Committee on the Rights of the Child

Combined sixth and seventh periodic reports submitted by Senegal under article 44 of the Convention, due in 2021 * , **

[Date received: 19 May 2021]

Contents

Page

I.Introduction3

II.Follow-up measures taken and progress achieved by the State party3

III.Main areas of concern and recommendations5

A.General measures of implementation5

B.Definition of the child11

C.General principles11

D.Civil rights and freedoms14

E.Violence against children16

F.Family environment and alternative care23

G.Disability, basic health and welfare25

H.Education, leisure and cultural activities31

I.Special protection measures34

J.Ratification of the Optional Protocol on a communications procedure42

K.Ratification of international human rights instruments42

L.Cooperation with regional bodies42

IV.Implementation and reporting43

I.Introduction

1.Adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 20 November 1989, the Convention on the Rights of the Child was the outcome of a lengthy process, initiated by Poland on 7 February 1978, to urge the States Members of the United Nations to provide an effective response to the need to protect children’s rights.

2.Senegal has had a long-standing commitment to making the protection of children’s rights a priority. In fact, it was one of the first States to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

3.Senegal remains committed to the implementation of the Convention. Its three appearances before the Committee and the extent to which it has acted on the Committee’s recommendations perfectly illustrate its political will to give effect to the rights of the child.

4.Following the consideration of the State’s last combined report at the seventy-first session of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, the Committee invited the State party to submit its combined sixth and seventh periodic reports by 1 March 2021 and to include therein information on the follow-up undertaken with regard to the Committee’s concluding observations.

5.The present document is consistent with the treaty-specific guidelines regarding the form and content of periodic reports.

6.The process of preparing the report was led by the National Advisory Council on Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law, attached to the Ministry of Justice, with technical and financial support from the Dakar-based West Africa Regional Office of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) through the Support Project for the Protection of Child Victims of Rights Violations.

7.The Advisory Council is a standing government body composed of representatives of all ministerial departments and many of the most representative civil society organizations, together with the national human rights institution, called the Senegalese Committee for Human Rights, and the National Statistics and Demography Agency.

8.The report was prepared in collaboration with the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection, through the Directorate for the Promotion of Child Rights and Child Protection, and with the involvement of civil society organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and technical and financial partners. This made it possible to compile and validate all the inputs received and to make full use of them in this report.

II.Follow-up measures taken and progress achieved by the State party

9.The national legislative framework has been strengthened through the adoption of:

•Constitutional Act No. 2016-10 of 5 April 2016;

•Organic Act No. 2016-23 of 14 July 2016 on the Constitutional Council;

•Act No. 2015-15 of 16 July 2015 authorizing the President of the Republic to ratify the International Labour Organization (ILO) Maternity Protection Convention, 2000 (No. 183);

•Act No. 2016-30 of 8 November 2016 on the Mining Code;

•Act No. 2016-29 of 8 November 2016 amending Act No. 65-60 of 21 July 1965 on the Criminal Code;

•Act No. 2016-30 of 8 November 2016 amending Act No. 65-61 of 21 July 1965 on the Code of Criminal Procedure;

•Act No. 2018/17 of 14 June 2018 authorizing the President of the Republic to ratify the ILO Work in Fishing Convention, 2007 (No. 188);

•Act No. 2018/18 of 14 June 2018 authorizing the President of the Republic to ratify the ILO Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, as amended (MLC, 2006);

•Act No. 2020-05 of 10 January 2020 amending Act No. 65-60 of 21 July 1965 on the Criminal Code and fully criminalizing rape and paedophilia;

•Decree No. 2017-313 of 15 February 2017 instituting gender units in the ministerial secretariats;

•Decree No. 2018 1070 of 30 June 2018 on the organization of the Ministry of Justice, which designates, in article 22, the Directorate of Supervised Education and Social Protection as the competent central authority in matters of intercountry adoption;

•Decree No. 2018-1236 of 5 July 2018 adopting the National Community-based Rehabilitation Programme, 2017–2021;

•Decree No. 1573-2018 of 27 August 2018, under which the National Civil Status Centre became the Civil Status Directorate;

•Circular No. 4322/MFPAA/SG/DFPT/ms of 23 December 2016 on incentives for certain institutions to provide vocational training to persons with disabilities;

•Circular No. 00179/MJ/DACG/N of 11 January 2018 on the application of article 5 of Regulation No. 05/CM/-UEMOA and of the Code of Criminal Procedure provisions on the presence of a lawyer from the time of arrest.

10.In addition, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, which has been raging around the world since December 2019, has had a profound impact on populations, forcing States to develop prevention and emergency management strategies to control the pandemic.

11.In Senegal, the response has been defined by the Multisectoral COVID-19 Contingency Plan, which is supervised by the Ministry of Health and Social Action and implemented with the support of the National Epidemic Management Committee and the corresponding regional and departmental committees.

12.This framework has been bolstered by strong measures ordered by the President, ranging from the closure of schools, educational establishments, airports and borders to the declaration of a state of emergency to prevent the spread of the disease.

13.The administrative authorities’ implementation of these measures and of others taken at the direction of health professionals has adversely affected not only economic activity, but also the population’s access to basic social services.

14.To support the population groups most severely affected by the pandemic, the President of the Republic has accordingly set up an Economic and Social Resilience Programme with total funding of 1 trillion CFA francs (CFAF) and has instructed the members of the Government to implement, in their respective areas of responsibility, all the presidential measures included in the Programme, while ensuring that they are consistent with the Emerging Senegal Plan and the FORCE COVID-19 response and solidarity mechanism.

15.The Government is carrying out a number of initiatives, mainly through the Children’s Programme, whose operational strategy is based on the following key actions:

•Improvement of the legal and institutional framework for child protection;

•Care of children in situations of vulnerability;

•Social reintegration of children in street situations;

•Care of orphans declared wards of the State;

•Construction and equipment of preschool education facilities;

•Improvement of learning quality in integrated early childhood development centres.

III.Main areas of concern and recommendations

A.General measures of implementation

Legislation

Paragraph 8 (a) of the concluding observations on the combined third to fifth periodic reports of Senegal

16.In 2018, by Order No. 15923 of 4 July 2018, the Ministry of Justice set up a working group to draft a children’s code that would be consistent with the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

17.The revised document was forwarded to the General Secretariat of the Government in November 2018. After it had been processed, and in accordance with a presidential directive to “ensure the urgent adoption of the bill on the children’s code”, the General Secretariat sent the document to all ministries for comment in September 2019.

18.The consolidated document must now be approved by the General Secretariat’s technical committee and then adopted by the Council of Ministers and the National Assembly.

Paragraph 8 (b)

19.All ambiguous and contradictory legal provisions that are not in conformity with the Convention have been addressed in the bill on the Children’s Code.

Paragraph 8 (c)

20.With regard to the effective enforcement of existing laws, the following measures have been taken:

Labour Code (1997)

21.Each year, the Ministry of Labour publishes a statistical report that provides information on the number of company inspections by jurisdiction. In addition, 42 inspectors and 44 controllers were hired between 2015 and 2019.

Act No. 99-05 of 1999

22.The Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection is developing a national programme for the elimination of female genital mutilation. The programme, which is included in the State budget, has a priority focus on strengthening the capacities of actors in the justice system to enforce the law effectively.

23.In 2018, the Ministry, in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice, trained 40 justice officials (criminal investigation officers, judges, agents of the services for the non-institutional supervision of minors, community actors) from the southern parts of the country.

24.In 2020, the Ministry of Justice conducted training on the legal framework through six workshops attended by 52 judges, 6 prefects, 23 criminal investigation officers and 200 representatives of sectoral ministries and members of civil society organizations.

25.In 2019, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection carried out an experience-sharing mission in Burkina Faso to identify and capitalize on effective strategies for enforcing the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation Act.

26.In December 2020, it held a national meeting to evaluate Act No. 99-05 with a view to its enforcement, with participants from high-prevalence areas.

27.In February 2020, to mark the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation, grass-roots community organizations in the southern region launched the “99-05 campaign” to promote the enforcement of this law.

28.A national strategy, with a 2021–2026 action plan, is being developed with the goal of completely eliminating female genital mutilation.

29.One of the major challenges remains the failure to report cases because of community resistance.

30.The Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection has supported the establishment of 10 community watch mechanisms to monitor public commitments to eliminating female genital mutilation in high-prevalence areas (Matam and Kolda for the pilot phase), to strengthen awareness of the importance of reporting cases and to conduct advocacy for the law’s enforcement.

Act No. 2005-06 on trafficking in persons

31.In connection with the enforcement of this law, between 2017 and 2020 the Ministry of Justice held six training sessions attended by 138 judges, 98 criminal investigation officers and airport and border police officers, 25 gendarmes and 35 local actors from the Kédougou region.

32.In 2018, the Ministry of Justice, in collaboration with the judges’ association of Senegal, organized a symposium on judges’ responsibility to protect trafficking victims and smuggled migrants. Chaired by the Prime Minister, it was attended by 47 participants, including the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Consul of the Principality of Monaco, the Regional Representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and representatives of the judiciary, sectoral ministries, the bar, civil society, the police, technical and financial partners, associations of Qur’anic schoolteachers and the clergy.

33.Among the recommendations made were that two separate bills should be drawn up on human trafficking and migrant smuggling, that harsher penalties should be imposed on perpetrators, that training for judicial officials should be strengthened, that border control should be tightened and that Qur’anic education should be regulated and modernized.

34.A bill to amend Act No. 2005-06 on trafficking is in the process of being adopted.

35.Since 2019, the deployment of the SYSTRAITE justice system database has made it possible to collect information on trafficking victims’ countries of origin and destination, the types of exploitation they have suffered, the ways in which cases have been referred to the courts, the number of convictions and the number of victims disaggregated by age, sex, nationality, and region or country.

36.In this connection, the Ministry of Justice has provided computer equipment to the five Courts of Appeal for tracking purposes. It has also trained 35 justice officials from these jurisdictions (court clerks, heads of prosecution offices, registrars), agents of the Directorate for the Promotion of Child Rights and Child Protection and 105 local actors from Saint-Louis (36), Kédougou (37) and Tambacounda (32).

37.Through the departmental child protection committees, training with regard to child protection and action against female genital mutilation has been provided to 142 officers of the police and gendarmerie, security officers and community police officers and 24 Ministry of Justice officers.

38.Between 2013 and 2018, the budget of the National Committee against Trafficking in Persons increased from CFAF 20,000,000 to CFAF 85,000,000.

Paragraph 8 (d)

39.To ensure that customary and traditional practices do not prevent children from enjoying the rights set forth in the Convention, the Government of Senegal, in collaboration with the United Nations system and civil society organizations, has continued to raise awareness and mobilize communities to better protect children and to eliminate the practices of female genital mutilation and child marriage.

40.The Ministry of Health and Social Action has adopted a Strategic Plan on Community Health 2020–2024, which includes the promotion of essential family practices and of birth registration and measures to prevent and to protect children from sexual violence, female genital mutilation and child marriage.

41.In 2020, girls from the 14 regions of Senegal participated in the development of the agenda for girls. The purpose of this agenda is to foster girls’ development and help them achieve their aspirations by identifying opportunities and obstacles through sustained advocacy and public awareness-raising on the urgency of addressing the issues that girls face. For example, there is a call to raise the legal age for marriage.

42.The Ministry of Justice has issued a guide for the security forces on the treatment of victims of gender-based violence and a guide for the departmental child protection committees on the implementation of care platforms. A reference tool has been developed for education staff on the detection and management of situations in which students are at risk.

43.In November 2019, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection trained 30 trainers (focal points in sectoral ministries and NGOs) on the essential services package for responding to cases of gender-based violence. An action plan was also developed.

44.The Ministry of Education has launched a variety of programmes, including the Girls’ Education Support Project, which is active in 149 schools, of which 27 are high schools or middle schools, and conducts awareness-raising campaigns on sharing of household chores, gender-based violence, child marriage and early pregnancy.

Comprehensive policy and strategy

Paragraph 10

45.The second Action Plan, 2016–2018, for the National Child Protection Strategy has been budgeted at CFAF 6,056,091,610. It was funded at 7 per cent, compared to 12.07 per cent for the first Action Plan, 2013–2015.

46.As a result, and in accordance with the presidential directive of 15 July 2020, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection has begun the process of evaluating the Strategy. A steering committee has been set up.

Coordination

Paragraph 12 (a)

47.Order No. 06788 of 29 April 2016 establishing the National Intersectoral Child Protection Committee and setting out the rules for its organization and operation specifies the mandates of the Committee and its implementing agencies, including the departmental child protection committees.

