COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILDForty-third sessionGeneva, 11-29 September 2006

WRITTEN REPLIES BY THE GOVERNMENT OF SENEGAL TO THE LIST OFISSUES RELATING TO THE CONSIDERATION OF THE SECOND PERIODIC REPORT OF SENEGAL (CRC/C/SEN/2)*

[Received on 8 August 2006]

PART I

Under this section the State party is requested to submit in written form additional and updated information, if possible before 5 August 2006.

Data and statistics, if available

Please provide disaggregated statistical data (by sex, age group, urban and rural areas) covering the years 2003, 2004 and 2005 on the number and percentage of children under the age of 18 living in Senegal.

Estimated population aged under 18

	2003	2004	2005
Boys	2 465 000	2 568 000	2 628 000
Girls	2 565 000	2 672 000	2 734 000
Urban areas	2 062 000	2 148 000	2 198 000
Rural areas	2 968 000	3 092 000	3 164 000
Total	5 030 000	5 240 000	5 362 000

In the light of article 4 of the Convention, please provide disaggregated data on budget allocations and trends (in absolute figures and percentages of the national and regional budgets) for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006 regarding the implementation of the Convention, evaluating also the priorities for budgetary expenditures given to the following:

Education (different types of education, i.e. pre-primary, primary and secondary)

The resources allocated to education (from pre-primary to higher education), rose from 35 per cent in 2003 to 37 per cent in 2004 and 40 per cent in 2005.

According to the indicators for education between 2000 and 2005 published by the Department of Educational Planning and Reform, the education target of 33 per cent of the State budget, not including debt service payments and common costs, was not attained between 2000 and 2004. Only in 2005 was the target met, and indeed comfortably exceeded, reaching 40 per cent thanks to the President’s proactive policy.

The Government and its partners also spent some US$ 52 million on primary education in rural areas in 2004, the State’s share accounting for around 78 per cent of that expenditure. Households contributed 15 per cent through parents’ associations, donors, 6 per cent, and local authorities, 2 per cent. The Government has made considerable efforts to expand primary education in rural areas; between 2000 and 2004 it built 7,109 new primary classrooms and renovated 930 more.

No budget figures on allocations to each level of education are available.

Educational resources 2003-2005

	Millions of CFAF
2003	2004	2005
State	160 000	199 766	213 349
Local authorities	3 713	3 899	4 094
Households	350 838	37 630	39 512
External funding partnerships	8 300	15 438	22 575

Health care (different types of health services, i.e. primary health care, vaccination programmes, adolescent health care, HIV/AIDS and other health-care services for children, including social insurance):

The priority given to primary health care at the national level is reflected in the distribution of health-care facilities. Health station coverage (approximately one health station per 11,000 inhabitants) is not far short of the national target, having been boosted by additional measures in line with the Bamako initiative recommendations (cost reductions, improvements in management, involvement of the general public and rationalization of prescribing practices), which made it possible to raise the standard of facilities and thus to introduce services such as the Expanded Programme of Immunization, antenatal consultations and primary curative consultations.

Infant and child mortality rates remain high in Senegal as a result of malnutrition, diarrhoeal disease, the transmissible diseases targeted by the Expanded Programme of Immunization, malaria and acute respiratory infections.

Funding of infant-mortality reduction measures(millions of US dollars)

Source	2004	2005	2006
State	2.37	2.61	2.87
Partners	12.10	14.52	17.42
Total	14.47	17.13	20.29

The following primary health-care programmes for children are in place in Senegal.

Expanded Programme of Immunization

The percentage of routine vaccinations under the Expanded Programme of Immunization was 100 per cent in 2003. Vaccination coverage is broadly satisfactory, with an overall rate of 50 per cent (all diseases), a maximum rate of 91.7 per cent (tuberculosis) and a minimum of 72.9 per cent (polio 3).

As a result the infant and child mortality rate has dropped from 142.5 per thousand in 2000 to 121 per thousand in 2005, and the infant mortality rate, from 63.5 per thousand in 2000 to 61 per thousand in 2005.

Senegal has spent CFAF 850 million a year since 2004 on vaccines and consumables for this programme. The Government also ran a special campaign to eradicate measles in 2003 for children aged 9 months to 15 years at a cost of US$ 3.5 million.

Programme of comprehensive treatment for childhood diseases

Senegal launched this programme in 1999 with nationwide coverage. A national team was trained, with programme supervisors for each health district. The programme basically provides treatment for the deadliest diseases, i.e., acute respiratory infections, diarrhoea, malnutrition and measles.

Epidemic response programme

The State budget for the epidemic response programme increased from CFAF 250 million in 2004 to CFAF 350 million in 2006.

Improved nutrition programme

Severe malnutrition has flared up once more, with rates increasing from 19 per cent to 34.7 per cent between 1996 and 2001. This prompted the launch of the 10-year improved nutrition programme in 2002. It is a multisectoral programme comprising food security (agriculture, livestock farming and fishing), water and sanitation, besides support for community initiatives incorporating the gender perspective.

The programme complements general preventive health and malnutrition-treatment programmes. It supports staffing and training at health stations and has also begun giving small subsidies to income-generating activities. It is now operating in 60 per cent of the country’s health districts, reaching an average of 165,000 children under 3 and their mothers every month - 98,520 children in urban areas and 67,230 in rural areas.

The incidence of underweight children in areas covered by the programme fell from 23 per cent to 18 per cent between June and December 2004.

The State is committed to an investment programme in this sector worth 328,874,000,000 up to 2015.

Improved nutrition programme: funding 2003-2004

Year	External	Government	Total CFAF	Total US$
2003	2 112 731 374	176 000 000	2 288 731 374	4.6 million
2004	5 473 904 564	176 000 000	5 649 904 564	11.3 million

National anti-malaria programme

The Government has obtained funds for this programme as follows:

Anti-malaria programme: funding (in millions of US$)

Source	2004	2005	2006
State	1.75	1.75	1.92
Local authorities	0.13	0.13	0.13
General public	0.83	0.83	0.83
Partners	7.28	5.25	4.53
Total	9.99	7.96	7.41

National HIV/AIDS programme with a component for orphaned and vulnerable children

The HIV prevalence rate was estimated at 0.7 per cent in 2005 among the general population (Health and demographic survey 2005) and at 1.5 per cent at monitoring sites. The HIV/AIDS programme covers the period 2002-2006 and another national plan of action is in preparation for the period 2007-2011.

