Image by Gerald Altmann on Pixabay

Climate change is an urgent reality for governments around the world, and regional collective action to address the domestic and transnational impacts is needed as a priority. This is one of the main calls that brought together government officials, civil society, researchers, representatives of the Secretariat of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child of the African Union, and representatives of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) regional Parliamentary Forum, in a recent workshop at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). 

The Dullah Omar Institute at UWC hosted the Regional Seminar on Children’s Rights and Climate Change, focusing on the SADC titled, Championing Collective Child-Responsive Climate Action, as part of the African Children’s Charter Project (ACCP). The Project is supported by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA).

Prof Benyam Dawit Mezmur, the Deputy Dean for Research and Postgraduate Studies in the Faculty of Law and the Children’s Rights Project Head at the Dullah Omar Institute, welcomed the participants and commended delegates for their commitment to addressing children’s rights and climate change in Africa. He emphasised that what unites delegates is a shared ambition “to create an Africa that is fit for all children; safer than the one we were handed by our parents.”

He underscored that climate change affects children differently and disproportionately in the region, and continues to undermine the efforts to reach the Sustainable Development Goals, and that political commitments and actions should be informed by evidence and match the urgent need to protect children.

Delegates at the SADC Regional Seminar on Children’s Rights and Climate Change. Image: Supplied

Discussions at the workshop highlighted that climate action often overlooks or neglects children's rights. This occurs either with climate law and policy making or the development of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in climate loss and damage and climate finance conversations. However, there is agreement that, currently and in the future, climate change is and will be a children’s rights issue.

The collaboration among various stakeholders such as civil society organisations, academia, international non-governmental organisations and governments - including the Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of the Republic of Botswana, Helen P. Manyeneng - was in full display during the seminar. It served as an reminder that addressing children’s rights in the context of climate change requires breaking the silos.

Children face heightened risks due to their physiological development and vulnerability in conflict and climate-induced humanitarian settings. These impacts include a loss of education due to the destruction of schools, as was the case recently in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi and Madagascar, as well as malnutrition and hunger. Children are also at increased risk of displacement, poverty, and the disruption of multi-sectoral services such as health and education.

Delegates agreed that children can no longer be ignored from climate action in the SADC region. It was also underscored that various categories of children in vulnerable situations - for example, children with disabilities – are affected differently, and interventions around mitigation and adaptation should pay attention to their specific rights and needs.

Dr Rongedzayi Fambasayi, a Postdoctoral Researcher with the Children’s Rights Project at the Dullah Omar Institute. Image: Supplied

Dr Rongedzayi Fambasayi, a Postdoctoral Researcher with the Children’s Rights Project at the Dullah Omar Institute, said: “Ignoring children's rights implies that SADC Member States are violating their international and African regional law obligations as well as provisions in their own constitutional and legislative frameworks regarding the need to protect children.”

He argued that children’s rights cannot be an afterthought for policy-makers: “An intergenerational dialogue is needed, in protecting the current generation as well as future generations.” Youth representatives also attended the seminar. 

The workshop set out to create a platform for regional collaboration and continuous assessment on gaps in climate action, where children’s rights can be integrated. In closing remarks, Prof Mezmur noted that “successful seminars are often those that are well informed by the evidence and have solid action plans and follow-ups to ensure action by everyone involved.” 

Participants agreed to develop action points, and a steering group was tasked to follow through on the commitment to act made by the participants.