48.All these bodies are under the direction of the country’s highest administrative authority, namely the General Secretariat of the Government, replacing the Prime Minister since the abolition of that post, for the National Intersectoral Child Protection Committee and the prefects for the departmental child protection committees.

Paragraph 12 (b)

49.In addition to the coordination mechanism defined at each level of administration, in 2019 Senegal developed national guidelines for the delivery of multisectoral child protection services at the local level, which specify the roles and responsibilities of sectoral institutions.

Paragraph 12 (c)

50.The various sectoral institutions are implementing action plans supported by the Government through their budgets. They mobilize additional resources from technical and financial partners, NGOs and cooperation agencies. They also produce analyses to justify increased budget allocations and to build capacity for child rights interventions.

Allocation of resources

Paragraph 14 (a)

51.In 2019, an analysis was conducted on the overall State budget and on the child protection, integrated early childhood development, education, health, nutrition and water-hygiene-sanitation sectors. On the basis of the results, actions will be taken to reach the 3 per cent budget target, in accordance with the recommendations of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU).

52.Moreover, in the programme budget for 2020, the child protection sector has been strengthened with a dedicated programme on children that has been allocated substantial resources (CFAF 4,429,060,351 in 2020 and CFAF 10,159,045,120 in 2021).

Paragraph 14 (b)

53.On the basis of budget analyses, the social budget tracking unit of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Planning and Cooperation has made provision, in its 2021–2022 action plan, for activities aimed at increasing the social budget, taking a rights-based approach.

Paragraph 14 (c)

54.The budget of the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection includes the lines “Social care for children in difficult situations” and “Project to address child vulnerability”. Their allocations increased from CFAF 254,586,360 and CFAF 95,000,000, respectively, in 2020 to CFAF 292,208,320 and CFAF 395,000,000, respectively, in 2021.

55.Between 2016 and 2020, the budget allocated to the Ministry of Health and Social Action for initiatives concerning vulnerable children (orphans, children with disabilities, talibéchildren, children whose families are affected by leprosy) amounted to CFAF 1,578,500,000.

56.The Disadvantaged Children’s Programme has achieved the following results:

•5,950 talibé children have enrolled in mutual health insurance plans under the universal health coverage system;

•700 older talibé children have become apprentices in workshops or enrolled in vocational training centres;

•70 pilot daara have been supported with foodstuffs or equipment valued at CFAF 1,250,000;

•140 traditional daara have received subsidies amounting to CFAF 1,500,000;

•700 orphaned children have been provided with school kits valued at CFAF 14,000,000;

•2 counselling centres (Pikine and Kolda) have received support in the amount of CFAF 5,250,000;

•180 schools and vocational training institutions have received subsidies to provide services to 1,750 disadvantaged children and young people;

•70 widows’ associations have received subsidies in the amount of CFAF 3,750,000 to finance economic projects.

Data collection

Paragraph 16 (a)

57.In 2017, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection designed Excel-based tools for collecting data on child protection that were approved with all the key stakeholders working in that area. These tools are being piloted in 18 departmental child protection committees, which are transmitting reports.

58.In the second quarter of 2021 the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection, with support from the Joint Programme on the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation, plans to deploy a reporting and monitoring platform on cases of gender-based violence and female genital mutilation in the region of Tambacounda. The platform, which will be used for real-time case mapping and alerts to care services, will collect data that are essential for improving child protection services.

59.In 2019 the Ministry of Education added a number of tools to its programme of statistical surveys. It developed a specific online platform to enable designated school personnel to report child rights violations, including gender-based violence. This platform allows for real-time nationwide monitoring of incidents identified by schools. It covers 8,631 primary schools with a student population of 1,801,181.

60.The information systems in the areas of health and education include reporting tools on violence against children and female genital mutilation.

61.The Ministry of Justice has a database of child victims of mistreatment, abuse and exploitation who have received services from the Directorate of Supervised Education and Social Protection. It also has the SYSTRAITE system for tracking cases of trafficking that have come before the courts.

62.The National Statistics and Demography Agency collects a great deal of information on children through national surveys (population and health survey, annual reports on the economic and social situation in Senegal and on the state of education, etc.).

Paragraph 16 (b)

63.The 2021 workplan of the joint programme between the Government and the United Nations system includes the establishment of an integrated multisectoral national reporting system and routine sectoral information systems that include data disaggregated by sex, age and type of violation (violence, abuse, exploitation, harmful practices).

64.All data collected by the National Statistics and Demography Agency are generally disaggregated by age, sex, geographic location and socioeconomic background. Depending on the specific areas covered, data may also be disaggregated by ethnic origin and disability.

Paragraph 16 (c)

65.The indicators defined during the development of child protection data collection tools have been approved by all the ministries, NGOs, civil society organizations and technical and financial partners concerned.

66.All data available to the National Statistics and Demography Agency are made available to users, including ministries, upon request.

Paragraph 16 (d)

67.Senegal has a National Human Rights Strategy, which was approved by the National Advisory Council on Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law in March 2020. An operational plan integrating human rights indicators will be developed.

68.In 2018, the Ministry of Justice commissioned a study from the National Statistics and Demography Agency, supported by OHCHR, on the status of data collection on begging.

Paragraph 16 (e)

69.Joint workplans are implemented between ministries and United Nations agencies.

Independent monitoring

Paragraph 18 (a)

70.The draft bill to establish the Children’s Ombudsman has been approved by the Supreme Court and has been forwarded to the General Secretariat of the Government.

Paragraph 18 (b)

71.To bring the Senegalese Committee for Human Rights into compliance with the principles relating to the status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights (the Paris Principles), a bill to amend and replace the 1997 law was drafted in 2020. The Committee was provided with a new headquarters and its budget was increased from CFAF 34,000,000 to CFAF 50,000,000.

Children’s rights and the business sector

Paragraph 20 (a)

72.The Ministry of Tourism instructs its competent services to see to it that the fight against sex tourism and paedophilia is better taken into account in the discharge of their mandates to regulate tourist activities and professions and ensure their safety.

73.On a daily basis, officers of the Tourism Police check the police registers of tourist accommodations, which contain information on the sex and age of customers. The dissuasive and preventive presence maintained by Tourism Police officers at tourist sites and beaches also helps to combat child sex tourism.

74.Periodic inspections or rating operations are carried out at tourist accommodations not only to verify that police and security registers are properly kept, but also to remind hotel operators of the conditions for minors’ access to these establishments and to recommend that they mention, in their internal regulations, that minors are not allowed unless they are accompanied by their parents.

75.The provisions of the draft Tourism Code and its implementing decrees penalize tourism-specific offences, including failure to maintain an up-to-date police register.

Paragraph 20 (b)

76.The 2016 Constitution recognizes the right to a healthy environment and the obligation to conserve the environmental heritage and manage natural resources transparently.

77.Act No. 2016-32 of 8 November 2016 on the Mining Code corrected the shortcomings in the implementation of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, particularly through its article 94, which requires respect for human rights and prohibits child labour, under penalty of withdrawal of the company’s mining title.

78.This issue is also addressed in the 2017–2023 Sectoral Development Policy Letter of the Ministry of Mines and Geology and in the oversight strategy currently being developed for artisanal and small-scale mining.

79.A series of information-sharing and awareness-raising workshops on the application of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights in the mining sector was organized by the Ministry of Mines and Geology, in partnership with the Senegalese Committee for Human Rights and the Observatory for Human Rights in the Extractive Sector.

Paragraph 20 (c)

80.The National Committee of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in Senegal, established in 2013, produces an annual report that provides information on significant State revenues from extractive industries and the consequent payments made to the Government by oil, gas and mining companies. These reports contain recommendations to stakeholders on social protection. This channel can be used to propose assessments of the child rights impacts of these companies’ business activities.

Paragraph 20 (d)

81.The Senegalese regulatory framework includes several provisions that are part of the United Nations “Protect, Respect and Remedy” framework. This framework is enshrined in the Constitution, the Mining Code, the Environmental Code, the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure.

B.Definition of the child

Paragraph 22

82.In accordance with the Convention, the term “child” means every person below the age of 18 years. In relation to the recommendation to amend article 111 of the Family Code and article 300 of the Criminal Code, an expert committee for the review of legislative and regulatory provisions that discriminate against women was established under Order No. 00936 of 27 January 2016 of the Minister of Justice.

83.This committee proposed the amendment of the two above-mentioned articles to bring them into conformity with the Convention.

C.General principles

Non-discrimination

Paragraph 24 (a)

84.With a view to revising all of its legislation in order to bring it into full compliance with article 2 of the Convention, and ensure the full implementation of all legislative provisions, various initiatives to harmonize laws with international legal instruments have been undertaken, including:

Draft legislation (on the Children’s Code, the Children’s Ombudsman and the status of daara);

The signature of Decree No. 2018-1236 of 5 July 2018 approving the National Community-based Rehabilitation Programme, 2017–2021, pursuant to the Social Policy Orientation Act (No. 2010-15) of 6 July 2010;

The repeal in 2021 of Act No. 76-03 of 15 March 1976 on the treatment of leprosy and the social rehabilitation of persons affected by leprosy who have been cured and have leprosy-related disabilities (the nine social rehabilitation villages that constituted discrimination against the children of persons affected by leprosy and their families have been abolished).

Paragraph 24 (b)

85.The National Child Protection Strategy implements the principle of non-discrimination through several initiatives:

Projects and programmes on child protection, education, health, social action, justice and social protection;

The emergency child protection project “Zero Children on the Streets”;

The Daara Modernization Support Project;

The universal health coverage system;

An equal opportunities card for persons with disabilities;

The National Community-based Rehabilitation Programme;

The Sustainable Energy Programme;

The Emergency Programme for the Modernization of Border Roads and Areas;

The National Strategy for Gender Equity and Equality, 2016–2026;

The National Strategy for Social Protection, 2015–2035.

Paragraph 24 (c)

86.The sectoral ministries are conducting capacity-building activities on child protection, including the fight against discrimination, for the defence and security forces, journalists, social workers, teachers and health-care personnel.

Best interests of the child

Paragraph 26

87.The best interests of the child are taken into account in all legislative, administrative and judicial processes.

Right to life, survival and development

Paragraph 28 (a)

88.According to the 2019 continuous population and health survey, the infant mortality rate fell from 39 per 1,000 (2015 population and health survey) to 29 per 1,000, the child mortality rate fell from 21 per 1,000 to 8 per 1,000, and the infant and child mortality rate fell from 59 per 1,000 to 37 per 1,000. The survey also showed that:

Of the women surveyed, 98 per cent had received prenatal care from a trained provider (with a lower percentage (93 per cent) among women whose households are classified in the bottom quintile);

56 per cent had made at least the four recommended visits (with a higher rate in urban areas (67 per cent versus 48 per cent in rural areas) and in the western region (64 per cent versus 50 per cent in the southern region);

87 per cent had received tetanus injections (84 per cent in the southern region and 90 per cent in the central region);

80 per cent of births had taken place in a health facility (96 per cent in urban areas versus 71 per cent in rural areas, 94 per cent in the western region versus 68 per cent in the southern region);

Drinking water services were used by 79 per cent of the population (91.2 per cent in urban areas, 69.4 per cent in rural areas);

Sanitation services, including handwashing facilities with soap and water, were used by 59.6 per cent of the population (72.9 per cent in urban areas, 49.1 per cent in rural areas).

89.This progress is the result of several actions:

The Multisectoral Strategic Plan for Nutrition 2018–2022;

The periodic assessment of the nutritional status of pregnant and breastfeeding women during prenatal and postnatal consultations on dietary and nutritional advice, the evolution and outcome of the pregnancy and the health of the newborn;

The establishment of nutritional education and recovery centres in referral health facilities and nutritional education and recovery units in primary care facilities;

The strengthening of the multidisciplinary and multisectoral approach and community management of actions with a significant impact on child survival;

The establishment of reproductive, maternal, newborn and adolescent health platforms bringing together key interventions;

The development of integrated packages within the framework of nurturing care (health, nutrition, early learning, safety and security) and needs-based care;

Vitamin A supplementation, deworming and food fortification for children between the ages of 6 and 59 months using micronutrient powders;

The improvement of the quality of paediatric care in line with the eight World Health Organization standards;

The continuity of the services of the reproductive, maternal, newborn and adolescent health platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic;

The scaling-up of high-impact interventions and strategies on malaria, malnutrition, diarrhoea and the Expanded Programme on Immunization;

The development of the Sustainable Access to Drinking Water and Sanitation Project, 2018–2022, which is being implemented in rural areas of the southern regions.