The table below shows budget allocations to the HIV/AIDS programme for 2002-2006.

HIV/AIDS programme: funding 2002-2006

National (State) funds contributed by the Government to combat HIV/AIDS	CFAF 5.73 billion
Global funds allocated to combating HIV/AIDS	CFAF 6.68 billion
Global funds allocated to prevention programmes	CFAF 3.44 billion
Global funds allocated to treatment and care programmes	CFAF 2.17 billion
Global funds allocated to care programmes for orphaned and vulnerable children	CFAF 0.13 billion
Global funds spent on people living with HIV/AIDS	CFAF 2.9 billion
Global funds spent on men who have sex with men (MSM)	CFAF 36.4 billion
Global funds spent on sex workers and their clients	CFAF 0.12 billion

Adolescent health

The project for the advancement of young people has set up eight departmental youth counselling centres. The national reproductive health strategy aims at nationwide coverage of youth centres, and applies a sophisticated approach providing such services as voluntary testing, prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and counselling. An average of 20,000 adolescents annually attend at each centre; United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) funding totals CFAF 5 million.

Social security policy

Through the Social Security Fund, the Government pays quarterly family allowances of CFAF 6,750 per child up to the age of 21 for children in full-time education, up to the age of 15 for children who are not in school and up to the age of 18 for children following apprenticeships (including in the craft sector).

The Health, Social and Family Department of the Social Security Fund provides other services to vulnerable groups, such as access to low-cost medicines and nutritional rehabilitation.

The present social security system is based on formal welfare provisions that cover only the children of workers enrolled in the Social Security Fund. Senegal has recently drawn up a national welfare strategy which includes as basic components the extension of welfare coverage to the informal sectors and welfare provision for vulnerable groups.

Programmes and services for children with disabilities

People with disabilities account for between 6 and 10 per cent of Senegal’s population: 32.76 per cent of these have motor disabilities; 16.60 per cent, visual disabilities; and 50.64 per cent, other disabilities such as deafness, albinism, mental illness, Hansen’s disease (leprosy), etc. Generally speaking, this is a group that leads a life of insecurity and dependence. According to other documentary sources, children account for an estimated 10 per cent of the total population of persons with disabilities.

The following programmes and services exist for children with disabilities:

An education programme with an integrational component that has enabled a number of children with disabilities to enrol in appropriately equipped State primary and pre‑primary schools (kindergartens or cases des tout petits);

The Talibou Dabo Centre for social rehabilitation of persons with motor disabilities;

The Verbo-Tonal Centre for social rehabilitation of deaf persons;

The Centre for Partially Sighted Children in Thiès.

Support programmes for families

In order to reduce poverty and assist disadvantaged families, the Government has set up:

A Social Development Fund (2002-2005) which, with 486 grass-roots organizations, including 300 women’s organizations, has supported 1,172 projects at an overall cost of CFAF 10.5 billion (including CFAF 2 billion to fund projects directly benefiting families). The total number of beneficiaries is 917,385;

A poverty-reduction support programme, funded to a total of CFAF 1.3 billion between 2003 and 2005 and targeting excluded and vulnerable groups (women, young people, children, persons with disabilities, older people, displaced persons and refugees) through their organizations;

A poverty-reduction programme costing 15 billion overall, which has provided microcredit to 75,236 beneficiaries, 80 per cent of them women;

A National Solidarity Fund, which had an estimated yearly expenditure of CFAF 650 million in 2004.

Support for children living below the poverty line

Support for children living below the poverty line is provided either through direct arrangements or through programmes to combat social exclusion and exploitation.

Direct support, which is a component of social assistance to associations and individuals, is normally provided in response to written applications for social assistance from individuals or groups/institutions to the Ministry of Women, the Family and Social Development or to the Ministry’s Department of Social Action, or through the Ministry’s regional services. Support may take the form of cash benefits, food or durable goods, or free health care and education. In 2004, the Department of Social Action of the Ministry of Women, the Family and Social Development provided support to 160 school institutions (including Koranic schools (daaras), to improve the situation of talibés) and to 133 widows and orphans, and placed 200 children at risk in training and educational programmes.

Various projects and institutions have been allocated counterpart funds from the 2006 consolidated investment budget, including:

The project to combat the worst forms of child labour (Government of Senegal/UNICEF/Government of Italy). Amount allocated: CFAF 203 million;

The Ginddi Centre for counselling, information and advice for children in difficult situations. Amount allocated: CFAF 50 million;

The training for family life project in the daaras. Amount allocated: CFAF 152 million.

According to the 2004 progress report on the poverty-reduction programme, the priority activities for children and women in the consolidated investment budget were financed 33 per cent and 67 per cent respectively, i.e. were allocated CFAF 4,434,000,000 and CFAF 7,994,000,000.

Protection of children in need of alternative care, including support for care institutions

The Senegalese Government makes budget allocations for children in need of alternative care, such as orphans, children from broken homes or living on the street, and abandoned children.

Alternative care institutions are subsidized primarily by social assistance budget allocations for orphans and widows (8 million in 2003, 11 million in 2004 and 14 million in 2006) and for children at moral risk or in conflict with the law. These allocations have benefited the following alternative care institutions:

SOS Kinderdorf International, which takes in orphaned or abandoned children;

The Franciscan Sisters’ nursery in Médina, which is an orphanage that takes in abandoned infants and infants not receiving parental care;

The Ginddi Centre, which takes in street children from broken homes;

Offices of the Department of Correctional Education and Social Protection dealing with minors, which received CFAF 74 million in 2003, CFAF 108 million in 2004 and CFAF 189 million in 2005.

Programmes and activities to prevent and offer protection from child abuse, child sexual exploitation and child labour

Senegal deals with these special child protection issues using a range of mechanisms, frameworks and projects:

The National Plan of Action to combat child abuse and sexual exploitation;

The project to combat the worst forms of child labour (Government of Senegal/UNICEF/Government of Italy), which has been instrumental in setting up local watchdog bodies to prevent and combat child abuse and sexual exploitation and departmental monitoring committees to combat the exploitation of children by begging, involving local authorities, directors of local public services, local elected officials, religious leaders and NGOs;

The ILO/IPEC project for children involved in the worst forms of child labour, in particular the exploitation of children by begging, child domestic labour and hazardous work in agriculture and fishing.

