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Year of Reparation: Cross-Border Child Protection, Climate Change and Children’s Rights in Africa

Regional Representative of African Child Helplines Addresses the 45th ACERWC Session in Lesotho

Illustrated image of two children. The girl on the right is holding her arm around the shoulder of the boy on the left. There is a speech bubble above the girl with a phone icon and "116"

Our Regional Representative for Africa, Michael Marwa, delivered a powerful statement during the opening days of the 45th Ordinary Session of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC), held in Maseru, Lesotho. The session brought together governments, civil society, youth, and development partners under the AU’s 2025 theme: “Year of Reparation.”

In my address on 8 April, I raised grave concerns over the impact of ongoing conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan, which have left thousands of children displaced, traumatized and vulnerable to exploitation. Speaking on behalf of Child Helpline International, I called for urgent investment in psychosocial recovery, justice and long-term child protection measures.

I issued our four key calls to action:

  1. Strengthen national child helplines as a central pillar of child protection systems across Africa.
  2. Ensure sustainable funding for child helplines, including zero-rating numbers to guarantee free access for children.
  3. Advance regional cooperation to fully operationalize the 116 child helpline number for cross-border child protection.
  4. Integrate child helpline data into national child-focused policies and budgets, ensuring children’s voices inform real decisions.

The statement was widely acknowledged, including in a feature by MoAfrika FM, which emphasized the urgency of regional coordination in response to conflict and crisis.

I also contributed to a panel on the launch of the ACERWC’s study on Climate Change and Children’s Rights. I challenged stakeholders to consider including “climate” as a data variable in child helpline systems. If children face displacement, trauma and health hazards from climate change, then child helplines must evolve as part of Africa’s early warning  and response tools for climate-related child vulnerabilities.

I concluded by extending an invitation to stakeholders to our 11th International Consultation of Child Helplines (IC 2025), to be held on 24-26 June 2025, in Livingstone, Zambia, co-hosted by Child Helpline International with member Lifeline/Childline Zambia, and with the support of the UNFPA, UNICEF and the Government of the Republic of Zambia.

Michael Marwa
Regional Representative, Africa
Tanzania National Child Helpline