Paragraph 28 (b)

90.In addition to the specialized protection projects and programmes mentioned above, there are others that are implemented for the benefit of children. These include:

The Investing in the Early Years for Human Development in Senegal Project of the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection, in order to provide community-based health and nutrition services to 930,000 children between the ages of 0 and 23 months;

The Multisectoral Strategic Plan for Nutrition for the period 2018–2022 of the National Nutrition Development Council, to strengthen the accountability of nutrition sectors and other stakeholders for the achievement of the country’s nutrition vision for 2025;

The Programme to Support Individuals and Families Affected by Leprosy in and outside the Ministry of Health and Social Action social rehabilitation villages, to help ensure that persons affected by leprosy and their families have access to education, health care, nutrition, water, hygiene and sanitation;

The Coverage of Significant Medical Expenses for Vulnerable Groups Programme, run by the Ministry of Health and Social Action, which between 2016 and 2020 covered 7,832 people, including 3,132 children, through letters of guarantee in 10 hospitals;

The Community-based Rehabilitation Programme of the Ministry of Health and Social Action, which supports people with disabilities and which, between 2016 and 2020, distributed 7,785 technical aids (wheelchairs, forearm crutches, white canes, crutches, glasses), subsidized 727 organizations, supported the schooling of 2,524 children with disabilities and the vocational training of 651 young people with disabilities, and provided 54,219 food kits to equal opportunities card holders and 11,000 menstrual hygiene kits to girls and women with disabilities as part of the equal opportunities card programme, in partnership with the NGO Plan International;

A specific Ministry of Health and Social Action equal opportunities card programme for persons with disabilities, which, in accordance with a presidential directive of 30 April 2015, facilitated the linkage of the equal opportunities card to social safety net programmes related to the universal health coverage system and the family welfare grants. Between 2014 and 2020, of the 64,728 persons with disabilities who held an equal opportunities card, 21,975 were enrolled in mutual health insurance schemes, 25,507 received a family welfare grant and 633 had free access to the public transport network (Dakar Dem Dikk and Senegal Dem Dikk) ;

The National Disability Action Plan, 2017–2021, which facilitates access to essential services for persons with disabilities.

91.In addition, the Ministry of Health and Social Action has built and equipped four social rehabilitation centres for persons with disabilities, persons with mental illness, persons with intellectual and social disabilities and persons who use drugs.

Respect for the views of the child

Paragraph 30 (a)

92.The country’s supervised education and social protection framework conforms to international juvenile justice principles and guidelines.

Paragraph 30 (b)

93.Under the Code of Criminal Procedure, in the Children’s Court children are allowed to be heard in legal proceedings that concern them, taking their best interests into account.

Paragraph 30 (c)

94.Schools and institutions have advisory bodies and strategies to promote the participation and empowerment of children, such as:

School governments to address their concerns in a democratic and accountable manner;

Family life education clubs to support adolescents in learning about their bodies and reproductive health;

School inclusion clubs, which play an important role in enabling children with disabilities to participate and addressing their specific needs, taking a community-based approach;

The “child-friendly local governance” initiative led by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) enables local governments to ensure the effective participation of the population, including children, in the decision-making process and to effectively take the interests of children into account in local management, using a needs analysis and the inclusion in the budget of a number of priority actions in areas related to the chain of social service provision and devolved powers, in the interest of children’s harmonious development.

Paragraph 30 (d)

95.The Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection has drawn up a draft decree institutionalizing the Children’s Parliament and defined the organizational blueprint for its reactivation (participation model, voting method, agenda and budget).

96.However, the CFAF 139,391,610 needed for its resumption and operation for one year have not yet been mobilized. The Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection addressed a letter to the Ministry of Finance and Budget in 2019 to address this issue.

97.Nevertheless, there are other frameworks for children’s participation such as school governments and school management committees, children’s municipal councils in some local governments, children’s clubs, and the civil society organization Conseil Consultatif National des Enfants et Jeunes (National Advisory Council of Children and Youth).

D.Civil rights and freedoms

Birth registration

Paragraph 32 (a)

98.The modernization process has continued with a support programme, financed by the European Union, to strengthen the civil registration information system and to consolidate the national biometric identity database.

99.The Ministry of Local Government, in collaboration with other partners, is improving the operation of registry offices by providing birth registration tools, building the capacity of various actors and establishing data collection systems to obtain relevant statistics. In 2018, the Ministry’s National Civil Status Centre became the Civil Status Directorate.

Paragraph 32 (b)

100.Birth registration is free of charge up until the age of 1 year, after which a fee may be charged for the registration process. The 2018 continuous population and health survey showed an increase in the percentage of registered births (77 per cent compared to 68 per cent in 2015) and in the percentage of children with a birth certificate (68 per cent compared to 52 per cent). Registered births remain higher in urban areas (91 per cent) than in rural areas (68 per cent).

Paragraph 32 (c)

101.Responsibility for civil registration has been transferred to the municipal level. However, local offices receive support from the central authority in the form of equipment and training.

102.The Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection, through the Investing in the Early Years for Human Development in Senegal Project, plans to facilitate the registration of 606,000 children between the ages of 0 and 5 years during its five-year implementation period (2019–2024). To that end, 135,000 printed birth certificates, 1,500 registers and 24,200 notebooks have been distributed to registry offices, village leaders and neighbourhood delegates in 151 municipalities across four regions. Civil registrars, village leaders (504) and neighbourhood delegates (3,470) have been trained in the use of the tools.

103.In 2019, the Ministry of Health and Social Action and the Ministry of Local Government developed a standardized national guide for the set-up and operation of “Health and Civil Registration Units”, and reviewed the tools used with a view to their publication and distribution to health-care facilities. This cooperation with the health system brings civil registration services closer to the population in some areas.

Paragraph 32 (d)

104.In 2018, the Ministry of Local Government carried out a national information campaign to promote civil registration, particularly birth registration, through communication materials sent to communities and radio and television spots to raise awareness of the importance of civil registration procedures.

105.Awareness-raising campaigns were also carried out on the importance and methods of birth registration (pictorial guide), mobile courts (especially in peri-urban and rural areas), and the extension of the time limit for declaring births from 0 to 12 months to allow for the civil registration of children.

106.In 2019, through initiatives carried out with civil society, 557 unregistered primary school students were identified within families and schools; birth certificates were issued for 102 students. An awareness-raising programme is being carried out among local elected officials and administrative authorities to address this crucial problem.

107.The Civil Status Directorate also launched the Rapidpro civil status application, a platform for collecting and transmitting data on birth registration in the Kolda region.

Paragraph 32 (e)

108.In conjunction with stakeholders (the Civil Status Directorate, mayors, parents and NGOs), the Ministry of Education has developed a strategy for addressing the issue of children without birth certificates that benefited 14,813 primary school students between 2019 and 2020. In early 2021, in consultation with the Ministry of Local Government and the Ministry of Justice, it adopted a national reference document for the systematic detection and registration of students without birth certificates.

Nationality

Paragraph 34 (a)

109.Senegal has taken initiatives to comply with international standards on preventing and reducing statelessness among children and protecting stateless children.

110.In that regard, the country has amended its legislation on nationality, with the objective, inter alia, of preventing and reducing child statelessness. Act No. 2013-05 of 8 July 2013, amending Act No. 61-10 of 7 March 1961, determining Senegalese nationality, as amended, eliminated discrimination based on the sex of the parent and on the nature of the child’s filiation. This amendment allows mothers of Senegalese origin, and mothers of foreign origin who have acquired Senegalese nationality, to transmit their nationality to their legitimate or illegitimate children.

111.Similarly, in order to reduce cases of statelessness, Act No. 2013-05 abolished the provision whereby the revocation of a parent’s Senegalese nationality also applied to his or her child.

112.It should be noted that, since the enactment of Act No. 61-10 of 7 March 1961 determining Senegalese nationality, Senegal has always granted Senegalese nationality to any children found within its territory whose parents are unknown.

Paragraph 34 (b)

113.Senegal has also undertaken an overhaul of the legal framework governing stateless persons. A bill on the status of refugees and stateless persons was adopted by the Council of Ministers on 9 September 2020. This bill establishes a protection mechanism for stateless persons, particularly minors, through the creation of a stateless persons management body. Its enactment will guarantee effective legal and social protection for stateless children, in accordance with international instruments on statelessness.

114.The bill also facilitates the acquisition of Senegalese nationality for stateless persons and their children by accelerating the naturalization procedure and reducing the payable fees.

115.The establishment of an internal regulatory and institutional framework on the status of stateless persons, which has not existed until now, will also provide data on statelessness.

116.The country will be able to conduct a statelessness mapping study once the new statelessness management body is operational.

Paragraph 34 (c)

117.The Government of Senegal continues to benefit from the support of UNICEF and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in combating statelessness through programmes focused on its prevention. Community outreach and awareness-raising campaigns and stakeholder capacity-building sessions were organized between 2018 and 2020.

E.Violence against children

Corporal punishment

Paragraph 36 (a)

118.Article 285 of the Family Code authorizes persons exercising parental control to reprimand and correct a child to a degree compatible with the child’s age and the correction of his or her behaviour. However, under article 298 of the Criminal Code, any person who wilfully injures or beats a child under 15 years of age, or who wilfully deprives him or her of food or care to the point of jeopardizing his or her health, or who commits any other violence or assault against him or her, except for minor violence, is liable to a criminal penalty of 5 years’ imprisonment and a fine of between CFAF 25,000 and CFAF 250,000.

119.The prison sentence may be increased to 7 years in cases of serious violence, 10 years in cases of violence committed by parents or older relatives and 10 to 20 years in cases of violence leading to mutilation or manslaughter.

Paragraph 36 (b)

120.The prohibition of corporal punishment is enshrined in Decree No. 79-1165 of 20 December 1979, and relevant monitoring mechanisms are in place, including the Vulnerability to School Dropout Observatories and the Alert and Monitoring Units against Violence in Schools.

121.A national framework for identifying and managing situations of risk affecting students has been developed and adopted as part of the “Strengthening Support for the Protection of Children in Education” project of the Ministry of Education, and a “Learning Without Fear” programme is being implemented in conjunction with civil society partners.

122.Awareness-raising activities on the harmful effects of corporal punishment and the promotion of non-violent and positive forms of discipline have been carried out through community radio stations, in collaboration with civil society actors, children and parliamentarians. Civil society organizations have also received capacity-building with regard to positive discipline.

123.Violence is prohibited in all institutions of the Directorate of Supervised Education and Social Protection. Civil society organizations are advocating the adoption of a law on corporal punishment.

Paragraph 36 (c)

124.As well as legal provisions, awareness-raising and communication campaigns have helped to promote positive alternatives to punishment. A media campaign to raise awareness of violence against children, accompanied by a reference tool for dealing with violence against students and a reporting system, has been developed by the Ministry of Education.

125.A module on violence in schools has been developed and made available to teachers; another module on creating a safe learning environment, which addresses gender-based violence in schools and inclusive education, is currently being developed. In order to create a culture of non-violence, training and awareness sessions on gender-based violence in schools have been organized and are now included in initial teacher training.

126.In 2018, with the support of UNICEF, the Ministry of Health and Social Action began work to strengthen prevention and response interventions in relation to child abuse, violence and exploitation. The tools mentioned in paragraph 8 (d) were developed with the participation of all relevant actors (institutions, civil society organizations, front-line workers, technical and financial partners). Following the validation and printing of these tools, capacity-building for social workers and front-line workers is now underway.

127.A contingency plan for child protection during emergencies is available and information, awareness-raising, capacity-building and education initiatives are carried out for children and parents to help build preparedness and resilience against certain disasters.

128.To help raise awareness about the harmful effects of corporal punishment and to promote non-violent and positive forms of discipline, the NGO alliance Coalition Nationale des Associations et ONG en Faveur de l’Enfant (CONAFE) has taken the following actions:

•Outreach and dissemination of concluding observations, including those on corporal punishment, to regional focal points, civil society actors, children and parliamentarians;

•Capacity-building among its member organizations on positive discipline, through its partner Save the Children International;

•Awareness-raising through community radio stations on the harmful effects of corporal punishment and the use of positive discipline as a means of educating children;

•Advocacy of the adoption of a law on corporal punishment that goes beyond the law applicable in educational settings.

Paragraph 36 (d)

129.Strategies have been developed by the organization OFAD/Nafoore, a member of CONAFE, to prevent the use of corporal punishment on children in Médina Yoro Foulah and Tambacounda.