Programmes and services for abandoned children, including street children and especially talibés

The Government of Senegal has devised and implemented various programmes and services to combat the problem of abandonment, exclusion and exploitation of children, including:

Programmes to combat the worst forms of child labour, of which there are two in Senegal: (a) the project to combat the worst forms of child labour, operating under the auspices of the Ministry of Women, the Family and Social Development, and (b) the ILO/IPEC project, whose institutional base is the Ministry of the Civil Service, Labour, Employment and Professional Organizations. The project to combat the worst forms of child labour covers begging, girls’ labour and child abuse and sexual exploitation in nine departments; the ILO/IPEC project works with children involved in the worst forms of child labour, in particular the exploitation of children by begging, child domestic labour and hazardous work in agriculture and fishing;

The partnership initiative to get children living on the streets/street children off the streets (Government of Senegal, World Bank, UNICEF, France and civil society);

Two daara projects, one on trilingualism and the other on training for family life, which have grown out of innovative pilot projects on vocational training in the daaras and the introduction of trilingualism, and from a training curriculum for talibés and Koranic teachers which served as a teaching guide. Such initiatives, when scaled up and combined with access to canteens for the talibés as part of the daara modernization programme project launched by the President, will help to combat begging among the talibés.

Programmes and services for children affected by the Casamance conflict

The conflict in Casamance had a damaging impact owing in particular to the presence of landmines and a general climate of insecurity, intermittent and localized, generated by robberies and banditry. It is estimated that 60,000 people were displaced and 500 injured by mines, with 116 killed. Around 230 villages were abandoned and 4,000 schoolchildren displaced when their schools were destroyed. Several rural health centres closed down owing to the difficulty of recruiting staff. The situation has improved greatly since the signing of the peace agreements in December 2005, with the launch of programmes for the return of displaced persons, demining, repopulation of abandoned villages and economic and social recovery.

Senegal and its partners have set up the following programmes and services for child victims of the Casamance conflict:

Programme to prevent mine-related accidents: this has reached more than 40,000 children and their families and 500 head teachers and teachers from 112 schools in 51 villages;

A package of services comprising school canteens (CFAF 134 million: World Food Programme (WPF), UNICEF, Government of Italy and Caritas (595 canteens)) benefiting 241,570 schoolchildren; rehabilitation of classrooms and access to water and sanitation (separate latrines for boys and girls), benefiting 10,415 schoolchildren in 2005, including 4,819 girls;

The conflict prevention and transformation and stress management programme (Government of Senegal, GTZ, UNICEF): skills training for 3,000 teachers in human rights, stress management and peace;

Promotion of school enrolment: enrolments for 2005/06 alone totalled 130,003 children - 69,140 boys and 60,860 girls;

Programme to find and reintegrate displaced or refugee children (Pioneer Project): more than 10,000 children traced as a result of this partnership between the Government of Senegal and UNICEF.

Programmes for the recovery and rehabilitation of juvenile offenders

Programmes have been implemented by the following bodies:

The Department of Correctional Education and Social Protection, through 11 coordinating boards for educational measures in open centres; 2 social rehabilitation centres, 4 multi-purpose centres and 4 protection centres;

The Fort B Centre for rehabilitation and reintegration of minors (detention centre for minors in conflict with the law);

The Association Sénégalaise pour la Sauvegarde de l’Enfant (educational measures centred around metalwork and elementary education).

With reference to children deprived of a family environment and separated from their parents, please provide disaggregated data (by sex, age groups, urban and rural areas) for the years 2003, 2004 and 2005 on the number of children:

Separated from their parents;

No information available.

Placed in institutions;

Minors placed in institutions in Senegal are primarily children at moral risk or in conflict with the law, or children in orphanages such as the SOS children’s villages and other charitable institutions. The following figures can be given for State institutions:

Children in conflict with the law

	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	Total
Boys	878	932	895	1 056	976	1 133	1 359	1 477	1 540	1 148	10 816
Girls	216	234	240	422	306	456	492	424	504	438	3 610
Total	1 094	1 166	1 135	1 478	1 281	1 589	1 851	1 901	2 044	1 586	14 426

Note that these figures represent cumulative total admissions for each year. In several cases, children have stayed no more than a week.

Children at moral risk

	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	Total
Boys	2 203	1 934	2 374	2 459	2 814	3 903	3 293	4 059	4 314	5 098	30 780
Girls	2 169	1 203	1 470	1 304	1 630	1 917	1 772	1 948	1 980	2 218	15 529
Total	4 372	3 137	3 854	3 763	4 444	5 820	5 065	6 007	6 294	7 316	46 309

The table shows a gradual rise in admissions between 2001 and 2004, peaking in 2004. Note the clear predominance (by more than 80 per cent) of boys over girls.

Children at moral risk are dealt with by:

The Department of Correctional Education and Social Protection, through 11 coordinating boards for educational measures in open centres; 2 social rehabilitation centres, 4 multi-purpose centres and 4 protection centres;

The Fort B Centre for rehabilitation and reintegration of minors (detention centre for minors in conflict with the law);

The Sénégalaise Association pour la Sauvegarde de l’Enfant (educational measures centred around metalwork and elementary education).

Placed with foster families;

No data available.

Adopted domestically or through intercountry adoption.

According to the Department of Correctional Education and Social Welfare (AEMO), the number of children adopted through intercountry adoptions is:

2003: 10 children

2004: 15 children

2005: 14 children

that is, a total of 39 children over the three years.

It should be noted that adoption proceedings are extremely time-consuming because the competent Senegalese State agencies must screen applicants carefully to prevent any abuse, neglect or exploitation of adopted children. Couples who already have a child and wish to adopt another require a presidential waiver.

Please specify the number of children with disabilities, up to the age of 18, disaggregated by sex, age groups, urban and rural areas, covering the years 2003, 2004 and 2005 who are:

Living with their family;

No data available.

Living in institutions;

In 2004-2005, 3,383 disabled children (1,922 boys and 1,461 girls) were living in institutions; 2,862 of them were enrolled in school, 176 were engaged in vocational training and 88 went to nursery school.

Placed in foster care;

No data available.

Attending ordinary school;

In 2004-2005, 2,862 disabled children were enrolled in school and 88 children went to nursery school.

Attending special schools;

In 2004-2005, 176 disabled children were engaged in vocational training.

Not attending school.

No data available.

Please provide disaggregated statistical data (by sex, age groups, urban and rural areas) covering the years 2003, 2004 and 2005 on:

Rates of infant and child mortality;

	Infant mortality	Child mortality
Urban areas	52	91
Rural areas	82	160
Total	61	121

Immunization rates;

The DTP3 immunization coverage rate for children under 12 months was 73 per cent in 2003, 87 per cent in 2004 and 84 per cent in 2005 (joint WHO/UNICEF report).

