The East African Civil Society Organizations’ Forum (EACSOF) Kenya Chapter, Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) and the Mentoring and Empowerment Programme for Young Women (MEMPROW) have as such partnered with the Gender and Community Development Department at the East African Community Secretariat to establish mechanisms that can mitigate the effects of COVID-19 and address the GBV challenge in the region. The objective of the initiative is to strengthen monitoring, reporting and accountability mechanisms of Regional and Sub-regional bodies on GBV as well as practices that promote the economic empowerment of women and girls through:
Establishing a Regional GBV Sector Working Group.
Holding bi-weekly virtual meetings with the Regional GBV Working Group on prevention and response to GBV during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Developing a tool for the Working Group to fill in their GBV interventions during COVID-19 period.
Continuous Assessments on Continuous Assessments on GBV hotspots and economically hard-hit areas for women in business around the region and cross- border areas.
Partner with Stakeholders and Media to report GBV cases and to seek redress for the victims
This initiative takes cognizance of the commitments EAC Partner States have made in Article 6(d) of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community to adhere to the principles of democracy, the rule of law, accountability, transparency, social justice, equal opportunities, gender equality, as well as recognition, promotion and protection of human and people’s rights. Pursuant to the above provision, the EAC has further developed the EAC Gender Policy that places the elimination of Gender-Based Violence in all settings as a core goal for all governments and stakeholders and the economic empowerment of women in the region as a major pathway to development.
The East African Community (EAC) Partner States have been actively enforcing measures to curb the COVID-19 Pandemic. Since the announcement of the first case of COVID-19 in East Africa Region, Partner States have instituted several measures both at individual and EAC regional level in an effort to control the spread of infections. Apart from social distancing and hygiene measures, Partner States have employed various measures which include fiscal and monetary measures to cushion the vulnerable groups, including cash transfer, food distribution, and tax relief, among others. Partner States also instituted lockdowns and curfews, which has led to economic hardships and mental stress in families that has increased insistences of violence at home.
EAC Partner States have reported a sharp increase in the number of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) cases. Ministries responsible for Gender across the region have reported near to a 48% increase in the Gender-Based Violence cases reported to the Police or through the GBV Toll-Free lines. The measures to respond to COVID-19 have further exacerbated risk factors for vulnerable populations such as women, young people and persons living with disabilities (PWDs) as they could be locked in homes with their abusers. GBV cases, including physical and emotional abuse, rape, sexual exploitation, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and early marriages, are on the rise. The media has also reported that while all attention shifts to fighting COVID-19, there is an increase of cases of maternal mortality and limited lack of access to healthcare, due to limited means of transport to hospitals during curfew periods.
Available evidence further suggests that whereas the health measures are necessary, they perpetuate the discrimination of women and girls from economic activity and are not practical for many women workers. Measures of social distancing and staying at home are far beyond the reach and access of informal workers and traders. Many of the women informal workers, who are often the primary providers for their households, live and work in conditions that are characterized by over-crowding and limited to essential water and sanitation facilities. Social distancing and staying home are mostly possible for middle-class office workers covered by social security but less so for women in the informal sector. The informal workers, therefore, are less protected and fall between the cracks, excluded from formal work-related protections as well as from state social assistance programmes that target the very poor and those outside the labour market. The COVID-19 situation is, therefore, a ‘double-edged sword’ for most women; whether they stay at home or go to work, they still face the risk of COVID-19, poverty and Gender-Based Violence
The strains caused by the spread of the Coronavirus further places women in frontline caregiving roles that put them at higher risk for exposure to COVID-19. As health systems become stretched, many people with COVID-19 will need to be cared for at home, adding to women’s overall burden, as well as putting them at higher risk of becoming infected.
This trend of events ultimately provides an opportunity for urgent GBV and EE interventions to ensure Partner States comply with the International and Regional commitments to gender equality and the promotion of human rights. This will be achieved through targeted advocacy aimed at influencing National priorities and promoting the Partner States commitments towards strategic resourcing for women’s rights and gender equality during its COVID-19 interventions.
The East African Community (EAC) Partner States have been actively enforcing measures to curb the COVID-19 Pandemic. Since the announcement of the first case of COVID-19 in East Africa Region, Partner States have instituted several measures both at individual and EAC regional level in an effort to control the spread of infections.
EAC Partner States have reported a sharp increase in the number of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) cases. Ministries responsible for Gender across the region have reported near to a 48% increase in the Gender-Based Violence cases reported to the Police or through the GBV Toll-Free lines. The measures to respond to COVID-19 have further exacerbated risk factors for vulnerable populations as they could be locked in homes with their abusers.
The East African Civil Society Organizations’ Forum (EACSOF) Kenya Chapter, Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) and the Mentoring and Empowerment Programme for Young Women (MEMPROW) have as such partnered with the Gender and Community Development Department at the East African Community Secretariat to establish mechanisms that can mitigate the effects of COVID-19 and address the GBV challenge in the region.
Any act which causes physical harm as a result of unlawful physical force. Physical violence can take the form of, among others, serious and minor assault, deprivation of liberty and manslaughter.