130.A pilot project has been developed in the south of the country to prevent the use of corporal punishment against children by:

•Training key actors (teachers, principals, liaison officers and members of parents’ associations) on positive discipline;

•Creating parents’ groups to normalize positive discipline at the community level;

•Raising awareness, including through school governments, and reporting of violence experienced at school or witnessed in families or in the community.

131.A code of conduct recognized by relevant actors, including children, has been developed as an effective reference tool to clearly establish obligations and restrictions within schools, so that all actors can abide by the rules.

Abuse and neglect

Paragraph 38 (a)

132.Article 298 of the Criminal Code, which criminalizes the physical abuse and wilful neglect of children, is effectively enforced by all courts.

Paragraph 38 (b)

133.The bill on the status of daara was adopted in the Council of Ministers on 6 June 2018 and submitted to the National Assembly for a vote.

134.As part of the WAEMU reform establishing programme budgeting, the Ministry of Education has integrated the daara into the Basic Education for Youth and Adults programme, which has made it possible to mobilize substantial budgetary resources.

135.The State has integrated a daaramodernization policy into the Programme for the Improvement of Quality, Equity and Transparency in the Education and Training Sector 2018–2030, so that daara can contribute to diversifying the available forms of education. Several initiatives have been undertaken with the support of partners, including the Islamic Development Bank, which has contributed CFAF 10,032,000,000 to finance the Daara Modernization Support Project. Actions taken include:

•Construction of 64 modern daara, including 32 non-public daara, and provision of equipment;

•Granting of subsidies in the amount of CFAF 300,000 to 100 officially recognized daara;

•Mobilization of CFAF 3.75 billion in relation to the project to improve the quality and equity of basic education in order to finance this pilot project for the modernization of 100 daara, funded as follows: CFAF 1.75 billion from small or medium-sized businesses as a grant and CFAF 2 billion from the State;

•Provision of support to 50 preschool daara to improve operations;

•Training on administrative and pedagogical management for 32 principals of non-public daaraunder the Daara Modernization Support Project, training of 224 Qur’anic teachers, 160 Arabic language instructors and 160 French language instructors, in 2016;

•Development of the daara curriculum to include the Qur’an, French, reading and science and technology.

Paragraph 38 (c)

136.In addition to the initiatives mentioned above, the coordination of the National Child Protection Strategy has been strengthened through the introduction of departmental child protection committees in all of the country’s departments. Furthermore, several tools have been developed to implement the National Child Protection Strategy (minimum standards, integrated frameworks, manuals on procedures for the management of reception centres, reference guides on the costs of available child protection services, standard operating procedures for getting children off the streets, standardized intervention tools). There is also a system for reporting, treating and referring child victims of violence, including a multisectoral child protection platform at the local level.

137.The Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection has developed an educational quiz called Yaa Ma Gena Xam to promote children’s rights through games. A mobile application was created and made available online to enhance children’s and adolescents’ education and awareness and to facilitate their access to various sources of information and learning and forums for discussion.

Paragraph 38 (d)

138.In addition to the data collection tools mentioned above, the Ministry of the Interior has a database of child victims of mistreatment, abuse and exploitation who have received care from the Supervised Education and Social Protection services. It aims to set up, in partnership with departmental child protection committees, a national database on child victims of all kinds of violence.

139.Indicators for monitoring violence have been integrated into the information systems of the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health and Social Action, making it possible to produce data disaggregated by type of abuse, gender and age. Senegal has initiated specific studies on violence. A comprehensive national survey on student safety and well-being will generate accurate data on child violence, abuse and neglect, which will be made available in disaggregated form. A study on the sociocultural determinants of physical and sexual violence against children is also under way. The results of the studies are expected in 2021.

Paragraph 38 (e)

140.The operating budget for the Directorate for the Promotion of Child Rights and Child Protection increased from CFAF 13,832,000 in 2016 to CFAF 20,750,000 in 2021. The Directorate has also been strengthened in terms of personnel, computer equipment and logistics. Furthermore, it is responsible for the Children’s Programme of the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection.

Paragraph 38 (f)

141.The Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection has launched an awareness-raising campaign on children’s rights through community radio stations in the areas targeted by the Investing in the Early Years for Human Development in Senegal Project. At the same time, through a partnership with the Association of Women Jurists of Senegal, victims and survivors of gender-based violence have been provided with legal, judicial, health and psychosocial services in legal clinics since 2020.

142.An awareness-raising campaign against child violence, promoting the helplines operated by the Association of Women Jurists of Senegal and the Reception, Information and Guidance Centre for Children in Difficult Circumstances (Ginddi Centre), was carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic to prevent and deal with violence.

143.With the support of partners, departmental child protection committees conduct outreach and community mobilization initiatives to change social norms.

Sexual exploitation and sexual abuse

Paragraph 40 (a)

144.Act No. 2020-05 of 10 January 2020, amending Act No. 65-60 of 21 July 1965 on the Criminal Code, has been adopted and promulgated. The Act fully criminalizes rape and paedophilia and establishes penalties ranging from 10 to 20 years’ imprisonment. Where aggravating circumstances exist, perpetrators may be sentenced to life imprisonment.

145.As a coercive measure, any civil servant found guilty of rape, harassment or paedophilia is automatically dismissed from public service.

146.The reference to article 298 of the Criminal Code in this recommendation appears to have been erroneous.

147.That article penalizes any person who wilfully injures or beats a child under 15 years of age or who wilfully deprives him or her of food or care.

148.Article 300 of the Criminal Code penalizes the consummation of a marriage involving a child under 13 years of age.

149.Criminal justice statistics from courts and the information brought to the attention of the Directorate of Criminal Affairs and Pardons do not include any cases that would require the application of this article.

Paragraph 40 (b)

150.In addition to the Ginddi and Association of Women Jurists of Senegal hotlines, some departmental child protection committees have reception and referral services with telephone lines for reporting and referring cases involving children in situations of vulnerability.

151.In response to emerging problems, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection has implemented a national action plan for protecting children online and has joined the African programme for preventing and combating online child sexual exploitation.

152.In 2020, the Ministry set up a portal for reporting and removing online images and videos of child sexual abuse.

153.The Ministry of the Interior has a cybercrime unit and a free helpline for victims of abuse, including children.

Paragraph 40 (c)

154.Article 32 of the Code of Criminal Procedure states: “Any established authority and any public official or civil servant who, in the exercise of his or her duties, learns of an offence or crime must immediately report it to the public prosecutor and provide all relevant information, official records and documents.” The procedures and tools mentioned in relation to the recommendation in paragraph 38 (c) also cover cases of sexual abuse and exploitation.

Paragraph 40 (d)

155.The practice of confiage in Senegal is a mechanism that contributes to child protection, as demonstrated by a 2016 study on the determinants of confiage, carried out by the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection in partnership with Save the Children International and the Economic and Social Change Research Laboratory of the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar.

156.Furthermore, the draft Children’s Code includes two provisions relating to safeguards for children in confiage(informal fostering) arrangements.

Paragraph 40 (e)

157.The care systems developed by the departmental child protection committees ensure the holistic care of any child who is identified as vulnerable. The projected needs of these departmental child protection committees are set out in their action plans, which are financed by the State through decentralized services, and the NGOs and technical and financial partners working in their location.

158.The Ministry of Justice has three initial reception centres for the emergency care of child victims of sexual abuse, violence and mistreatment in Dakar, Ziguinchor and Saint-Louis, each with 20 beds, where victims can be accommodated for a maximum of six months. A fourth centre will open in 2021.

159.The Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection plans to set up regional centres to improve the care of vulnerable children in regions without reception facilities.

Paragraph 40 (f)

160.Data on child victims are available from departmental child protection committees, which use child protection data collection tools, but also from the Supervised Education and Social Protection services, which disaggregate the data by age, sex, geographical area and parents’ marital status.

Harmful practices

Paragraph 42 (a)

161.The Government of Senegal has developed a new national strategy for the elimination of female genital mutilation in Senegal, as well as a third action plan for the period 2021–2026. It is due to be adopted in 2021, having been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Paragraph 42 (b)

162.The Government of Senegal has continued to combat female genital mutilation through information campaigns and training sessions for the defence and security forces and for religious and traditional leaders. In 2020, six workshops were held to train 120 actors working in the justice system, administrative authorities and social services.

163.To support these efforts, civil society organizations such as the Association of Women Jurists of Senegal and Réseau Islam et Population (Islam and Population Network) have conducted information and awareness-raising initiatives to combat female genital mutilation. For example, in 2018, 80 imams and Qur’anic teachers from high-prevalence areas were made aware of the Islamic argument in favour of eliminating female genital mutilation.

164.Furthermore, the topics of victim support and the legislation prohibiting female genital mutilation are included in initial and in-service training modules for police officers, who are routinely alerted to the need to combat this offence in order to expedite the elimination of harmful practices.

165.To address this issue, the Ministry of Justice has begun an evaluation of existing legislation.

Paragraph 42 (c)

166.In 2011, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection commissioned a study on the level of enforcement of the law, which showed that it remains weakly enforced. In fact, since its adoption, only about ten cases of female genital mutilation have been brought before the courts in the Kolda, Matam and Kaolack regions, owing to a reluctance to report cases. However, all cases brought to the attention of the courts have been prosecuted and the perpetrators convicted.

167.Despite these obstacles to the reporting of cases of female genital mutilation, community leaders are increasingly committed to reporting.

168.The Ministry of Justice has organized workshops to raise awareness of female genital mutilation among criminal justice officials in the most affected regions.

Paragraph 42 (d)

169.Article 48 of the Criminal Code penalizes the failure to report any crime, including genital mutilation, as provided for in the second paragraph of article 299 of the same text. Parents and relatives of the victim cannot even benefit from the exemption from punishment provided for in the last paragraph of article 48 if the child is under 15 years of age.

Paragraph 42 (e)

170.The Government has established 10 community and village watch mechanisms to monitor the practice of excision and compliance with commitments to its elimination, emphasizing mechanisms for reporting new cases. These committees have been set up in the south-eastern and northern regions, where prevalence remains higher. These mechanisms have drawn up plans for monitoring and reporting activities.

171.Girls who are victims of gender-based violence have access to legal assistance in legal clinics and through the Association of Women Jurists of Senegal helpline.

Paragraph 42 (f)

172.In October 2017, Senegal hosted a high-level regional meeting to end child marriage. This meeting brought together representatives of Governments and civil society organizations in more than 20 countries, who reaffirmed their shared commitment to strengthening policies and strategies to end child marriage.

173.In 2018, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection established a cooperation framework on child marriage, and in 2019, with the support of World Vision, developed a 2020–2023 national action plan to end child marriage, whose adoption was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Paragraph 42 (g)

174.In 2017, Senegal conducted a national study on the determinants of child marriage and, in 2019, organized the first African Summit on Female Genital Mutilation and Child Marriage to take collective action to combat female genital mutilation and child marriage and to propose African solutions. The meeting was attended by the Vice-President of the Republic of the Gambia, the President of the Economic, Social and Environmental Council, ministers and other senior government officials, senior representatives of the African Union, agencies of the United Nations system, youth activists, African traditional and religious leaders, NGOs, civil society organizations and technical and financial partners.

175.Other awareness-raising initiatives have included the production of brochures and communication materials and the launch of the #TEELNA2 campaign by the Coalition Nationale pour l’Abandon des Mariages d’Enfants (National Coalition for the Elimination of Child Marriage), the second phase of which began in December 2019 and included radio broadcasts in rural and urban areas and the organization of human rights education clubs in schools.

176.Awareness-raising activities on the inherent risks and dangers of child marriage have been carried out with the support of the NGO alliance CONAFE, including:

•Fund-raising in the private sector, within the corporate social responsibility framework, for activities to combat child marriage in five municipalities in Kédougou, carried out by children and young people;

•Collaboration with local governments to end child marriage and awareness-raising among religious leaders on child marriage, leading to the signing of a village charter in 13 villages in the south which includes an obligation to verify the bride’s age whenever a marriage takes place.

177.Amnesty International Senegal has started a programme to reduce the rate of female genital mutilation and of early and forced marriages in order to combat discrimination against women and girls and to strengthen the protection of girls. It focuses on the prevention and eradication of female genital mutilation and of early marriage and pregnancy among girls. Launched in 35 communities in Senegal, it aims to combat discrimination and promote the rights of women and girls.

Paragraph 42 (h)

178.The departmental child protection committees monitor and report on cases of child marriage. The Ministry of Education has integrated the case reporting system and the monitoring of child marriage in schools into its programme of statistical surveys.