Malnutrition rates;

	Underweight	Retarded growth	Wasting
Boys	16.4	16.5	8.5
Girls	18.4	16.3	6.8
Urban areas	9.6	8.6	5.7
Rural areas	21.6	20.6	8.8
Total	17.4	16.4	7.7

Adolescent health, including early pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), drug, tobacco and other substance abuse, mental health and suicide.

Early marriage and pregnancy are commoner among rural women. Nine per cent of births in rural areas are to young women between 13 and 19 years of age, compared with 4 per cent in urban areas.

With reference to child abuse, please provide disaggregated data (by sex, age groups and types of child abuse reported) covering the years 2003, 2004 and 2005 on:

The number of reported child abuse cases;

No data available.

The number and percentage of reports that have resulted in either a court decision or other types of follow-up;

No data available. However, several cases were reported in the press and by human rights organizations, State agencies such as the correctional education and social welfare services, and social workers. Some were brought before the courts and resulted in the imposition of penalties including prison terms. Most of the cases reported relate to maltreatment in Koranic schools (daaras).

The number and proportion of child victims who have received counselling and assistance in recovery.

Between June 2003 and 2006, the Ginddi Centre for counselling, information and advice for children in difficult situations received:

5,026 children, 3,129 of whom returned to their families following family mediation and 224 were placed in apprenticeships at vocational training establishments;

1,651 children underwent medical examinations;

2,023 street campaigns were carried out to direct children towards the Centre.

Under the bilateral agreement with Mali to combat trafficking in children and in partnership with the International Organization for Migration, the Centre has taken in, sheltered and organized the return to their families of 69 trafficked Malian children.

Thanks to the establishment of a toll-free hotline, the Centre has received 217,002 telephone calls, categorized as follows:

Calls from children: 57,762

Calls from parents: 48,550

Calls from Koranic teachers: 26,422

Calls from third persons related to the children: 29,730

Unspecified calls: 54,538

A large number of NGOs, mostly Senegalese - Avenir de l’Enfant and ENDA-GRAF in particular - provide advice and assistance for the rehabilitation of children, especially street children. No information is available on their total numbers.

With reference to the right to education, please provide disaggregated statistical data (by sex, age groups, urban and rural areas) covering the years 2003, 2004 and 2005, in percentage of the relevant age group, on:

Rates of literacy, under and over the age of 18 years;

Illiteracy affects women disproportionately: only 28.2 per cent of women over 15 are literate, compared with 49.1 per cent of men. The graph below shows that efforts have been made over the last 10 years to achieve a noticeable reduction in illiteracy rates.

Illiteracy rates (10 years +) in Senegal

Changing illiteracy rates

Rate of enrolment in pre-primary, primary and secondary schools;

Senegal has expended substantial effort over the past five years to introduce early learning programmes (ages 3 to 6). School enrolment rates increased from 8 per cent in 2000 to 20 per cent in 2005 (including 52 per cent girls), with the proliferation of kindergartens (cases des tout-petits), community-based educational facilities and private establishments. It is worth pointing out that enrolment rates in urban areas are higher, reaching as high as 42 per cent.

The gross enrolment rate in elementary school stands at 82.5 per cent, comprising 80.6 per cent of girls and 84.4 per cent of boys. Act No. 91-92, which defined the character of national education, was reinforced considerably by the December 2004 amendment making education for children aged 6 to 16 compulsory.

Primary school gross enrolment rate

	2003-2004	2004-2005
Boys	82.4%	84.4%
Girls	77.9%	80.6%
Total	79.9%	82.5%

Secondary school gross enrolment rate

	2002-2003	2003-2004	2004-2005
Boys	32.3%	35%	37.4%
Girls	21.1%	24.2%	26.7%
Total	26.5%	29.4%	31.9%

Percentage of children completing primary andsecondary education

	2002-2003	2003-2004	2004-2005
Boys	47.1%	54.1%	60.1%
Girls	43.9%	42.9%	47.5%
Total	45.6%	48.7%	53.9%

According to forecasts and in conformity with commitments made by the Government, Senegal will meet its Education For All objectives in 2015, thanks to successful implementation of the Ten-year Education and Training Programme, in addition to an investment programme based on the Millennium Development Goals. Moreover, the Senegalese Government has undertaken to reach 100 per cent school enrolment by 2010.

Number and percentage of dropouts and repeat-year rates;

Dropout rate among primary school children

The primary school dropout rate is an estimated 10.3 per cent. Dropout is frequent during the first years of school (11.7 per cent), partly owing to the dispersion of schools in rural areas and to the fact that some schools do not cater for all age-groups which together make it difficult for weaker students to repeat classes.

Repeat-year rates among primary school children

	2004-2005
Boys	Girls
Urban areas	13.55%	13.45%
Rural areas	10.46%	10.26%
Total	11.85%

The repeat-year rate remains high and, as pupils progress, increases gradually from 8.1 per cent in the first year of primary school to 23.8 per cent in the final year. At this level, the selective nature of the first-year entrance examination, which restricts admission to secondary schools, explains the increased repeat-year rate.

Teacher-to-pupil ratio and number of children per class;

On average there are 45 pupils per teacher, not because of a shortage in teaching staff, but because of efforts to rationalize teaching staff who previously taught much smaller classes (32 pupils per teacher).

Please provide disaggregated statistical data (by sex, age groups, urban and rural areas) on the number of children infected by HIV/AIDS:

The HIV/AIDS prevalence rate is 0.7 per cent, comprising 0.9 per cent women and 0.4 per cent men (health and demographic survey 2005); 4,700 people, including 200 children, are receiving free antiretroviral treatment. According to information from monitoring centres, 23,410 children were HIV/AIDS orphans in 2005.

Children infected with HIV/AIDS;

	2003	2004	2005
Number of children infected with HIV/AIDS	5 140	5 140	6 370
Annual deaths	1 230	1 360	1 500

Children affected by HIV/AIDS;

No data available.

Children heading households because of HIV/AIDS;

No data available.

HIV/AIDS orphans living in extended families or institutions.

