Routledge Handbook of Children's Rights in Africa

Clement Chipenda is a Senior Research Fellow at the University of South Africa’s College of Graduate Studies, where he contributes his expertise to the South African Research Chair (SARChI) Chair in Social Policy. He is a co-investigator in the research project ‘The Social Policy Dimensions of Land and Agrarian Reform in International Perspective’ and in ‘Social Policy in the Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Era: Investigating a Transformative and Gender-Sensitive Framework in South Africa’ as well as ‘Gender-Transformative Pathways to Climate Resilience in Zimbabwe's Resettlement Areas: A Social Policy Perspective.’ His research interests span a diverse yet interconnected range of topics, including agrarian political economy, agro-food systems, transformative social policy, children’s rights and child protection, social security, urban and rural sociology, and youth and gender studies.Musavengana W.T. Chibwana is a seasoned child rights and social policy expert with more than twenty years’ experience. He has worked with agencies such as Higher Life Foundation, UN Women, Progressio, Save the Children, and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child Secretariat, where he managed the portfolio for children affected by armed conflicts. He is the founding chairperson of the Child Rights Network for Southern Africa (CRNSA), the regional network he was instrumental in forming and establishing. Dr Musa holds a PhD in Development Studies, majoring in Social Policy; a Master of Philosophy in Children’s Rights; a BA Honours in Development Studies; a Diploma in Personnel Management; and several professional certificates, including one in international humanitarian law (IHL). Dr Musa is a research fellow at the Centre for Gender and Africa Studies at the University of Free State in South Africa. Dr Musa has published several articles on children’s rights in Africa.Robert Doya Nanima is an Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Criminal Justice and Procedure at the University of the Western Cape, South Africa. Before entering academia, he served as a prosecutor with Uganda's Directorate of Public Prosecutions for nine years. A prolific scholar and conference presenter, Professor Nanima serves on the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) as Special Rapporteur on Children Affected by Armed Conflict, Chairperson of the Working Group on Implementation of Decisions, and a member of the Working Group on Children's Rights and Climate Change. He is also Country Rapporteur for Tanzania, Nigeria, Malawi, Namibia, and Eswatini. He was the lead consultant on the General Comment on Article 22 on Children in Conflict Situations and supported the development of the ACERWC Model Law on Children Affected by Armed Conflict. As technical lead of the African Platform for Children Affected by Armed Conflict, he engages with key bodies, including the UN, the African Union's Peace and Security Council, and the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. He has shaped global conversations on this issue with Global Affairs Canada, the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the UK's Wilton Park, and the UN Institute for Disarmament Research.

• SECTION I: THEORETICAL AND LEGAL FRAMEWORKS OF CHILDREN’S RIGHTS IN AFRICA 1: Introduction: Recentring Africa in Children's Rights — Toward a Post-SDG Afrocentric Framework 2: The ACRWC Reconsidered: African Philosophy, Postcolonial Critique, and the Normative Limits of the International Children's Rights Framework 3: Towards a Child Rights Pluriverse: The African Children’s Charter as a decolonial tool 4: An African Philosophical Perspective on Childhood and Children's Rights 5: Child Marriages and Harmful Practices: A Comparative Study of Eastern and Southern Africa 6: Regional Integration and Children's Rights: Opportunities for Pan-African Approaches SECTION II: CHILD PROTECTION SYSTEMS AND IMPLEMENTATION 7: Informal Protection Systems: Community-Based Child Protection Mechanisms in Rural Africa 8: Children's Rights Safeguarding Using Existing Community Structures in Rural Africa: Lessons from Karabo Ea Bophelo Microfinance Clubs in Thaba-Tseka, Lesotho 9: Measuring Impact in Rights-Based Child Protection: An African Perspective 10: Between Formal and Traditional Child Protection Systems: Reconfiguring Child Vulnerability through Intergenerational and Collective Care in Ethiopia 11: Black Children Cannot Play Without Land SECTION III – CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES AND VULNERABILITIES 12: Artificial Intelligence and Children's Rights in Africa: Towards an African Human Rights-Based Framework 13: Digital Safety and Children's Rights: Emerging Threats and Protection Strategies in Urban African Settings 14: Emerging Technologies and Future Challenges: Anticipating New Threats to Children's Rights 15: Child Trafficking and Cross-Border Protection: Contemporary Challenges and Regional Responses SECTION IV: CHILDREN'S RIGHTS TO HEALTH, NUTRITION AND MENTAL WELL-BEING 16: Healthcare Access in Rural Areas: Innovative Models for Rights-Based Health Service Delivery 17: Mental Health Support Systems for Vulnerable Children: Cultural Competency in Service Provision SECTION V: EDUCATION AND TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION 18: Between Digital Divide and Educational Rights: Addressing Technology Access Inequalities 19: Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Digital Education: Bridging Traditional and Modern Learning 20: Inclusive Education Technologies in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review of Innovations Supporting Children with Disabilities SECTION VI: CLIMATE CHANGE, THE ENVIRONMENT AND CHILDREN’S RIGHTS 21: Climate-Induced Migration and Children's Rights: Protection Frameworks and Responses 22: African Children and the Challenge of Climate Change: Seeking Adaptive Options for a Resilient Future 23: Environmental Justice and Children's Rights in Africa: Climate Impacts, Health Risks, and Rights-Based Responses 24: Environmental Education and Children's Agency: Youth Climate Activism in Africa SECTION VII: CIVIL SOCIETY'S ROLE IN AFRICAN CHILD PROTECTION GOVERNANCE 25: Resource Mobilisation and Sustainability: Strategic Approaches for Civil Society Organisations 26: State–Civil Society Relations in African Child Protection Governance: Power and Social Accountability 27: Grassroots Movements and Child Rights: Bottom-Up Approaches to Policy Change 28: Children Affected by Armed Conflict in Africa: Recentring Article 22 in Continental Child Rights Governance SECTION VIII: SYNTHESIS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS 29: Towards an Africa Fit for Children: Synthesis, Structural Reckoning, and the Architecture of a Post-SDG Future