DECISION ON THE REPORT OF THE AFRICAN COMMITTEE OF EXPERTS
ON THE RIGHTS AND WELFARE OF THE CHILD (ACERWC)
Doc. EX.CL/1091 (XXXIII)
The Executive Council,
1. TAKES NOTE of the Report of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC);
2. CALLS ON Member States that have not yet ratified the Charter, to expedite their ratification process; and State Parties which have placed reservations on the application of the provisions of the Charter to consider withdrawal of the same;
3. APPRECIATES State Parties, which have submitted their Reports on the implementation of the African Children’s Charter and INVITES States Parties that have not yet submitted their reports to do so in line with their obligations under the Charter;
4. COMMENDS the Government of Malawi for re-affirming its commitment to the October 2016 settlement agreement by amending its Constitution to raise the age of majority from 16 to 18 years of age, which is in line with the African Children’s Charter, and ENCOURAGES the Government to work towards the full harmonization of its other legislations, which are not in line with the Provisions of the Charter;
5. ENDORSES the theme for the Day of the African Child for 2019 as “Humanitarian Action in Africa: Children’s Rights First”;
6. REQUESTS the ACERWC to scale up its work in safeguarding and promoting the rights and welfare of children in the cyberspaces, namely the protection of children’s information, rights to safety, informed choices and digital literacy;
7. URGES the ACERWC to finalize the analysis of legal implications of the amendment to Article 5 of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and People’s Rights, as well as challenges it faces and the reasons why the ACERWC would require to have access to the African Court on Human and People’s Rights;
8. WELCOMES the initiative of the ACERWC with regard to studying the situation of children on the move in Africa and look forward to receiving the reports on the findings of the study;
9. RECALLS Executive Council decision EX.CL/Dec.977 (XXXI) adopting the “Africa’s Agenda for Children’s Rights: Fostering an Africa fit for Children” (Agenda 2040) as an African Union document and ENCOURAGES Member States to work towards the full implementation of Agenda 2040;
10. TAKES NOTE of the current process of relocation of the Secretariat of the ACERWC; and REQUESTS the Commission to take the necessary measures to respond to the human and financial resource needs of the Secretariat of the ACERWC;
11. WELCOMES the ACERWC’s initiative to appoint Special Rapporteurs; and in this regard REQUESTS State Parties to offer the Special Rapporteurs the requisite support to discharge their duties.