2003: 18,600 children

2004: 20,000 children

2005: 23,410 children

Please provide disaggregated statistical data (including by sex, age groups and type of crime) covering the years 2003, 2004 and 2005, in particular on the number of:

Persons under the age of 18 who have allegedly committed a crime reported to the police;

	2002	2003	2004	Total
Boys	1 477	1 540	1 148	4 165
Girls	424	504	438	1 366
Total	1 901	2 044	1 586	5 531

Persons under the age of 18 who have been charged and convicted, type of punishment or sanctions ordered and length of custodial sentences;

Fort B is a juvenile detention centre. The table below indicates, for the year 2004 (the only data available), the distribution of juveniles in conflict with the law according to the measures taken. In this prison, 574 juveniles were held in 2004, compared with 606 in 2003.

Measures taken	Numbers
(1) Placed in the care of those bearing civil liability	186
(2) Placed in the Dakar multi-purpose centre	30
(3) Placed in the Nianing social rehabilitation centre	14
(4) Placed in the Sébikotane social rehabilitation centre	8
(5) Placed in the Pikine social rehabilitation centre	3
(6) Placed with the Association Sénégalaise pour la Sauvegarde de l’Enfant (ASSEA)	1
(7) Children released	84
(8) Children receiving unconditional sentences	130
(9) Children receiving suspended sentences	87
(10) Numbers on 31 December	31
Total	574

No data are kept for other centres on children sentenced to terms in juvenile wings of adult prisons.

The number of detention facilities for persons under the age of 18 in conflict with the law, and those facilities’ capacity;

According to the Prison Service, Senegal has 11 juvenile units in the 11 regions (1 unit at each prison), 1 juvenile custodial and correctional facility in Dakar called “Fort B”, and 2 juvenile units in the two detention centres for women, that is, a total of 14 juvenile detention facilities.

The number of persons under the age of 18 detained in these facilities and persons under the age of 18 detained in adult facilities;

On average, there are 3 juveniles in each prison, that is a total of 33 juveniles in detention, 50 juveniles held in the Fort B juvenile custodial and correctional facility and 7 girls in the two women’s prisons, making a total of 90 juveniles in detention, including 7 girls.

The number of persons under the age of 18 kept in pretrial detention, and the average length of their detention;

Reported cases of abuse and maltreatment of persons under the age of 18 that occurred during their arrest or detention;

No data available.

The number of persons under the age of 18 tried and sentenced as adults.

No data available.

With reference to special protection measures, please provide statistical data (including by sex, age groups, urban and rural areas) for the years 2003, 2004 and 2005 on the number of children:

Involved in sexual exploitation, including prostitution, pornography and trafficking, and the number of children provided with access to recovery or other forms of assistance;

According to various surveys and Government estimates, some 100,000 children are living in absolute poverty: street children, who are subject to sexual exploitation and often in conflict with the law. No data are available on the remaining points.

The number of children involved in substance abuse and the number of children who received treatment and recovery and reintegration assistance;

No data available.

The number of children involved in child labour, indicating type of work;

There are some 500,000 children engaged in the worst forms of child labour, including: 100,000 children performing strenuous domestic work or working in agriculture or animal husbandry; 30,000 boys are working in the handicrafts and informal sectors; 50,000 girls between 6 and 18 years of age mostly from marginalized rural areas, are employed as domestic workers.

The number of children working and/or living in the street (please provide statistical data on talibés );

There is no comprehensive information on the number of children working or living in the street. The Ministry of Women, the Family and Social Development and the World Bank, the International Labour Office (ILO) and UNICEF have planned a series of studies and assessments - quantitative and qualitative assessments and studies on child beggars - to be undertaken in 2006.

The number of children affected by the Casamance conflict.

For now, the exact number of children affected by the armed conflict is unknown. However, in the course of a study carried out by the Government and the World Bank in April 2003 on vulnerable children in Senegal, of a group of 190 children questioned by government agents in Ziguinchor, 90.5 per cent were being directly affected by the conflict.

A study was carried out in February 2004 in partnership with Save the Children Sweden on the situation of child victims of the conflict in Casamance.The study concerned 4,000 children and its outcome helped assess the main difficulties faced by children in the region. The findings, based on a sample of 4,000 children, revealed that:

7 per cent of mothers and 20 per cent of fathers are dead;

31 per cent of children are living with another family member;

6 per cent of children are refugees;

19 per cent of children are separated;

47 per cent of children are displaced.

The table below shows the impact of the crisis according to age groups and physical, mental and emotional and socio-economic characteristics:

Impact Age groups	Physical	Mental and emotional	Socio-economic
2-6 years	16%	17%	22%
7-10 years	23%	34%	34%
11-16 years	61%	49%	44%
Total	3%	34%	63%

General measures of implementation

The Committee would appreciate receiving information on those activities meant to implement the recommendations contained in the Committee’s previous concluding observations on the initial report of Senegal (CRC/C/3/Add.31) that have not yet been fully implemented, in particular those regarding: de facto prohibition of female genital mutilation as well as any form of corporal punishment within the family; ensuring an equal age for marriage for girls and boys; and measures taken to ensure the effective enjoyment of fundamental rights and protection of any form of discrimination against talibés .

The practice of female genital mutilation was in effect banned in Senegal by Act No. 99‑05 of 29 January 1999 (art. 2), which amended certain provisions in articles 297 bis, 299 bis, 319 bis and 379 bis of the Criminal Code. The Act makes female genital mutilation, sexual harassment, paedophilia and corruption of minors criminal offences. Each time a case is brought before an administrative tribunal or court of law, the law against female genital mutilation is applied. Not all cases of female genital mutilation carried out within the family are reported. There is a groundswell towards public renunciation of female genital mutilation and early marriage (see item 6 of this section), making Senegal become a model country at the international level. In December 2005 Dakar hosted an inter-parliamentary Conference on “Violence against women, abandoning female genital mutilation: the role of national Parliaments” organized by the African Parliamentary Union, the Inter-Parliamentary Union and UNICEF.

Senegal has set itself the objective of eradicating female genital mutilations and early marriages by 2015.

Thus far, there are no provisions in national law specifically against corporal punishment within the family, but some parts of the Criminal Code establish penalties for intentional beatings and injuries. On 16 June 2006, the Day of the African Child, Senegal launched a national campaign to end violence against children within and beyond the family environment.