179.A project to promote youth participation, including a “New Deal” component, is being carried out in Kolda, with funding from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). It consists of a community pact based on a commitment by girl leaders not to have sex or become pregnant. Through this mechanism, 20 child marriages were annulled in 2020.

F.Family environment and alternative care

Family environment

Paragraph 44 (a)

180.As part of the Investing in the Early Years for Human Development in Senegal Project, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection has initiated a study on parenting practices in early childhood with a view to developing a national parenting education programme.

Paragraph 44 (b)

181.The draft Children’s Code incorporates the equal legal responsibility of mothers and fathers for their children.

Paragraph 44 (c)

182.Of the discriminatory provisions mentioned in the recommendation made in this paragraph (levirate, sororate, repudiation and polygamy), only polygamy is an option laid down in the Family Code.

Paragraph 44 (d)

183.Senegal remains committed to the principles of the Convention. The concerns about ratification of the conventions mentioned in the recommendation made in this paragraph will be considered as part of future national reforms.

Children deprived of a family environment

Paragraph 46 (a)

184.Between 2017 and 2019, the Ministry of Justice, in partnership with the OHCHR Regional Office, conducted a study to assess and analyse the international, regional and national framework for child rights. The study made it possible to review the level of implementation of the recommendations made by the various child rights monitoring mechanisms. It sets out proposed reforms to remedy the shortcomings.

Paragraph 46 (b)

185.The network of ndeyou daara is the main form of alternative care for children deprived of their family environment. It has a presence in all departments and its members are part of the departmental child protection committees, which support them in caring for the children placed with them.

186.In 2020, the National Office for Wards of the State supported 965 orphans declared wards of the State, of whom:

•47 received subsidies;

•119 received study and training grants;

•668 were enrolled in mutual health insurance plans and 6 were provided with funding of medical expenses outside mutual health insurance plans;

•328 received monthly benefits of CFAF 50,000;

•4 received funding for self-employment projects;

•750 were supported with food kits and 74 with hygiene kits.

187.The Ministry of Justice is developing a project to establish an alternative care system focused on the following areas:

•Organization of a national contributions workshop involving all relevant stakeholders;

•Organization of a study tour to a benchmark country;

•Recruitment of an international and a national consultant to conduct a baseline study and propose a codified system for approval by the stakeholders.

188.In practice, the Ministry of Justice relies on legal guardians pending the establishment of a formal alternative care system.

Paragraph 46 (c)

189.At the regional level, the Ministry of Justice has inspectorates of supervised education and social protection, whose role is to:

•Inspect all public or private institutions that receive or accommodate minors;

•Monitor the staff of the Directorate of Supervised Education and Social Protection and private institutions receiving children in situations of vulnerability;

•Investigate and follow up all cases relating to the establishment and construction of institutions receiving children in situations of vulnerability.

190.A mapping exercise on public and private facilities receiving and accommodating children was carried out in 2019. The exercise was the first step of an in-depth evaluation of the entire alternative care system.

Paragraph 46 (d)

191.Children placed in foster care are consistently monitored by the services for the non-institutional supervision of minors, which submit a report to the competent judge every three months. All cases of maltreatment or obstruction of the work of the monitoring officials are reported and may result in prosecution.

Adoption

Paragraph 48

192.Pursuant to article 22 of Decree No. 2018-1070 of 30 June 2018 on the organization of the Ministry of Justice, the Directorate of Supervised Education and Social Protection has been designated as the competent central authority in matters of intercountry adoption.

193.A guide on intercountry adoption was produced and provided to the competent authorities in 2020.

G.Disability, basic health and welfare

Children with disabilities

Paragraph 50 (a)

194.In accordance with article 34 of the Social Policy Orientation Act, which stipulates that “persons with disabilities are entitled to access to public transport, accessible means of transport and an accessible driving service”, persons with disabilities who are holders of the equal opportunities card pay reduced fares on public transport, which is free for children with disabilities.

195.Accessible buses to transport children with disabilities are provided to the Talibou Dabo Education and Rehabilitation Centre for Children with Physical Disabilities and the National Education and Training Institute for Young Blind Persons.

196.In 2018, pursuant to the Social Policy Orientation Act, the ministry responsible for vocational and technical education adopted a circular on the identification of persons with disabilities enrolled in examination preparation classes to ensure fair management of their certification arrangements.

197.The National Community-based Rehabilitation Programme, which is specifically targeted at persons with disabilities, has facilitated their inclusion through nine areas of action, including medical care, assistive devices, education, vocational training and project funding, and has produced the outcomes mentioned in the information relating to paragraph 28 (b).

198.Since 2019, a community-based rehabilitation pilot project has been under way in the Dakar region, in cooperation with Plan International, to mainstream child protection and disability in the education, health, civil registration, economic and social sectors. Using a decentralized and participatory approach with local authorities, actors and communities, it has led to the following outcomes:

•Availability of a database of children with disabilities in the municipality;

•Establishment of a municipal committee for community-based rehabilitation, responsible for managing disability in the municipality;

•Stakeholder capacity-building on knowledge management in relation to the National Community-based Rehabilitation Programme;

•Provision of psychosocial support;

•Enrolment of 54 persons in mutual health insurance plans;

•Performance of four surgical procedures;

•Civil registration of 20 persons;

•Issuance of 108 equal opportunities cards;

•Distribution of 46 school kits.

199.In 2017, during the first phase of the equal opportunities card scheme (2014–2017), the Ministry of Health and Social Action issued 50,006 cards (for the second phase, see the information relating to paragraph 28 (b)), which represents a coverage rate of 6 per cent of persons with disabilities. Among these beneficiaries, approximately 30 per cent are under the age of 18 years, meaning that 15,001 are children with disabilities.

200.As a result of actions undertaken under the Programme for the Improvement of Quality, Equity and Transparency for the inclusion of persons with disabilities in education and training, students with disabilities account for 0.5 per cent of total enrolment in primary schools (11,353 out of 2,171,967) and secondary schools.

201.This situation demonstrates the need for a more inclusive policy, particularly the establishment of educational and vocational infrastructure and programmes adapted to the requirements of persons with disabilities.

Paragraph 50 (b)

202.Equity and inclusion are priorities in the education and training sector plan, under which the projects and programmes carried out have made it possible to:

•Adapt the learning environment to the specific needs of children with disabilities (ramps, grab rails and structures);

•Map the different types of disabilities and schedule screening sessions;

•Build the capacity of education staff (teachers, principals and school leaders, teaching assistants and inspectors) with regard to inclusive education;

•Improve stakeholder involvement by establishing local inclusive education committees.

Paragraph 50 (c)

203.According to the available information, no cases of inhuman or degrading treatment of children with disabilities have so far been reported to the competent authorities.

Paragraph 50 (d)

204.Awareness-raising to combat the stigmatization of persons with disabilities is conducted through social inclusion projects and programmes.

Paragraph 50 (e)

205.The recommendation made in this paragraph has been taken into account in the above-mentioned programmes of the Ministry of Health and Social Action, such as the National Community-based Rehabilitation Programme.

Paragraph 50 (f)

206.Initiatives along these lines have been developed by the Ministry of Health and Social Action and the Ministry of Education, as mentioned in the information relating to paragraphs 50 (a) and (b).

Health and health services

Paragraph 52 (a)

207.The State budget allocated to nutrition through the National Nutrition Development Council, which is implementing the National Nutrition Development Policy for the period 2015–2025 and the Multisectoral Strategic Plan for Nutrition for the period 2018–2022, has been continuously increasing. The related projects and programmes have led to a reduction in the percentage of children between the ages of 0 and 59 months who are underweight, from 15.1 per cent in 2018 to 14.4 per cent in 2019, and in the prevalence of stunting in children, from 18.8 per cent in 2018 to 17.9 per cent in 2019.

208.The budget allocated to the Ministry of Health and Social Action increased by 17.1 per cent between 2018 and 2019 and the share of resources allocated to the health sector reached 5.54 per cent of the total State budget in 2019, up from 4.8 per cent.

209.A major effort has been made to recruit health-care staff, including 500 midwives in 2018. This has doubled the number of staff (nurses and midwives at health clinics). However, there is still a shortage of specialists such as gynaecologists and paediatricians in peripheral regions. For this reason, grants are awarded for specialist medical training.

210.Between 2018 and 2019, the ratio of health professionals to the general population improved, increasing from 0.41 to 0.54, while the ratio of social workers to the general population increased by 35 per cent, from 0.23 to 0.31.

211.Health‑care providers receive regular refresher training, including on the following subjects, so that they can offer high-quality care:

•The WHO-ANTHRO software of the World Health Organization;

•Care for acute malnutrition;

•Applied nutrition during the maternal, newborn and child health cycle;

•Malnutrition monitoring;

•Infant and young child feeding;

•Care for moderate acute malnutrition and nutritional care for pregnant and breastfeeding women;

•Promotion of fortified foods (advice cards).

212.Apart from the Investing in the Early Years for Human Development in Senegal Project, which concerns child health and nutrition, the Government is implementing the Investing in Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Project for the period 2020–2025 in partnership with the World Bank, with funding of CFAF 65,181,170,000.

Paragraph 52 (b)

The maternal mortality ratio decreased from 555 deaths per 100,000 live births in 1992 to 236 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2017, which is a reduction of more than 50 per cent.

213.The actions taken to achieve this include:

•Strengthening communication activities with topics relating to the early initiation of antenatal care, delivery by skilled health personnel and the use of post-partum care services;

•Promoting focused antenatal care visits;

•Reinforcing emergency obstetric and newborn care;

•Improving the equipment of maternity clinics and the availability of equipment of vital importance for maternal and newborn health;

•Screening for infectious diseases (syphilis and HIV) during antenatal visits;

•Incorporating malaria prevention for pregnant women into antenatal visits by prescribing sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine and advising them to sleep under long-lasting insecticidal nets;

•Implementing a plan for the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

Paragraph 52 (c)

214.In Senegal, optimal breastfeeding practice has the potential to save the lives of 2,624 children and prevent 161 maternal deaths due to cancer and type 2 diabetes every year. It could also add an estimated CFAF 178 billion to the economy by improving children’s cognitive capacities, preventing premature mortality and reducing the risk of maternal mortality. The strategies implemented include:

•Promoting early initiation of breastfeeding;

•Organizing television and radio broadcasts to raise awareness among women, including grandmothers, on the benefits of breastfeeding for mothers, children and the community, and involving badjenu gox in awareness-raising on the practice of exclusive breastfeeding up to the age of six months;

•Revitalizing health-care facilities and baby-friendly communities;

•Training care providers on newborn and young child feeding;

•Promoting the introduction of breastfeeding areas in private companies;

•Ratifying the ILO Maternity Protection Convention, 2000 (No. 183);

•Conducting the Stronger with Breast Milk Only campaign.

Paragraph 52 (d)

215.Senegal has adopted Interministerial Order No. 5969 of 25 July 1994 on the conditions for the sale of breast milk substitutes. A draft decree regulating the sale of foodstuffs for infants has been prepared and is awaiting adoption by the high-level authorities.

Paragraph 52 (e)

216.The National Nutrition Development Council is developing a nutrition enhancement project with two objectives:

•Improving growth in children between the ages of 0 and 5 years who live in poor urban or rural areas of Senegal;

•Building institutional and organizational capacity to implement and assess nutritional interventions.

217.To this end, in the Kaffrine region, the Council is implementing the Nutrition Enhancement Programme for the period 2013–2019, at a total cost of CFAF 209,486,997.

Paragraph 52 (f)

218.The scaling-up of high-impact interventions, including the nationwide distribution of long-lasting insecticidal nets and other types of prevention, has contributed to a sharp decline in malaria.

219.The percentage of households with at least one long-lasting insecticidal net for every two persons increased from 35 per cent in 2015 to 56 per cent in 2019, while the percentage of children under the age of 5 who had slept under such a net increased from 54.4 per cent in 2015 to 65.4 per cent in 2019.

220.An action plan to combat the disease for the period 2020–2025 has been approved and is being carried out.

221.Each year, a strategy to prevent diarrhoeal disease, malaria and Ebola virus is initiated in order to respond appropriately with a view to saving lives. The strategy is part of the fifth annual action plan entitled “Fagaru” (Prevention), which was launched by the national public health service on 13 June 2019.

Paragraph 52 (g)

222.The technical guidance on the application of a human rights-based approach to the implementation of policies and programmes to reduce and eliminate preventable mortality and morbidity of children under 5 years of age has not yet been widely disseminated. The guidance will be shared with stakeholders as part of the preparation of new strategic frameworks on reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health, which will be focused on strategies to eliminate preventable deaths.

