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| Africa: North |
| Forum on Egyptian Children's Rights |
| 2004-09-15 |
| Forty children and adolescents from 14 Egyptian governorates, gathered at the UNICEF-supported Children's Forum in Cairo last week, to discuss children's rights in Egypt. The forum, organized by the Association for Health and Environmental Development (AHED) in cooperation with the NGO Coalition on Child Rights, was attended by Secretary General of the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood (NCCM), Ambassador Moushira Khattab, who commented on the presentations of the forum members concerning the plight of Egyptian children. Forum members came from varying social and economic backgrounds; they presented their views on the recently released first draft of the Third Periodic Report on the Rights of the Child in Egypt, highlighting what has been implemented, and what remains in process. The report will be revised, and a final version would be presented to the Committee on the Rights of the Child in Geneva, Switzerland. Through an elaborate presentation given in the format of a newscast, the members talked about their goal to achieve gender and social equality amongst Egyptian children, and to help the disenfranchised. This was followed by a list of problems to tackle, in order to improve the plight of children in several key areas such as health, education, and family environment. Progress had been made in these areas, but more still needs to be done. One of the most important issues is the neglect of numerous aspects concerning children living in Egypt's governorates in comparison with densely-populated urban centers like Cairo and Alexandria. Another important issue is the inadequacy of the number of programs that deal specifically with disenfranchised children, whether homeless employed, or children with special needs. The members argued that these children are discriminated against. Discrimination is also rife against illegitimate children, or those of unknown parents. Another issue is that of the circumcision of girls, which still boasts a whopping 97% rate, despite the fact that the problem has been raised since 1995. |
| Posted by:TS(vice girl) |