With regard to fundamental rights and the prevention of all forms of discrimination against talibés, the following initiatives have been or are currently being carried out:

Incorporation of efforts to eradicate begging and restore the rights of talibés into programmes to eradicate the worst forms of child labour, and introduction of trilingualism and family life education in Koranic schools (daaras);

The project to modernize the daaras launched by the President, which will be incorporated into the national education system;

The adoption of Act No. 2005-02 of 29 April 2005 on trafficking in persons, related practices and victim protection;

The convening of a national conference on child beggars by the end of 2006;

The partnership to get children off the street, supported by the World Bank, UNICEF, ILO, French cooperation and civil society;

The Presidential Council on the issue of child beggars scheduled for September 2006.

Please provide information on cases, if any, in which the Convention has been directly invoked in domestic courts and, if so, give examples.

The Convention has been invoked once by a Fourth Chamber judge in connection with a case submitted for pretrial proceedings on 26 January 2006 which concerned a young girl implicated in smuggling. Rather than imposing the prison sentence which the offence would normally warrant, the judge invoked one of the principles of the Convention, namely the best interests of the child, and sentenced the girl to non-custodial surveillance.

Please provide information on the independent monitoring mechanism, as well as on its mandate and budget allocation. Indicate if the State party intends to develop a national human rights commission or an ombudsman for children with jurisdiction to receive complaints.

Thus far, there is no independent monitoring mechanism. However, an ombudsman’s office has been established within the Legal Advice Centre, a new institution in Senegal whose work is based on traditional principles and methods for the resolution of conflict within the family. The ombudsman is appointed by the Public Prosecutor.

A High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Promotion of Peace is part of the Office of the President.

Please provide information on the National Plan of Action, in particular whether it covers all areas of the Convention and takes into account the objectives and goals of the outcome document entitled “A world fit for children” of the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on Children in 2002, and on the measures taken to implement the Plan.

All programmes, policies and sectoral plans of action (health and nutrition, education and protection) for children take account of the objectives and goals of the outcome document of the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on Children in 2002.

Please give information on procedures of, and on the bodies effectively involved in, data collection.

Data collection was carried out under the direct supervision of the Ministry of Women, the Family and Social Development. A preparatory committee comprising representatives of the various ministerial departments, civil society, national and international NGOs and the United Nations system, including UNICEF and ILO, was set up as follows:

Ministry of Women, the Family and Social Development;

Ministry of Health and Preventive Medicine;

Ministry of Education;

Ministry of the Economy and Finance;

Ministry of Planning and Sustainable Development;

Ministry of the Civil Service, Labour, Employment and Professional Organizations;

Ministry of Justice;

The Coalition of Children’s Associations and NGOs;

The network of parliamentarians for population and development;

Save the Children Sweden;

UNICEF and ILO.

Many of the documents from programmes and projects for children run by the various ministerial departments were consulted.

Please provide updated information on efforts to disseminate the Convention, the State party report and the previous concluding observations of the Committee (CRC/C/15/Add.44).

The Senegalese report was prepared in the course of a workshop attended by all State institutions, NGOs and other partners involved in the implementation of the Convention in Senegal. After the workshop and finalization of the report, it was sent to all those principally concerned.

The Committee’s final comments were used to improve national planning on the issues of begging, excision, child marriage and registration of births. They resulted in:

The promotion of legislative reforms, for example on begging (Act No. 2005-02 of 29 April 2005); and preliminary drafts of legislation to give children greater legal protection and on child sexual abuse and exploitation;

The amendment of Act No. 91-92, the Education Act, making school attendance compulsory for children aged 6 to 16;

Significant progress in combating excision. Between July 1997, the date of the first public declaration in Malicounda Bamabara, and March 2006, 1,679 villages out of a total of 5,000 which practise excision (i.e. 33.5 per cent) have publicly renounced the practice. The movement gathered pace in 2000 and between 2000 and 2006, 1,531 villages (91 per cent) renounced the practice as a result of the human-rights approach developed under the National Plan of Action to eradicate female genital mutilation and the partnership with UNICEF and Tostan, an NGO;

The development and adoption of departmental plans to combat the worst forms of child labour;

An increased rate of birth registration. The registration rate in 2000 was 60.9 per cent; thanks to the national drive led by the Government in 2003, 2004 and 2005, supported by UNICEF and Plan International, the rate has increased to 78.5 per cent, a rise of 17 points.

Please provide updated information on efforts made to provide training on, and awareness of, the Convention and human rights in general, to children, parents, teachers, social workers and other professionals working with and for children.

The Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its 40th report on the implementation of the Agenda for Action adopted at the World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, “has expressed concerns about the lack of adequate training provided to law enforcement officials and judicial personnel in dealing with child related issues in most countries in the [West Africa] region”.

In 2001, in response to this concern, the Ministry of Justice set up a project to strengthen legal protection for minors in Senegal, through the good offices of the Judicial Training Centre and in partnership with the Director-General for Children’s Rights and the Association pour la promotion de l’éducation et de la formation à l’étranger of the French Community in Belgium.

Coordinated by the Judicial Training Centre under the auspices of Senegal’s Ministry of Justice, the project also involves the Special Social Work Training College, the Police College, the Gendarmerie College in Ouakam, the Health and Social Work Training College and the Fann University Hospital Child Psychiatry Unit (Ker Xaleyi).

The project’s overall aim is to strengthen legal protection for minors by providing appropriate initial and further training for judicial officials dealing with children (children in conflict with the law and minors at risk).

Enhancing the ability of judges, police officers, gendarmes, prison officers and social workers to deal with situations involving children requires an appropriate training in juvenile justice and children’s rights, emphasizing not only the legal aspects of the problem (international and domestic law) but also its psychological and social aspects (child psychology, child abuse, child counselling, adolescents’ problems, etc.).

This training also encourages communication and improved cooperation between the various categories of professionals involved in juvenile justice, since it helps each group to understand the work of the others.

The partners

The five colleges involved in the project each have a role to play in strengthening and protecting children’s rights in the judicial process:

The Judicial Training Centre is responsible for the initial training of probationary judges and for in-service training of serving judges, particularly those dealing with minors, namely examining magistrates in juvenile cases, juvenile court judges, deputy public prosecutors in juvenile cases at all 11 regional courts, and the judges on the 2 appeal courts of Dakar and Kaolack;

The Special Social Work Training College is responsible for training future specialist educators and professionals already working with minors at risk or in conflict with the law;

The Police College is responsible for training police officers and prison officers who will be detached to police stations to conduct investigations involving minors held in the juvenile wings of Senegal’s prisons;

The Gendarmerie College trains gendarmes who will be assigned to gendarmerie stations and, whose responsibilities will include investigations involving minors;

The Health and Social Work Training College is responsible for training social workers working with disadvantaged families at centres for social advancement and reintegration;

The Fann University Hospital Child Psychiatry Unit (Ker Xelayi) has also joined the project, so as to introduce a psychological and social dimension to juvenile justice and the training offered to those working in that field.