Any act which causes psychological harm to an individual. Pyschological violence can take the form of, for example, coercion, defamation, verbal insult or harassment.
Any act or behaviour which causes economic harm to an individual. Economic violence can take the form of, for example, property damage, restricting access to financial resources, education or the labour market, or not complying with economic responsibilities, such as alimony.
The Inter-Agency Working Group on Children (IAWG) is a group of international and regional non-governmental organisations that have supported the development and implementation of the East Africa Community Child Policy.
This group is composed of United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Save the Children International, Plan International, World Vision International, the African Child Policy Forum (ACPF), the African Platform for Social Protection (APSP), Regional Inter-Agency Task Team on Children Affected by AIDS (RIATT-ESA) and Elizabeth Glaser Paediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF).
The main goal of the IAWG is to support the EAC Secretariat and Partner States in the implementation of the EAC Child Policy and the formulation, implementation of related policies, global standards and norms. They support this function through the provision of technical and financial support and forging effective partnerships with Civil Society Organisations working in the area of children.
The IAWG also aims to work with the governments, other EAC Organs and the African Committee on the Rights and Welfare of the Child to promote accountability through regular and systematic monitoring and reporting of progress in the promotion of Child rights in the region.
Policy Priority Area 1: Ratification, domestication, and implementation of international instruments
Objective:To promote a regional approach of ratification and domestication of international child rights instruments.
1.1. Develop an advocacy strategy for ratification and domestication of all pending Child Rights international instruments by Partner States.
Identify gaps in the ratification and domestication of International Child Rights Instruments
Country consultations based on the assessment of gaps
Develop an EAC Strategy on ratification and domestication
Implementation of the Regional Advocacy Strategy on ratification and domestication
1.2. Urge Partner States to develop implementation plans for the Child Rights international instruments.
Develop a common approach/ framework to NPAs in the EAC
Hold cross-learning Forums on the implementation of NPAs in the EAC
Build capacity of duty bearers for the implementation of NPAs
1.3. Put in place a monitoring mechanism to track the ratification, domestication and implementation of all Child Rights international instruments
Establish a harmonised Regional Periodic State Reporting Matrix on Status of ratification, domestication and implementation of International and Regional Child Rights Instruments
Progress in the implementation of Priority Area One:
So far, the baseline study on the implementation of Child Rights commitments by the EAC Partner States is the reference document highlighting the status of ratification and domestication of International Child Rights Instruments in the EAC Partner States.
Cognizant of the fact that the Baseline Study was carried before the Republic of South Sudan (RSS) joined the East African Community, the EAC Secretariat with support from the African Child Policy Forum (ACPF) commissioned a similar study in RSS. The Baseline Study on the implementation of Child Rights in the Republic of South Sudan is now complete.
Policy Priority Area 2: Harmonization of national laws & policies to the African Charter, UNCRC and International Child Rights instruments
Objective:To encourage all partner states to correspond and implement all national laws of international child rights instruments.
2.1. Harmonise the minimum ages of marriage, sexual consent, conscription into armed forces in line with the definition of the Child which is any person below the age of 18 years (as provided by the UNCRC and the ACRWC).
Identifying gaps between national and international laws on child rights
Ensure the inclusion of these basic children’s rights in the Constitutions and Child Acts of all Partner States
Enact an EAC Bill on Child Rights where Partner States laws are brought in compliance with the rights and freedoms enshrined in the UNCRC and the ACRWC
2.2. Define and harmonise the minimum age for criminal responsibility and employment across policies and legislations in Partner States
Harmonise national legislations with the provisions of the ACRWC and the CRC
Harmonised national legislation complies with International Labour (ILO) Standards on Child labour
2.3. Develop and implement a regional framework for the harmonisation of Child Rights related policies and legislations including Child justice
Hold consultations on child justice in the EAC
Develop a harmonised format/structure of the legislative measures to be undertaken by Partner States
Progress in the implementation of Priority Area Two:
In October 2018 the study on the Harmonization of Laws on Children by EAC Partner States was concluded. The study provided an in-depth analysis of harmonization of laws on children by EAC Partner States following their ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC). The study report also analyses some relevant thematic areas covered in the other nine objectives of the EAC Child Policy; and establishes that Partner States have done commendable work on harmonization of laws as guided by the UNCRC and the ACERWC but to varying extents. The study is a valuable tool for those Partner States that have not achieved much to build on the lessons of those that have made considerable progress.
Policy Priority Area 3: Right to Citizenship and Identity
Objective:All Partner States enhance birth and death registration systems
3.1. Strengthen the Birth and Death Registration Systems in all Partner States
Carry out an Assessment of the gaps in Birth and Death Registration Systems, especially in relation to marginalized groups or districts with particularly low birth registration rates.
Raise awareness on all Civil registration
Establish and strengthen electronic mobile registration systems in the relevant institutions
3.2. Ensure that each child has a nationality
Conduct a study on the impact of lack of nationality affecting children the EAC region
Establish electronic identity documents for all registered children among all Partner States (2018 – 2019)
Develop regional/national action plans that undertake relevant actions under the Global Action Plan
Build awareness on safeguards to prevent statelessness among children
Build capacity of legal professionals and the justice sector on statelessness, citizenship and nationality issues
Policy Priority Area 4: Cross border Child Rights violations
Objective:To prevent and respond to all cross-border child rights violations in all Partner States
4.1. Put in place and strengthen a collaborative framework and administrative mechanisms that prevent and respond to cross border child rights violations
Conduct a baseline survey on child related border crimes
Conduct needs-assessment on existing border infrastructure, including preventive and response mechanisms and personnel capacities.
