The launching of the National Child and Youth Advisory Board on violence against Children (NCYAB) in the country would boost the efforts of stakeholders in the sector in making The Gambia a safe haven for children.
It would be very difficult to address the problem of violence against children in isolation, thus the need to broaden the scope of our approaches and partners.
Children need more care and support services to live protected lives.
Governments and parents, as well as communities all have a stake in protecting children from abuse and violence.
In this regard, we wish to hail the Child Protection Alliance (CPA) and partners for initiating the National Child and Youth Advisory Board on violence against Children, for the first time in the country’s history.
We urge the board to work hard, so as to meet the expectations of the initiators and boost our national efforts in protecting children.
Of recent, children in The Gambia have been subjected to a lot of abuse and exploitation, including under-child sex tourism, and rape.
With the coming of this new approach, we are optimistic that there would be a more protective environment for our children.
Creating a more protective environment for our children is what they expect from the society and nothing less, thus the need for advocacy for the effective implementation of the Children’s Act 2005.
Also, there is a need to engage communities, professional groups and more children themselves to make the country a haven for all children.
We must stress that as future leaders, protecting our children from abuse and exploitation would enable them to become more productive citizens.
