A
flagship report of the United Nations Children Fund, UNICEF, have found that Gambia’s
urban children are facing some of the greatest inequalities and are most
vulnerable to infections and diseases.
Such
a situation is synonymous to developing countries like Gambia where some urban
children in cities and towns are grossly excluded from vital services.
The
report “The State of the World’s Children 2012: Children in an Urban World” published
by UNICEF in February this year, was launched on June 5, 2012 by the agency’s
country office in The Gambia at Kotu Quarry, a slum-dwelling in the Kanifing
Municipality, Gambia’s Serrekunda West district.
“We
know that you are among the most vulnerable children in urban Gambia,” UNICEF
country representative in Gambia, Mrs. Aichatou Diawara Flambert told
the children of Kotu Quarry, where in 2011, the Gambia Government evicted
people it said were living in “squatters.”
“We
know that you are at high risk of catching infections and diseases such as
malaria, diarrhea and pneumonia, from the unclean environment you live in,”
Mrs. Flambert said. “Many of you do not go to school and do not enjoy your
basic right to education.”
She
admitted that most of the children residing at the Kotu Quarry were not
registered at birth. She lamented that with no proof of age and identity, they
may lack the basic protection against abuse and exploitation such as child
labour, intensive domestic work, child trafficking, early marriage and
prosecution as an adult.
The
danger of losing your homes to erosion and mudslides around the Quarry is also
a reality for some of you, she added, before noting that the problems faced by
these vulnerable children on a daily basis is real for them, their parents and
community.
In
order to address the vulnerability of these children and address that gap of
gross inequality among children in the country, Mrs. Flambert stressed that “We
must ensure that children are placed at the heart of urban planning so as to
provide improved services for all.”
“The
children of Kotu Quarry are among the most disadvantaged and vulnerable
children of the country,” admits Mr. Yankuba Colley, Mayor of Kanifing
Municipality, who added that “They are usually deprived of the most
basic services and denied the right to thrive.”
Mayor
Colley argues that excluding the children of the Quarry not only rob them of
the chance to reach their full potential, but also rob their societies of the
economic benefit of having a well educated and healthy urban population.
UNICEF’s “The State of the World’s Children Report
2012” outlines a five
point plan for least developed countries like Gambia to adopt for building an
equitable approach to children in urban settings.
These
includes understanding urban poverty and inclusion by removing away statistical
averages and securing better data and analysis required to identify how poverty
and exclusion affects children in urban areas;
Remove
the barriers to inclusion by strengthening urban planning, infrastructure
development and broader efforts to reduce poverty and inequality among
children;
Put
children first by placing a sharp focus on their particular needs in urban
planning, infrastructure and governance; Promote partnership with the urban
poor through initiatives that enable communities, and in particular children
and young people to influence urban policy, planning and services; and
Work
together to achieve results for children at the international, national,
municipal and community level by consolidating resources and energies to ensure
that children living in the deepest poverty and on the margins of society enjoy
their full rights in every urban community.
Written by Modou S. Joof
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