Develop training tools on mitigating cross border violations.
Conduct joint capacity building trainings of border management officers, local authorities, civil society on collective efforts in identifying and mitigating cross border violations and in child-sensitive reception and asylum systems.
Develop a collaborative framework, including information sharing among border authorities.
Establish child protection and guardianship systems for children deprived of parental care and child victims of trafficking and other cross border violations
4.2. Strengthen collaboration between development partners, UN agencies, Partners States and the EAC Secretariat to address cross border Child Rights violations
Establish an electronic system to track and record cross border movements of children with valid travel documents
Establish an Integrated Cross-Border child-rights violations Management Information system.
4.3 Strengthen the investigative capacities of cross border immigration and law enforcement agencies to be more responsive and vigilant to child rights violations.
Develop and disseminate circulate handbooks, manuals and other tools
Train law enforcement officials on investigation and mitigation of cross border violations of child rights.
Create public awareness on cross border child rights violations
4.4 Put in place a Juvenile justice system at the regional level
Harmonise the definition of ‘a juvenile’ and the age of criminal responsibility among Partner States
Institute separate correction and remand facilities, Juvenile courts, ensure due process and legal representation, protect the dignity of the juvenile and abolish corporal punishments.
Establish child protection units at police stations, as well as child-friendly courts.
Progress in the implementation of Priority Area Four:
There are various cross border issues in the EAC and some beyond the jurisdiction of the East Africa Partner States to neighbouring countries that may not be in the EAC. As such, Priority is outward oriented in approach, responsibility but also in the issues. It is against this background that the EAC aims to collaborate with the other RECs and the African Union to address common issues such as migration, refugee management, conflicts and disasters and other violations especially Female Genital Mutilation, Child Marriage and trafficking.
Various workshops have been organized by African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) in the Regional Economic Communities including the East African Community (EAC). The objective is establishing a harmonised approach to curb and address child rights violations.
The proposal for an ACERWC and Inter-REC collaboration plan was presented and adopted at the 34th Ordinary Session of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child in November, 2019, in Cairo, Egypt.
Policy Priority Area 5: Strengthening of national child protection systems and community mechanisms
Objective:Enforcing of child protection systems in the EAC region
5.1. Develop a regional framework for assessing the status of Child Protection Systems in the Partner States
Develop a regional mapping and assessment toolkit
Carry out a Mapping study to assess the child protection systems (formal and informal) in the region (or aggregate existing country level mappings) and the existing gaps in terms of workforce, service delivery and community protection mechanisms, as well as gaps in national coverage and possible marginalized group
Develop an EAC Regional Matrix of Child Protection Indicators
5.2. Promote the development and implementation of family strengthening and protection policies in Partner States
Harmonise and align with international standards the laws, policies and programmes in Partner States that affect child welfare and promote family support
Develop a Regional White Paper and Policy Framework For strengthening Families
5.3. Support the promotion of role of parents as the primary care givers in the Partner States
Ensure Partner States develop National Family policies with coherent parenting and ECD programming guidance
5.4. Establish alternative family-based care systems and expansion of kinship, foster care and other family reintegration services
Develop integrated framework on alternative care aligned with the UN Guidelines on Alternative Care which also address emergency situations and displaced and refugee children without parental care.
5.5. Strengthen community and national mechanisms for child protection
Carry a mapping assessment of existing Community based child protection mechanisms (CBCPMS), including those in refugee camps and settlements
Link the CBCPMS to the national child protection systems.
Develop a comprehensive regional MIS (reporting research, evaluation and data management database).
5.6. Ensure convergence of national development plans and programmes aimed at the preventing, responding and progressive elimination of all forms of Child Rights violations
Develop a framework of Partnerships with the United Nations Bodies Human Rights Treaty Bodies and Mechanisms, sub regional, regional, national mechanisms, Civil society organisations and Children on elimination of Child Rights violations.
Progress in the implementation of Priority Area Five:
The EAC has adopted a Framework for Strengthening Child Protection Systems and Community Mechanisms in the East African Community. The framework lays out a comprehensive agenda for harmonising of standards and approaches on promotion and protection of child rights across the EAC Partner States. It also provides practical guidance on addressing child protection more holistically, by giving greater focus on prevention and strengthening the critical roles of the key sectors and stakeholders. The Framework also helps Partner States to conduct self-monitoring and review for continuous strengthening of their national child protection systems through set of standardised indicators.
The EAC Secretariat with support from the African Child Policy Forum (ACPF) and Save the Children has so far conducted learning workshops in all Partner States; and in a bid to domesticate the framework into National Programming, Partner States have identified country-specific priorities and developed an action plan to fast track the implementation of the framework.
Progress in the implementation of Priority Area One: 
