chair and secretariat of this key committee, is needed to bring about
the urgent upgrading of its performance,” the report suggested.
Since the National OVC Steering Committee was not functioning, the
opportunity for dialogue on the children's problems had been
“significantly reduced”.
There has also been a “confusion of roles” between the MSYCD and the
Ministry of Community Development and Social Services since 1991.
Besides the two ministries, the National AIDS Council also has
“significant influence” over resources that could support OVC.
“Having three institutions responsible for orphans and
vulnerable children might be expected to result in a large volume of
work, even if it is disorganised. However, each of these institutions is
chronically underfunded and short-staffed,” the report pointed out.
While donor funding had increased substantially since 1999, the
programmes were “not very well coordinated”, the study revealed.
“Information is not easily accessible from donors, and recipients of
donor funding are reluctant to reveal the sources of their income.
Improved coordination would enable organisations at all levels to share
experiences of good practice, and facilitate monitoring of resource
flows and utilisation.”
The government also needed to provide adequate legal and regulatory
protection for OVC, the report noted. Parliament had recently ratified
laws that increased penalties for the sexual abuse of children, and
provided firmer regulation of the participation of young children in
paid employment, “however, there has been no comprehensive review of
laws that affect children”.
For the full report:
http://www.sarpn.org.za/documents/d0001199/OVC_Sitan_Zambia_2004_no-cover.pdf
IRIN
27 April 2005
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=46837&SelectRegion=Southern_Africa&SelectCountry=ZAMBIA
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