Activities

An initial training module has been put in place comprising courses on the operation of the gendarmerie, the police force and the prison administration, to give social workers and judges an understanding of their counterparts’ roles and functions; and courses on child psychology, teenage problems, the various methods of social control, children at risk, psychological aspects of abuse, forensic medicine as it relates to abuse (sexual and other), counselling and hearings for children, and Senegalese and international legislation on the protection of children (including training on the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Riyadh Guidelines and the Beijing Rules). Practical workshops, run by the Fann University Hospital systemic psychiatry team, are also organized as a means of reinforcing the training through role-play, simulations and case studies.

As to in-service training, several seminars have been organized since 2002 with financial support from UNICEF.

The topics covered are child psychology, teenage problems, Senegalese and international legislation on juvenile justice and cooperation between those involved in the judicial process.

A trainer-training session on child sexual exploitation was held at the Judicial Training Centre as part of the legal protection project, with UNICEF and the Ministry of the Family, Social Development and National Solidarity, and with cooperation from Italy.

Training 2002-2003

Thiès, 24-26 June 2002, for teams from the Diourbel and Thiès regions;

Saint-Louis, 5-7 November 2002, for teams from the Louga and Saint-Louis regions;

Kaolack, 19-21 November 2002, for teams from Kaolack, Fatick and Tambacounda;

Ziguinchor, February 2003, for teams from Kolda and Ziguinchor;

December 2003, for teams from the Dakar region.

Training 2004

Thiès, 28-29 June 2004, for teams from the Diourbel and Thiès regions;

Ziguinchor, 14-15 July 2004, for teams from Kolda and Ziguinchor;

Saint-Louis, 17-18 November 2004, for teams from the Louga and Saint-Louis regions;

Kaolack, 30 November-1 December 2004, for teams from Kaolack, Fatick and Tambacounda;

Dakar, 13-14 April 2005, for teams from the Dakar region.

These training sessions, intended to be a break from the normal work routine, brought together the various parties working with minors - judges, police, gendarmes, prison officers and social workers - in an inter-disciplinary approach.

The recommendations made during the sessions by field workers in juvenile justice were submitted to the network of parliamentarians for population and development and endorsed at a one-day conference on legal reinforcement of judicial protection for minors held on 4 March 2004.

In addition, a preliminary draft bill on legal reinforcement of judicial protection for minors in judicial proceedings was submitted to the Commission on Reform of the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure in March 2005.

An evaluation of the in-service training sessions and the impact of the reinforcement of the legal protection project nationwide was carried out in June 2005, as a result of which a number of in-service training sessions were organized for particular groups:

Training for gendarmerie station commanders from Dakar and Thiès, 27‑29 September 2005, at the Gendarmerie College;

Training for prison officers with responsibility for minors, 8-10 November 2005 (group 1) and 22-24 November 2005 (group 2), at the Judicial Training Centre;

Training for police investigators with responsibility for minors, 15‑17 November 2005, at the Police College.

A statistical study on minors in conflict with the law in 2003 was conducted by the Development Research Institute and the Office of the Inspector-General of the Administration of Justice, at the Ministry of Justice; a seminar to report on the study was held in April 2005.

Another study on social work with children at risk and in conflict with the law was funded by the Association pour la promotion de l’éducation et de la formation à l’étranger.

A handbook for those working with minors, which has been prepared and distributed widely throughout the country, affords a means of providing better care for minors at risk or in conflict with the law and coordinating the work of the various parties involved.

In addition to these initiatives to enhance the abilities of those working in the field, Senegal has taken significant steps to increase public awareness of the Convention, as follows:

Establishment of a multisectoral team of clergy, theologians, cultural workers and writers, to prepare brochures on the Convention in the national languages;

Several Islamic conferences with Egyptian theological experts, on Islam and children’s rights and, in particular, Islam and excision;

Taking the Convention into the community using a cultural approach; translation of the Convention into three national languages;

Production of 10 short publications on the Convention for children;

Production of more than 10,000 leaflets on the Convention for schools;

Production of 20,000 ordinary calendars per month for six years; the calendars feature articles of the Convention and are intended for the general public;

Production of special week-by-week calendars for schoolchildren.

Please provide updated information on the cooperation between the State party and the international community, including with non-governmental organizations, in the efforts to implement the Convention.

Cooperation agreements with:

UNDP, UNICEF, ILO, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNIFEM, WPF, the World Bank, the International Organization for Migration (OIM), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC);

The French, Belgian, German, Kuwaiti and Japanese cooperation missions;

USAID;

Plan International;

Save the Children;

Aide et Action;

Population Council;

World Vision;

Italy and Italian NGOs.

Please indicate the issues affecting children that the State party considers to be priorities, requiring the most urgent attention with regard to the implementation of the Convention.

The main issues affecting children which Senegal intends to address during implementation of the Convention are:

The exploitation of children by begging;

Universal birth registration;

Combating violence against children, including abuse and sexual exploitation of children.

PART II

Please provide the Committee with copies of the text of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in all official languages of the State party as well as in other languages or dialects, when available. If possible, please submit these texts in electronic form.

PART III

Under this section, the State party is to briefly (3 pages maximum) update the information provided in its report with regard to:

New or enacted legislation

On 19 September 2003, by virtue of Act No. 2003-17 of 18 July 2003, Senegal ratified the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its Protocols, to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, and against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, signed in Palermo in December 2000.

Provision for the legal protection of children was recently enhanced by a new law (Act No. 2005-02 of 29 April 2005, on combating trafficking in persons and similar practices, and on the protection of victims). The Act punishes trafficking in human beings generally and children in particular, tackles the problem of exploitation of children by begging and protects victims in accordance with the recommendations contained in the Protocol to the United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime.

This law is without doubt the most important compilation of international legal instruments. Breaking with the past, it addresses situations and practices long considered sensitive, such as child begging. It was made possible by a personal intervention in the public debate by the President, who, in his address to the nation on 3 April 2005, the eve of the forty‑fifth anniversary of Senegalese independence, strongly condemned all forms of economic exploitation of children and in particular child begging.

By Act No. 2003-24 of 19 August 2003, Senegal ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography.

By Act No. 2003-25 of 19 August 2003, Senegal ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict, of 25 May 2000.