Adolescent health

Paragraph 54 (a)

223.This area is covered in the curricula through subjects such as “Living in our environment” in primary school and life and earth sciences and home economics in lower secondary school, which address issues relating to child protection, family life education and reproductive health.

224.The School Medical Examination Division of the Ministry of Education is conducting a prevention, training and awareness-raising programme on reproductive health aimed at teachers and students. The aim of this programme is to equip students, especially girls, to deal with sexual maturity and with violence and other types of abuse using strategies that are in line with existing sociocultural realities and religious beliefs without violating their physical and mental integrity.

Paragraph 54 (b)

225.During antenatal visits, adolescent girls who are enrolled in school are encouraged by health-care staff to visit the school medical inspectorate after delivery to be issued with a medical certificate of fitness to return to school.

226.Pregnant adolescents are entitled to access to maternal health services and, if necessary, to emergency obstetric care. Antenatal, perinatal and postnatal care is provided by qualified health-care professionals to promote safe motherhood.

Paragraph 54 (c)

227.The Integrated Strategic Plan on Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health includes the promotion of responsible sexual behaviour among adolescents and young persons.

Paragraph 54 (d)

228.Amendments to article 305 of the Criminal Code and to the Code of Medical Ethics are addressed by the expert committee for the review of legislative and regulatory provisions that discriminate against women established pursuant to Ministry of Justice Order No. 00936 of 27 January 2016.

Paragraph 54 (e)

229.At the strategic level, mental health was incorporated into the new National Health and Social Development Plan for the period 2019–2028. A governance mechanism was put in place, consisting of five offices, including two providing services for children, namely:

•The office for maternal, child and adolescent mental health, whose role is to promote optimal care with respect to maternal, child and adolescent health and its inclusion in public policy;

•The office for mental health in schools and the workplace, whose role is to take action to improve well-being in schools and the workplace.

230.Stakeholder capacity-building activities are organized under the Mental Health Programme. In 2019, a training workshop on psychological support for child victims of school violence was held.

231.In 2020, in cooperation with the national mental health association, the Ministry organized training on peer listening in local psychosocial interventions.

232.The main psychiatric services in Senegal are located in large cities. However, several social services in peripheral regions work on providing physical and psychological assistance for persons with disabilities, providing support for drug users and responding to violence.

233.A policy of decentralizing psychiatric care, so that it is mainly community-based, is being implemented by the Ministry of Health and Social Action.

Drug and substance abuse

Paragraph 56

234.The recommendation made in this paragraph has been addressed in programmes of the Ministry of Youth, primarily the Youth Advancement Project and the Directorate of Youth and Socio-Educational Activities. Since 2009, the Directorate has used a guide entitled “Combating drug addiction: prevention of addictive behaviours, a guide for understanding and acting together”, produced with the support of the Conference of Youth and Sports Ministers of the International Organization of la Francophonie.

235.In 2018, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime trained two officials from the Youth Advancement Project as trainers on the dangers of using psychoactive substances. The Project has 15 advisory centres for adolescents and the Saint-Louis centre for capacity-building sessions on life skills and awareness-raising sessions on the harmful effects of drugs, particularly injectables, with regard to HIV/AIDS.

236.For better support of all adolescents, in departments with no advisory centre for adolescents, advice desks, which are basic versions of advisory centres for adolescents, have been opened within the departmental centres for sports and popular education.

237.In addition, the Darou Mousty social rehabilitation centre in the Louga region is dedicated to socially maladjusted persons and drug users.

Standard of living

Paragraph 58 (a)

238.The Municipalities and Conurbations Support Programme, which has a budget of CFAF 352 billion, including CFAF 134 billion from the World Bank, is implemented in 434 municipalities in rural areas. One of its pillars is access to basic social services. It is part of the Adjusted and Accelerated Priority Action Plan under the Emerging Senegal Plan.

Paragraph 58 (b)

239.Senegal has undertaken a process of public finance reform whose primary aim is to improve transparency and promote savings, effectiveness and efficiency in public administration.

240.In 2020, significant progress was recorded in many development sectors. This was reflected in a growth rate of 5.3 per cent in estimated real gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019, driven mainly by the consolidation of gains in the structural transformation of the economy during the first phase of the Emerging Senegal Plan, with the implementation of major investment projects and the strengthening of all productive sectors. This trend was seriously disrupted in 2020 by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected the entire economy, and projected GDP growth is now 1.1 per cent. For this reason, measures to support the national economy, through the implementation of the Economic and Social Resilience Programme, have been taken to mitigate the negative impact on the most strongly affected sectors.

241.As regards the management of public finances, 2020 was the year of the changeover to programme budgeting. Actions to rationalize operating expenses have been intensified and efforts have been made to raise the level of public investment.

242.Since the switch from input budgeting to results-based budgeting, each line ministry has organized its own expenditure and has been accountable for its management.

243.Lastly, by implementing the action plan for phase 2 of the Emerging Senegal Plan, the Government will establish more robust mechanisms to ensure food and pharmaceutical sovereignty, reinforce the social protection floor and promote industrialization.

Paragraph 58 (c)

244.In choosing to decentralize further and ensure the effective devolution of public policy, the Government has embarked on a trajectory of promoting economically homogenous and socially developed regions that take due account of the expectations of different stakeholders in the territorial units.

245.To that end, in addition to resource transfers (decentralized consolidated investment budget, Local Government Investment Fund, Decentralization Endowment Fund), the State is implementing a number of programmes (Emergency Community Development Programme, Emergency Programme for the Modernization of Border Roads and Areas, Cities Modernization Programme) to trigger sustained, integrated, endogenous economic growth that will raise the level of access to basic social services.

246.Special economic zones, which enjoy special treatment with a dispensational tax regime and incentives, have been established in the regions to make them into development hubs that can attract domestic and foreign investment and meet the strategic aims of the State. In 2019, the four active special economic zones, Diamniadio, Diass, Sandiara and Bargny-Sendou, attracted investment of CFAF 14.8 billion and led to the creation of some 900 direct jobs.

247.In addition, in terms of the devolution of powers, local governments have recorded several achievements thanks to transfers from the State and the resources they have collected. The 2019 financial year was the first year in which the local economic contribution, collected during the 2018 financial year, was distributed. Moreover, implementation of the Municipalities and Conurbations Support Programme has substantially increased the investment revenue of local governments.

248.Accordingly, local government revenue rose by 32.5 per cent, from CFAF 141.5 billion in 2018 to CFAF 209.72 billion in 2019. Tax revenue, assessed at CFAF 70.94 billion in 2019 (compared to CFAF 23.94 billion in 2018), represents 33.9 per cent of total revenue. The local economic contribution alone accounts for 48.21 per cent of tax revenue, or CFAF 49.57 billion, which represents an additional increase of CFAF 12.35 billion compared to the previous business licence tax.

249.The State tops up the financial resources of local governments every year, including from funds under the Municipalities and Conurbations Support Programme, whose programmes are intended to develop investment and productivity as a means of reducing poverty in all territorial units.

250.Transfers of budgetary resources from the State to local governments increased by 9.17 per cent, from CFAF 49.45 billion in 2018 to CFAF 53.98 billion in 2019, with a decrease of CFAF 310.7 million for the Decentralization Endowment Fund and an increase of 8.31 billion for the Local Government Investment Fund.

Paragraph 58 (d)

251.With the establishment of the General Authority for Social Protection and National Solidarity, the Government established the National Family Security Grants Programme. The objective of the Programme is to help reduce vulnerability and the social exclusion of families through integrated social protection intended to reinforce their productive and child-rearing capacities.

252.The Programme has contributed to the development of a single national register to facilitate the targeting of households in situations of vulnerability and/or extreme poverty and to encourage the enrolment and retention of children in school and their civil registration.

253.Regarding social assistance, 442,053 households were recorded in the single national register between 2013 and 2017, compared to an objective of 464,548 households and 1,954,388 children. Among the registered households, 316,941 (with a total of 1,143,160 children) were beneficiaries of the National Family Security Grants Programme, including 18,560 in 2017. In addition, 2,049,371 children receive free universal health coverage.

254.Moreover, following preparation for the food component of the Economic and Social Resilience Programme, the number of households in the single national register stabilized at 588,045.

Paragraph 58 (e)

255.All budgets for all sectors, including the social sectors (education, health, welfare, etc.) are reviewed annually. These reviews are an opportunity to assess the level of resource utilization and identify new challenges to be considered in the resource allocation process.

256.In addition, the social budget tracking unit was established to analyse and evaluate the social budget and propose possible ways of increasing it.

H.Education, leisure and cultural activities

Education, including vocational training and guidance

Paragraph 60 (a)

257.The authorities have fully implemented Act No. 2004-37 of 15 December 2004 on the national education policy by eliminating direct and indirect costs for education. Thus, education is free in public education establishments from the preschool to the secondary level. However, some costs are borne by families (enrolment fees of between CFAF 3,000 and CFAF 10,000 for general lower and upper secondary school, school supplies, transport, etc.).

258.To support families, the State, local governments and partners initiate projects to provide free school supplies.

Paragraph 60 (b)

259.Senegal is in the process of strengthening the framework for action to promote girls’ education by establishing a gender and equity unit in the Ministry of Education to coordinate and monitor the Ministry’s policies on gender equality, inclusion and child protection and by preparing and implementing a development plan for girls’ education. These actions have made it possible to improve girls’ access and retention indicators, with a parity index in favour of girls at all levels (1.22 for primary school and 1.17 for lower and upper secondary school).

Paragraph 60 (c)

260.The Ministry of Education has taken a number of actions to combat sexual violence and harassment at school, including the adoption of a programme to build the capacity of stakeholders (teachers, borom daaraor Qur’anic teachers, justice system officials, managers and decision-makers) with regard to gender-based violence. Moreover, the Strengthening Support for Child Protection in Education in Senegal Project is being implemented over a five-year period, from 2017 to 2021, to improve the well-being of children, including both boys and girls, in eight regions of Senegal. It is also intended to promote the creation of a safe school environment and raise awareness among students and communities to protect children in eight education districts.

261.As a coercive measure, any actor in the system found guilty of rape, harassment or paedophilia is automatically dismissed from public service. Act No. 2020-05, which criminalizes rape and paedophilia, will be disseminated in educational establishments to raise awareness and provide information on the applicable penalties.

Paragraph 60 (d)

262.Regarding the provision of literacy courses to women and girls, particularly in rural areas, a major national programme funded by the State as part of the consolidated investment budget has been under way since 2013, with the following results:

•Functional literacy classes have been launched at the national level, in particular in rural areas, and are attended primarily by women;

•Income-generating activities are carried out by women organized into economic interest groups in every functional literacy class.

263.According to the most recent available data, the literacy rate for persons aged 15 years and over stood at 52.1 per cent in 2017. The number of students in functional literacy classes has decreased (from 18,553 in 2018 to 15,450 in 2019). This decrease, which has been observed since 2015, is due to the termination of several programmes and the limited budget for this subsector. Women account for some 95.8 per cent of these students. The classes are female-dominated because of the need to bridge the wide gap in adult literacy rates between men (64.1 per cent) and women (42.3 per cent).

Paragraph 60 (e)

264.The State has taken several measures to improve the quality of education by:

•Raising the qualification level for primary-schoolteachers, to baccalaureate level;

•Introducing more rigorous tests and criteria for teacher selection;

•Gradually eliminating the category of assistant primary-schoolteachers and converting contractual secondary-schoolteachers to permanent staff;

•Improving the framework for initial and continuous teacher training to enhance professionalism among teachers.

Paragraph 60 (f)

265.Senegal has embarked on a policy of daaramodernization involving several reforms:

•Establishment, in the Ministry of Education, of a daarainspectorate with responsibility for the modernization policy;

•Implementation of programmes and projects to support the modernization policy (Daara Modernization Support Project, project to improve the quality and equity of basic education, etc.);

•Drafting of a bill on the status of daara;

•Development of the daara curriculum to include the Qur’an, French and scientific subjects;

•Inclusion in the curricula of subjects such as reading, mathematics and science and technology.

Paragraph 60 (g)

266.The measure referred to in this paragraph is universally implemented, in cooperation with education district inspectors, education and training inspectors and school leaders and principals.

Paragraph 60 (h)

267.Through the Directorate General of Social Action, the Ministry of Health and Social Action has included education and vocational training in four of its programmes to facilitate access to education for children in situations of vulnerability, including orphans, talibéchildren, children with disabilities and children of persons affected by leprosy.

