The following are the African Movement of Working Children and Youth Objectives:
1. Promotion and strengthening of their 12 rights, through concretisation and improvement of living and working conditions of WCY
2. Strengthening of communication skills with members and Associations
3. Capacity-building in order to undertake successful Income Generating Activities (IGAs)
4. Strengthening of member Associations and animator skills
5. Development of collaboration between WCYAs and local authorities, international institutions, NGOs and other movements
6. Organization of WCYAs at the national level for joint activities and national programmes.
7. Participate in international debates and meetings on the child.
1 - Promotion and strengthening of their 12 rights,
through concretisation
In
1994, founding members (girls and boys) of the AMWCY,
identified 12 major rights, to fight against
child exploitation and bad working conditions. They
formed a program to promote these rights.
The
12 rights are the common backbone for the WCY living
in 64 African towns. They completely match the children’s
rights mentioned in the Convention of the Rights of
the Child (CRC) and in the African Charter on Human
Rights and Children’s Welfare.
•The
right to be taught a trade
•The right to remain in the village (no exodus)
•The right to work in a safe environment
•The right to light and limited work
•The right to rest when sick
•The right to be respected
•The right to be listened to
•The right to play (leisure)
•The right to healthcare
•The right to self-expression and to get organised
•The right to learn how to read and write
•The right to equitable legal aid (in case of
trouble)
For the progress of these rights, the AMWCY with the support of Enda TM as well as other financial
partners, undertake the following activities:
•Awareness
campaigns targeted towards communities and authorities
through debates, radio and TV programmes.
•Financial contributions for the setting up
of a health system and a first aid kit. Negotiations
with health authorities in order to get lower costs
or free-of-charge health care or consultations.
•Creation of literacy classes, school stationary
gifts to children, the building of centres
•Encounters with grassroot groups, organisation
of reflection sessions, printing of membership cards.
•Mobilization and commemoration of devoted child celebration activites
(1st May, 12th June, 16th June, 23 rd December) for advocacy campaigns with
authorities.
WCY tirelessly inform, train children and adults on the 12 rights, which make it their first and fundamental activity that cements their movement.
2 – Strengthening of communication skills with
members and associations
Communication
is used as a tool for building members and animator
capacities to help undertake successful activities.
In
order to develop communication within the Associations,each year the WCYAs organise trainings in listening,
verbal or written expression, radio for better
communication with communities and finally infomation technology training. Encounters with grassroot groups promotes dialogue in which difficulties encountered are mentioned and solutions are highlighted. Other means of communication used include telephones, letters, email, electronic conferences, the page web, the annual newsletter "WCY face the challenge", the monthly electronic bulletin "Calao Express", posters, leaflets, tee-shirts, drama, folkore, games and banners are used. Information circulates very well at the grassroot and AMWCY level.
Radio trainings are organized in the countries which boosts communication through media, but most importantly for better communictation among the WCYAs of the same country.The annual news bulletin “WCY face
the challenge” is produced and distributed by the "Communciation Group" each year. At the back of this bulletin, you find all the addresses of the different WCYAs.
The network ejt-com@enda.sn is a good information circulator.
In 1999, an editorial Committee
of the AMWCY edited the book “Voice of African
children” in French and English. A film Commission took part in the making
of 2 films “the children’s might”
and “Decisions taken under the coconut tree”.Recently (2010 - 2011) a video - clip and a cartoon on migration was made by the movement members.
3
– Capacity-building of members for undertaking
successful Income generating Activities (IGAs)
In
order to overcome children’s poverty, the WCYAs
have made it possible, through micro credit, to subsidise
(individually or collectively) subsistence activities of WCY or activities which are underway. This credit
empowers members through training, creation and management
of Income Generating Activities (IGAs). The WCYAs
have also engaged in their own IGAs in special services
in order to earn more money for their activities.
Many more IGAs have been undertaken in
most of the countries as a result of the poster “how
to successfully undertake an IGA” (from the
“WCY face the challenge” issue N°
2) and through the pedagogical support from
literacy teachers.
There
are 2 types of IGAs:
*Associative: in aid of the WCYA, through baby foot games, or chair
renting for instance or through equipment for training
– production (dyeing products, sewing machines,
or carpentry equipment)
*Individual: refundable loans can be obtained by WCY
for individual activities or for expanding IGAs which
are already underway.
4 - Strengthening of member Associations and animator
skills
This
reinforcement is a very important process. To accomplish
this, the AMWCY has engaged in different trainings
like radio, supportive listening sessions, technical
support to associative activities and Participatory
Action Research (PAR), health reproduction and HIV/AIDS,
computer techniques, creation
and management of projects, elaboration of action
plans on early child migration and trafficking and comics production.
Radio training
sessions boost local and national trainings. Several
trainings are organised through financial partnership
on issues like “early migration and child trafficking,
listening and action-research”. Consequently,
the training dynamic gets stronger step by step.
These
trainings enable more autonomy for drafting action
plans, activity and financial reports and for overcoming
problems through discussions and organising meetings.
The AMWCY approach towards children (including children
who are trafficked), has improved. Animators’
attitude towards children and authorities has also
improved.
5
- Development of collaboration among WCYAs, local
authorities, international institutions, NGOs
To
increase this collaboration, the AMWCY has raised
awareness through advocacy campaigns with authorities,
institutions, NGOs and Movements and also held discussions
with them by highlighting their requests, action plans,
initiatives, activities and by sending reports.
They also conduct numerous exemplary actions such as cleaning of places, hospitals, or schools, afforestation, actions against HIV AIDS, in order to accept their active citizenship better. Gradually they end up being accepted for their good will.
They collaborate readily with good will, especially with those involved in supporting children in Migration, Communities, associations, local and international NGOs.
Thus it is not rare to see WCYA National coordinations, involved in national programs in their discussions and national coalitions.
6
- Organisation of WCYAs at the national level for
joint activities and national programmes
This
is undoubtedly the most important step forward. All
of the training sessions and national meetings have
enabled progress in countries where WCYAs exist in
more than 3 towns and also lead to the creation of
national action plans and national co-ordination mechanisms.
These mechanisms have helped in strengthening the presence of the numerous WCYAs
in these countries.
Today in 22 member countries of the AMWCY,19 present an organization of National Coordination (minimum three associations) some even exceeding the 30 member associations.
7
- Participation in international debates and meetings
in favour of children
The
AMWCY takes part in international meetings, forums
and regional workshops on the following topics:
•Birth registration
•International meetings among Working Children Movements
•Launching of the annual report on “a world fit for children” (GMC)
•The African child situation
•Housemaids education
•Fight against child abuse
•Protection of “street children