An amendment to the Education Act (No. 91-92), making school attendance compulsory for children aged 6 to 16, was adopted in December 2004.

New institutions

Under the kindergarten (Case des Tout-Petits) project, Senegal has established a National Office for Kindergartens in the Office of the President, which is responsible, among other things, for:

Holistic, comprehensive provision for the very young (general upbringing, protection, early learning, health and nutrition) in rural and urban areas, not only in kindergartens but also in community early learning centres;

Coordination of all institutions catering for the very young.

Newly implemented policies

Following the establishment of the kindergarten project and the National Office, a national policy on comprehensive early childhood development was prepared in a participatory process.

One component of the family and social development policy covers aspects of the protection of children’s rights.

The review of the poverty reduction strategy paper, which serves as the frame of reference and coordination for development action by the Government and its partners, provided an opportunity to incorporate issues relating to the protection of children’s rights.

A framework national plan has been prepared and submitted to the authorities providing a strategic frame of reference for all action to combat the worst forms of child labour.

Newly implemented programmes and projects, and their scope

Introduction of vocational training into the daaras: alternative model of trilingualism and education for family life in the daaras

Beginning in 2004, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Women, the Family and Social Development, with support from UNICEF and UNFPA, have set up projects to introduce trilingualism (mother tongue, French and Arabic) and vocational training into the daaras. This measure is part of efforts to combat begging and is intended to ensure that talibés receive, in addition to the Koran, a basic education and a grounding in Arabic, French and the national languages.

Trilingualism in the daaras is a measure employed by the Government to raise the gross school enrolment rate and modernize Koranic education so that talibés get a quality education.

The Education for Family Life in the Daaras project is designed to improve provision for the talibés and enhance their quality of life. Activities under the project include:

Preparation of teaching materials (manuals, curriculum) translated into the national languages;

Communication to change patterns of behaviour;

Skills enhancement and training in education for family life and in harmonized Arabic script;

Material and medical support for the daaras.

These projects are part of the Ten-Year Education and Training Programme, which provides for the establishment and development of alternative models, since the formal education system alone is insufficient. For each locality, an education system is proposed that matches the prevailing social and cultural conditions.

Programmes for the protection of children in risky and vulnerable situations

Senegal has made strenuous efforts to combat the worst forms of child labour, with the support of specialist institutions such as UNICEF, ILO, the Italian Government, NGOs and all parts of civil society.

It has two projects under way, the project to combat the worst forms of child labour, run from the Ministry of Women, the Family and Social Development (supported by UNICEF and the Italian Government), and the ILO/IPEC project, whose institutional base is the Ministry of the Civil Service, Employment, Labour and Professional Organizations.

The project to combat the worst forms of child labour is active in the areas of begging, girls’ labour, and child abuse and sexual exploitation in nine departments (Dakar, Pikine, Guédiawaye, Rufique, Mbour, Saint Louis, Fatick, Ziguinchor and Louga).

Outcomes of this project

Preparation and implementation of a national plan of action to combat child abuse and sexual exploitation;

Establishment of two local watchdog bodies against child abuse and sexual exploitation in Mbour and Saint Louis (tourist areas), and of a local watchdog body against girls’ labour in Fatick;

Creation of a network of journalists for the protection of children’s rights;

Preparation of a rights-based manual for journalists on “The media and the protection of children”, which has had wide distribution;

Preparation and distribution of a manual on prevention of abuse and sexual exploitation, for children, educators and parents;

Support for government institutions offering psychological and social care for children in difficult situations;

Support for implementation of local action plans to combat the worst forms of child labour in target areas;

Increased awareness among local elected representatives and the general public, through a dynamic partnership with the network of parliamentarians for population and development;

Increased awareness among children of the risks associated with the worst forms of child labour, and recruitment of 200 children into anti-begging brigades.

ILO/IPEC project

The ILO/IPEC project works with children involved in the worst forms of child labour, in particular the exploitation of children by begging, child domestic labour and hazardous work in agriculture and fishing.

The project’s objectives are:

To get 3,000 children out of the worst forms of child labour such as begging, domestic labour and hazardous work in agriculture, fishing and livestock farming;

To prevent the recruitment of 6,000 children into the worst forms of child labour;

To provide support to 1,000 families, in the form of training or direct assistance, at an average cost of around US$ 75 per child per year;

To prepare and implement a national master plan to serve as a strategic frame of reference for policy on combating the worst forms of child labour in Senegal.

In the area of legal protection and combating violence to children

Birth registration

As in other countries of the West and Central Africa subregion, registration of children at birth has been made a priority by the Government of Senegal so that children can benefit from this right in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

In order to attain this goal, Senegal is committed, with partners such as UNICEF, Plan Sénégal and UNFPA, to an extensive birth registration campaign, launched on 16 June 2003.

Thanks to a range of activities throughout the country, Senegal has obtained satisfactory results that have pushed the national rate of birth registration up from 60.9 per cent (Multiple‑indicator cluster survey report 2000) to 78.5 per cent (survey conducted in 2004).

The next objectives are:

Universal birth registration;

Action as recommended in the document “Promotion de l’enregistrement des enfants à la naissance; priorités 2005-2006” (Promoting birth registration: priorities for 2005-2006).

Renunciation of excision and child marriage

The movement to abandon the practices of excision and child marriage has gathered pace since 2000. Between 2000 and 2006, 1,531 villages have publicly renounced the practice as a result of the human rights approach developed under the National Plan of Action to eradicate female genital mutilation and the partnership with UNICEF and Tostan, an NGO.

Legislative amendments

Act No. 2003-17 of 18 July 2003, on the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its Protocols, to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, and against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, signed in Palermo in December 2000;

Act No. 2005-02 of 29 April 2005, on combating trafficking in persons and similar practices, and on the protection of victims. The Act punishes trafficking in human beings generally and children in particular, tackles the problem of exploitation of children by begging and protects victims in accordance with the recommendations contained in the Protocol to the United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime;

Ratification, by Act No. 2003-24 of 19 August 2003, of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography;

Ratification, by Act No. 2003-25 of 19 August 2003, of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict, of 25 May 2000;

Adoption in December 2004 of an amendment to the Education Act (No. 91-92), making school attendance compulsory for children aged 6 to 16;

Preliminary draft bill on the reinforcement of protection for minors, submitted to the Commission on Reform of the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure;

Preliminary draft bill on reinforcement of the protection of children against abuse and sexual exploitation;

Draft children’s code.

Notes