268.To that end, support is provided to vulnerable children throughout the country in the form of school kits, payment of school fees, school inclusion and reintegration, apprenticeships and vocational training.

269.For example, between 2016 and 2020, 700 older talibéchildren were placed by the Disadvantaged Children’s Programme in apprenticeships in community workshops, with the provision of an equipment kit, to enable them to acquire skills that will help them pursue a trade in later life.

270.School support and vocational training have been provided to 1,430 children and young persons whose parents are affected by leprosy.

271.With a view to getting children off the streets, several projects have been put in place to improve living and learning conditions for children who attend daara. In the first phase, in 2016 and 2017, 1,585 children were taken off the streets. During the second operation, in 2018, 339 children, including many foreign nationals, were taken off the streets.

272.Moreover, the reception centres of the Directorate of Supervised Education and the services for the non-institutional supervision of minors accommodated 6,555 children in 2019 (compared to 6,483 in 2018) for the purpose of supervised education and the judicial protection of minors. Of these children, 41 per cent were girls, 46.8 per cent were concentrated in Dakar and 11.7 per cent were in Ziguinchor.

273.Moreover, 3,071 minors (3,022 at-risk children and 49 children in conflict with the law) were accommodated in the centres’ technical and vocational education sections and school sections in primary and lower secondary school, where they received education in line with the official curriculum. The proportions of girls and boys among these minors were 50.5 per cent and 49.5 per cent, respectively. The revitalization of the technical and vocational education sections and workshops (protection centres in Cambérène and Kandé, Ziguinchor, and the Kaolack multipurpose centre) has helped to improve the support provided to children.

I.Special protection measures

Asylum-seeking and refugee children

Paragraph 62

274.Regarding the strengthening of the comprehensive legal framework for refugees and asylum-seekers in line with international standards, a bill on the status of refugees and stateless persons was adopted by the Council of Ministers on 9 September 2020.

275.The National Committee for the Management of the Situation of Refugees, Returnees and Displaced Persons, established by Decree No. 2003-291 of 8 May 2003, works closely with the UNHCR Regional Bureau for West and Central Africa.

Children in armed conflicts

Paragraph 64

276.In accordance with the international commitments it undertook in 1998 under the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction (Ottawa Convention), the Government of Senegal, determined to eradicate all anti-personnel mines in Casamance, has established a regulatory and institutional framework for that purpose, in particular Act No. 2005-12 of 3 August 2005 on the prohibition of anti-personnel mines,as well as the National Commission in charge of implementing the Convention.

277.Pursuant to Decree No. 2006-783 of 18 August 2006, this Commission oversees the implementation of the National Mine Action Strategy, in particular by:

Following up on international cooperation in order to mobilize the necessary resources, through the Mine Action Assistance Project in Casamance;

Monitoring demining activities carried out by the Senegal National Mine Action Centre, established in Ziguinchor in 2007.

278.It may be recalled that some 3 million m2 of agricultural, pastoral and tourism land had been identified for clearance. Today, more than 1.6 million m2 remain, divided among 46 areas considered dangerous and 118 inaccessible locations.

279.The National Mine Action Strategy encompasses risk education, victim assistance and advocacy against the use of mines.

280.The mission of the Senegal National Mine Action Centre is to implement the humanitarian demining programme, of which victim assistance is a component. The aim of this programme is to offer mine victims the services they need for their socioeconomic reintegration.

281.Since 2009, 49 direct and 217 indirect child mine victims have been recorded. They have been supported through the provision of:

School supplies;

School equipment (bicycles, scooters, computers);

Follow-up medical care;

Medicines;

Assistive devices for the 49 direct victims;

Psychological support;

Educational and vocational guidance.

282.Thus, with assistance from technical and financial partners, the Senegal National Mine Action Centre has achieved the following results:

An area of approximately 1,932,717 m2 has been cleared, with the detection of 443 mines and explosive remnants of war, leading to the restitution of 69 localities in the regions of Ziguinchor, Kolda and Sédhiou. The Kolda region is considered to have been completely cleared. In Sédhiou, operations are currently under way only in the department of Goudomp;

A total of 847 direct or indirect victims, of whom about 50 have already been supplied with assistive devices, have received treatment;

A total of 1,776 personnel have been trained and approximately 1 million people have been reached by awareness-raising initiatives on the issue of mines.

283.At the same time, the effective implementation of development initiatives in the region, particularly under the Emerging Senegal Plan, including the Casamance Development Hub Project, remains dependent in part on the definitive resolution of the anti-personnel mine issue, especially in the regions of Sédhiou and Ziguinchor.

284.Accordingly, at the Eighteenth Meeting of States Parties, held in November 2020, Senegal requested and received a third extension, until 2026, of the implementation of the Ottawa Convention.

285.This new five-year commitment is accompanied by an action plan for 2021–2026 amounting to CFAF 5.6 billion.

286.In consequence, the Minister for Foreign Affairs will chair a meeting of the National Commission on 20 March 2021 to renew the authorities’ political and institutional commitment to addressing the issue of anti-personnel mines, with a view to achieving the goal of “zero mines” by 2026, thus paving the way for sustainable development in Casamance. The meeting has the following specific objectives:

Taking stock of mine action in order to identify strengths and weaknesses;

Building a better strategy for mobilizing financial resources to implement the action plan;

Strengthening interactions between the national strategy and sustainable development programmes in Casamance;

Exploring ways to revitalize the National Commission, including a possible visit to Casamance that could take place in the context of restitution of cleared land.

287.The mine action programme in Senegal is supported by financial assistance from bilateral and multilateral cooperation partners.

Economic exploitation, including child labour

Paragraph 66 (a)

288.First, it should be recalled that Senegalese legislation is in conformity with the ILO Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), article 2 (2). In addition, the principle of exemption from the minimum age for admission to employment is laid down in articles 3, 6 and 7 of that Convention. It was on this logic that section L.145 of the Senegalese Labour Code set the minimum age for admission to employment at 15 years, with the possibility of exemption by ministerial order in certain circumstances. In 2003 several orders on child labour were issued pursuant to section L.145 of the Labour Code.

289.Concerning child labour in underground mines, quarries and fisheries, Ministerial Order No. 3750 of 6 June 2003 specifying the types of hazardous work that children and young people are not allowed to perform, while generally guaranteeing the conditions set out in article 3 (3) of the Minimum Age Convention for young workers between the ages of 16 and 18, contained some provisions, namely its article 6 concerning the loads to be carried by children, that were not in conformity with that Convention.

290.Aware of the need to correct deficiencies in its legislation, Senegal had already begun the process of amending section L.145 of the Labour Code to raise the age of admission to employment to 16 years, in accordance with Act No. 2004-37 of 15 December 2004 (Education Act), which set the age of completion of compulsory education at 16 years. The bill drafted for this purpose was adopted by the Council of Ministers on 2 January 2019 and is pending adoption by the National Assembly.

291.Similarly, all the orders on child labour that were adopted on 6 June 2003, including the aforementioned Order No. 3750, have been revised to comply with the new provisions of section L.145 of the Labour Code and with the requirements of ILO Convention No. 138 that had not previously been reflected in national legislation. Therefore, the conditions set forth in article 3 (3) of ILO Convention No. 138 are fully taken into account and guaranteed for young workers between the ages of 16 and 18.

292.However, these new orders cannot enter into force until the new section L.l45 of the Labour Code has been adopted and put into effect.

293.Regarding the fisheries sector, Senegal has adopted Act No. 2018/17 of 14 June 2018 authorizing the President of the Republic to ratify the ILO Work in Fishing Convention, 2007 (No. 188), as well as Act No. 2018118 of 14 June 2018 authorizing the President of the Republic to ratify the ILO Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, as amended (MLC, 2006).

Paragraph 66 (b)

294.National law requires respect for the rules on the minimum age for admission to employment, which theoretically apply to all sectors, including the informal economy. The same is true of child protection and the need to combat child labour, which remains an ongoing concern of the Government.

295.The relevant administrative services, including the labour inspectorate, nevertheless have difficulty monitoring this sector owing to its informal nature. In fact, to a large extent the informal economy is still beyond the reach of fiscal, social and other controls because of its current configuration. The Government has therefore undertaken several initiatives to formalize the unstructured economy. The actions taken by the Ministry of Labour include the following:

Development and adoption, since 2012, of a child-labour-sensitive tool for intervention by the Labour Inspectorate in informal units of the crafts and trades sector;

The Simplified Regime for Small-scale Taxpayers project, which is intended to promote the social inclusion of workers in the informal economy and support their transition to formality.

296.The Simplified Regime for Small-scale Taxpayers, launched in 2013 to extend social coverage to workers in the informal economy, should eventually result in social protection that is adapted to workers’ needs and in higher productivity among informal production units.

Paragraph 66 (c)

297.Measures necessary for this purpose are provided for in Senegalese legislation, which guarantees ongoing protection for all children, including both boys and girls. Thus, Senegalese social legislation makes no distinction based on gender in protecting children and combating child labour. Accordingly, the prohibition of child labour also applies to girls subjected to the practice of confiage or used as domestic servants.

Paragraph 66 (d)

298.The hazardous work prohibited in ILO Convention No. 138 has also been taken into account by the Senegalese authorities, who in 2003 adopted a series of orders, including No. 3750, specifying the types of hazardous work that children and young people are not allowed to perform. However, in some respects this text was still insufficient to ensure adequate protection of children from the hazardous work referred to in ILO Convention No. 138. For this reason, as part of the implementation of the National Framework Plan of Action against Child Labour, adopted in 2012, the Government, through the Ministry of Labour, provided for a fourth focus area entitled “Strengthening and enforcement of the legal framework to harmonize it with the principles and provisions of the relevant ILO conventions”. As a result, the orders issued in 2003 are being revised. All the draft texts have been finalized, including the one amending the aforementioned order, which will eventually abolish all the exemptions currently allowed in respect of hazardous work performed by children and will strengthen their protection to ensure that they are not subjected to hazardous child labour.

299.In cases where the rights of such children are violated, they and their parents have access to all means of legal redress to restore their rights and put a stop to breaches of the law in their regard. National courts are competent to deal with any dispute related to the exploitation of children, as are labour inspection services in their actions against child labour in companies.

300.Concerning such children’s access to social, medical, psychological and rehabilitative services, dedicated centres have been set up in Senegal and placed under the supervision of the Ministry in charge of children’s affairs to provide social, medical and psychological support to all children who are in difficulty or have been victims of any type of exploitation.

Paragraph 66 (e)

301.The socioeconomic factors contributing to child labour in Senegal consist mainly of those resulting in economic vulnerability, which leads some children to resort to working as a survival strategy, thereby contributing to the development of the informal sector, where many children work as apprentices, self-employed workers or artisans.

302.The response by the Government and its services is focused in particular on the provision of free, quality education for all with clear improvements in education indicators over time, given that education as an investment in human capital is one of the best strategies for combating child labour, in addition to social protection for the most disadvantaged segments of the population.

Paragraph 66 (f)

303.First, it should be noted that there is no direct link between action against child labour and the ratification of the ILO Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189). The ILO conventions against child labour, which Senegal has ratified, apply equally to boys and girls in all sectors of activity.

304.There are laws governing domestic work, which is well regulated by Order No. 974 of 23 January 1968 on the general conditions of employment of domestic and household workers. Its provisions offer the same guarantees as Convention No. 189 for male and female workers alike.

305.This order establishes the form of employment, working conditions, job classifications, working hours and remuneration, which has been revised several times by ministerial order to adapt it to the cost of living. The Labour and Social Security Inspectorate is responsible for settling individual labour disputes, including those involving domestic workers, who are free to file complaints with the Labour Inspectorate if their rights are violated.

306.The 2019 report on labour statistics shows that there were 195 individual disputes in the category “activities of private households employing domestic staff”, of which 131 ended in settlement agreements, benefiting 53 male and 83 female domestic employees.

Paragraph 66 (g)

307.Senegal has been working and cooperating with the ILO International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour for many years. Initially, the International Labour Office supported the country’s efforts to honour the commitments undertaken when it ratified the ILO Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138) and the ILO Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182); later, the Office supported the updating and adoption of the National Framework Plan of Action against Child Labour, implemented from 2013 to 2016. Senegal continues to work with ILO, with technical and financial support from the ILO regional office in Dakar, under the country programme on decent work and in such areas as social protection and promotion of the Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy.

Children in street situations and talibéchildren

Paragraph 68 (a)

308.Mapping exercises on the phenomenon of begging by talibé children were carried out in Touba, Saint Louis and Dakar in 2017 and 2018.

