The government has committed to increase the budget towards protecting children from harmful cultural practices including child marriages and violence against children.
Speaking at a High-Level Policy Dialogue on Child Protection Financing, Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Professor Paul Mavima said children in Zimbabwe face many protection issues, including child marriage, violence against children and child labour.
“Everywhere across the globe we have a dilemma of limited resources. We can never have enough to cover issues such as child protection. We have gone through two decades of economic turmoil and its been very hard but we have seen some improvement in the budget allocation.
“Beam has increased from 400 000 now we target 1,5 million. We have increased the intervention too. We now cover uniforms, food and sanitary wear to less privileged schools. Our social security programs now show a major commitment to child protection,” he said.
UNICEF Representative in Zimbabwe, Dr Tajudeen Oyewale said UNICEF recognizes the good work being done by the Government on the issue of child protection.
“The notable achievements include a developed child protection legal, policy and institutional framework, as well as the strengthening of the provision of child protection services through the roll out of the National Case Management System in all districts,” said Dr Oyewal.
According to the 2019 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey conducted by the Government of Zimbabwe with support from UNICEF and partners, one out of three women in Zimbabwe between the ages of 20 to 49 was married before the age of 18, while 5 percent of girls were married before the age of 15.
In addition, one in every three children between 5 and 17 years in the country is engaged in child labour, involving particularly young boys living in rural areas, as well as children living with disabilities.
Zimbabwe also faces widespread violence against children, with two-thirds of girls and three-quarters of boys experiencing physical violence by a parent or an adult relative.
The country’s National Case Management System strives to ensure children who experience violence, abuse and exploitation get access to comprehensive and quality protection and welfare services.
It serves as a collaborative framework between the state social workers at national, provincial and district levels, community childcare workers and non-government child protection actors who provide specialized child services.