Paragraph 68 (b)

309.The social reintegration of children remains an important action under the sectoral policy. The review of the implementation of the COVID-19 emergency child protection project Zero Children on the Streets, made public on 20 November 2020, found that 6,187 children between the ages of 4 and 17 had been taken off the streets, a performance of 61.9 per cent compared to 2019.

310.In addition, the proportion of children reunited with their families increased by 37.3 percentage points, rising from 22.7 per cent in 2019 to 60 per cent in 2020.

311.Reception centres that temporarily accommodate children taken off the streets are supplied by the Ministry with food, clothing and hygiene kits for the children.

Paragraph 68 (c)

312.The Support Project for the Protection of Child Victims of Rights Violations, launched by OHCHR in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice, has significantly helped to strengthen the child protection system in Senegal. The National Steering Committee for the Project has been set up pursuant to Order No. 005016 of 3 February 2020, issued by the Minister of Justice.

313.In 2020, the Project supported the State’s initiative for family reintegration of children taken off the streets by carrying out an emergency protection programme for children in street situations. As a result of the programme, 5,067 children have been taken off the streets and placed in reception centres, including 175 children from the Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and the Republic of Guinea.

314.The Project has also enhanced the services offered in the reception centres by providing educational and health support for the children.

315.The process of identifying the children was carried out in preparation for their family reintegration, with support from the West Africa Network for the protection of children on the move, a transnational mechanism for managing mobility in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region.

316.With the support of the Project, 52 children, including 34 from the Gambia and 18 from Guinea-Bissau, have been reunited with their families. Children taken off the streets have been given dignity kits consisting of travel bags, clothing, shoes and antiseptic gel. Follow-up visits are conducted to monitor the children’s reintegration into their families.

Paragraph 68 (d)

317.The National Surveillance Directorate works with the child protection services to get children off the streets and place them in specialized centres or reunite them with their parents.

318.Concerning such children’s access to social, medical, psychological and rehabilitative services, dedicated centres have been set up in Senegal and placed under the supervision of the Ministry in charge of children’s affairs to provide social, medical and psychological support to all children who are in difficulty or have been victims of any type of exploitation.

Paragraph 70 (a)

319.During the review of Act No. 2005-06 of 10 May 2005 on combating trafficking in persons and related practices and on the protection of victims, the authorities finally decided to retain article 245 of the Criminal Code, which is complementary to Act No. 2005-06 in that paragraph 3 of that article penalizes any persons who allow begging by minors under the age of 21 who are under their authority. In reality, this is an offence of nonfeasance, omission or manifest negligence that is charged against parents or guardians who allow a minor under their authority to beg.

320.Article 245 of the Criminal Code does not authorize begging in any form. It merely acknowledges a reality that is part of a religious practice, namely that of asking for or receiving alms. There is a need to specify and regulate the places designated for this practice, and ongoing discussions will be held to reach a satisfactory outcome in this regard.

321.The text strictly prohibits begging by minors under the age of 18 and penalizes any person who allows begging by a child of that age who is in his or her care.

Paragraph 70 (b)

322.The Government has launched a communication campaign to spread awareness of the dangers and consequences of the exploitation and abuse of talibé children and to encourage communities to participate in the Zero Children on the Streets project.

323.In addition, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection held a workshop with agents of the child protection squad to strengthen their involvement in operations to get children off the streets and facilitate prosecution procedures. In this connection, 32 judicial investigations of Qur’anic teachers were opened between 2007 and 2019, resulting in 29 prosecutions and 25 convictions for forced begging, child abuse or death of a child.

Paragraph 70 (c)

324.Based on the National Contingency Plan to meet the specific protection needs of children in the context of COVID-19 and in accordance with the fundamental principles of children’s rights, the Zero Children on the Streets project has resulted in the removal of 5,333 children between the ages of 4 and 17 from street situations and their placement in reception centres that have been supplied with food, hygiene and sanitary products and various types of equipment to help ensure proper care of such children.

325.More than 90 per cent of these children taken off the streets have been reunited with their families in different parts of the country and in neighbouring countries. Some Qur’anic teachers have agreed to return voluntarily to their places of origin with support from the State.

Paragraph 70 (d)

326.The Coordination, Monitoring and Follow-up Unit of the Zero Children on the Streets project is the national body responsible for monitoring the situation of talibé children. It consists of representatives of State structures, civil society organizations, NGOs and technical and financial partners involved in combating the phenomenon of children in street situations, including representatives of religious leaders.

327.At the decentralized level, the protection of talibé children is the responsibility of the departmental child protection committees, which work in close cooperation with representatives of religious and customary leaders in their communities.

Paragraph 70 (e)

328.The social reintegration of children remains an important action under the sectoral policy. For the period 2021–2023, the Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection is implementing a programme for the removal of children from street situations and for their socioeconomic reintegration, based on information, communication, advocacy and the socioeconomic reintegration of children taken off the streets and their families.

Sale, trafficking and abduction

Paragraph 72 (a)

329.Amendments to the Criminal Code will include the repeal of article 300, which prohibits the consummation of a customary marriage involvinga minor under 13 years of age. With respect to the 2005 law, it should be noted that capacity-building sessions for justice system officials (judges, court clerks, police and gendarmerie) have led to an increase in the number of prosecutions and final convictions in trafficking cases. Furthermore, the deployment of SYSTRAITE, a justice system database for the collection of information, has helped to improve enforcement of the 2005 law on trafficking.

Paragraph 72 (b)

330.The need for a definition of the sale of children could be met by the Children’s Code, which is in the process of being adopted. However, the fact that this definition has not yet been explicitly transposed into Senegalese legislation does not mean that related offences are not penalized.

331.Child prostitution and child pornography are already sufficiently covered by the Criminal Code: article 320 ter penalizes corruption of a minor; articles 323 and 324 penalize procurers, regardless of the age of the person whose prostitution is being exploited; article 327 bis sets out the protection procedure to be applied in the case of prostitution of a minor; and articles 431-34 to 431-40 penalize child pornography.

332.Apart from the sale of children, which is defined in the draft Children’s Code, the definition of child prostitution and child pornography iscontainedin Act No. 2008-11 of 25 January 2008 on cybercrime.

Paragraph 72 (c)

333.Child victims of sexual exploitation, including trafficking, pornography, prostitution and sex tourism, benefit in particular from the enforcement of articles 16 and 17 of Act No. 2005-06 of 10 May 2005 on combating trafficking in persons and related practices and on the protection of minors. In such cases, a lawyer may be appointed for the child, and during criminal proceedings the public prosecutor may have the child placed under guardianship or trusteeship. This more specific protection regime complements the one established by articles 593–607 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which concern children at risk. For the implementation of this system, a special brigade for the protection of minors was established to better meet the needs of such children.

334.The trafficking in persons bill proposed by the National Committee against Trafficking in Persons covers new forms of trafficking, including cyberpornography and organ trafficking.

Paragraph 72 (d)

335.See the response to the recommendation in paragraph 60 (h).

Paragraph 72 (e)

336.Police officers receive regular training on legal instruments relating to the protection of children’s rights, including methods for dealing with victims as respectfully as possible and techniques for approaching them.

337.Police officers are often reminded of the vital need to create an atmosphere of trust and safety while interviewing victims.

338.In addition, arrangements for communication with victims have been introduced so that victims can be interviewed and examined in a timely manner and with respect for their dignity.

339.For example, a specially equipped room has been set up for communicating with child victims away from prying eyes.

340.During the interview, police officers will ensure that there are no disturbances or intrusions.

341.In addition, officers are routinely alerted to the need to combat this offence in order to expedite the elimination of these harmful practices, which are a form of discrimination against women and girls.

342.To this end, discussions, workshops and seminars are held with social and institutional partners.

343.In addition, regular consultations are held with victim support associations and social services, in particular those working with institutional partners (Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection), as well as social workers and psychologists, to maintain ongoing communication with these services and find solutions to the difficulties encountered by victims.

Paragraph 72 (f)

344.In accordance with this recommendation, the ECPAT Luxembourg project “Strengthening the prevention and fight against the sexual exploitation of children in Senegal” was officially launched in January 2017 and is being implemented by three national NGO partners of ECPAT Luxembourg (Action Jeunesse et Environnement (AJE), Centre de Guidance Infantile et Familiale Dakar (CEGID) and Jeunesse et Développement (JED)), each acting in a different area of Senegal: Dakar (AJE), the municipality of Yène on the Petite Côte (CEGID) and Mbour and Saly (JED). The project’s objective is to strengthen the protection of children from sexual exploitation.

345.The activities carried out under this project in Senegal, which are intended to help reduce vulnerability in order to fight effectively against sexual exploitation, include the following:

Awareness-raising among children at risk of sexual exploitation to strengthen their capacity for self-protection. Improvement of family and community frameworks for preventing, detecting and reporting cases of child sexual exploitation;

Strengthening of local child protection structures, awareness-raising and dissemination of legal provisions in this area;

Follow-up and protection of children who are vulnerable to or victimized by sexual exploitation.

Administration of juvenile justice

Paragraph 74 (a)

346.The draft revision of provisions relating to the system of justice for juveniles and young adults has been prepared and integrated into the overall reform of the Code of Criminal Procedure. It includes new provisions on child victims and witnesses, in addition to those on children in conflict with the law and at-risk children or young adults between the ages of 18 and 21. However, these provisions have not yet been considered by the National Assembly.

Paragraph 74 (b)

347.The Government has significantly increased funding for legal aid, which is administered by the Bar Council. This funding remains available to both adults and minors.

Paragraph 74 (c)

348.Senegal has 15 juvenile courts located within the courts of major jurisdiction (tribunaux de grande instance). To date, only the region of Kaffrine does not have a court of major jurisdiction or a juvenile court. The new courts of major jurisdiction in Kédougou, Sédhiou, Mbour and Pikine-Guediawaye all have operational juvenile courts.

Paragraph 74 (d)

349.With regard to diversion, the Code of Criminal Procedure already provides for several alternatives to detention for minors. Articles 580 and 581 of the Code contain provisions allowing juvenile courts to choose between placing the minor with his or her family of origin, with a foster family or in a child protection, educational or training institution.

350.With regard to detention, article 576 of the Code of Criminal Procedure states that a minor may be placed in detention only if no other measure is possible and that children under 13 years of age may not be deprived of their liberty under any circumstances, except to prevent a crime.

351.With regard to minors’ conditions of detention, each of the regional remand and detention centres of the Prison Service has a juvenile wing, where minors are held separately. This protective measure is also provided for in article 55 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, under which criminal investigation police premises must have a specific area set aside for minors in custody.

Paragraph 74 (e)

352.The Directorate of Supervised Education and Social Protection of the Ministry of Justice reports that 700 minors are currently placed, on either a residential or a non-residential basis, in the four protection centres, the three multi-purpose centres and the Nianing social rehabilitation centre, where they are enrolled in introductory programmes and in vocational and technical training in woodworking, metalworking, mechanics, screen printing, cabinetmaking, sewing, hairdressing and catering, in diploma programmes leading to the State vocational training certificate and through the skills-based approach.

Paragraph 74 (f)

353.With regard to the technical assistance tools developed by the Inter-Agency Panel on Juvenile Justice and its members, there is an annual Directorate of Supervised Education and Social Protection-UNICEF workplan with funding ranging from CFAF 75 million to CFAF 100 million, which is renegotiated each year.

J.Ratification of the Optional Protocol on a communications procedure

Paragraph 75

354.This recommendation was included in the 2016–2018 Action Plan for the National Child Protection Strategy. The NGO alliance CONAFE is leading advocacy efforts in this regard and the Protocol has been shared with child rights organizations.

K.Ratification of international human rights instruments

Paragraph 76

355.The competent authorities will study the bills authorizing the President of the Republic to ratify the conventions and additional protocols mentioned in this recommendation.

Paragraph 77

356.Reports under the two Optional Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child were submitted to the Committee on the Rights of the Child in September 2016.

L.Cooperation with regional bodies

Paragraph 78

357.The Government of Senegal submitted and presented, in March 2019, its periodic report on the implementation of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child to the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child in Addis Ababa.

358.Every year Senegal celebrates the Day of the African Child in accordance with the concept note issued by the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.

IV.Implementation and reporting

Follow-up and dissemination of recommendations

359.The Ministry of Women, Family, Gender and Child Protection has shared the recommendations with all stakeholders, including the chairs of the departmental child protection committees, State sectoral institutions, civil society organizations and technical and financial partners working in areas related to children.

360.In addition, all of the Committee’s recommendations were disseminated on the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary of the Convention’s adoption, and a document taking stock of its implementation was produced.