Adds to the support of a joint program with DFID for the British Overseas Territories in Child Abuse and Protection
DG Dr Jules of OECS Commission sign with Khin- Sandy Lwin
As far back as September 2007 The Montserrat Reporter participated in a two-day meeting/workshop held at the Jolly Beach Resort, Antigua, under the theme, “Responding to Child Abuse in our Communities” – and organised by the DFID/NCHChild Protection Programme in collaboration with UNICEF Barbados and Eastern Caribbean Office. It was funded by the Department for International Development (DFID), and implemented in collaboration with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) of the United Kingdom.
The introduction to that workshop stated: “Child abuse is not a new problem, but a persistent one which frontline teachers, child minders, health professionals, parents and social service providers, among others, confront every day.” It stated further, “It is important however, not to think that child abuse is such a hopeless problem that nothing can be done.”
Since then, as Governor Davis speaking in February this year at the Media Launch of the Overseas Territories Child Safeguarding Program that is organized between DFID as one partner and the UNICEF, reminded: “Back in November we had the “Break the Silence: End Child Sexual Abuse in Montserrat” workshop and that built on the work … that had been done under the Safeguarding Project. It was the start of the process to make what was previously invisible or was not accepted as actually happening visible.’
Khin-Sandy Lwin UNICEF representative at MOU signing
Dr Mary Thompson dfid Social Development Advisor
Permanent Secretary of Health, Elijah Silcott
He reminded further: “None of us should need to say this, but maybe it is worth repeating. Child sexual abuse is always wrong and there are no conceivable circumstances in which it could ever be justified. In order to get that message across, public education and increasing awareness are keys to this.
DFID’s Social Development Advisor and UNICEF’s Khin-Sandy Lwin with the Montserrat Premier, signed the Memorandum of Understanding between DFID, UNICEF and the British Overseas Territories (BOTs) of British Virgin Islands, Anguilla and the Turks and Cacaos Island, the other islands who were following via the internet.
Permanent Secretary Elijah Silcott in the Ministry of Health chaired the proceedings and he noted that the signing and launch came on the heels “of what we call the SCOT program that ended about two years ago. In 2010 Montserrat had held a forum on the topic of Child Abuse which ended with the development of a ‘hotline’ for abused children.
OECS deepen co-operation with UNICEF in Child Social development
These events were followed this week with a communiqué from the OECS Commission in Castries, St. Lucia who this week on Tuesday, August 26, 2014, signed a new Programme Cooperation Agreement to the tune of US$1.165M.
“The agreement,” the release said, “is expected to further facilitate protection programmes in the region regarding the rights of children. Education and Lifelong Learning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Social Statistics, Early Childhood Education as well as Child and Social Protection are the intervention areas in the new Programme Cooperation Agreement (PCA).
The original PCA between UNICEF and the OECS Commission was signed for the period 2012-2014 and following a mid-term review in 2014, this recent ceremony heralds the second phase of the PCA for another two and a half year term.
The deepened collaboration is described as strategic for strengthening regional harmonization, capacity building, learning, standardization and exchanges among OECS full Members, Montserrat being a full member, and Associate Member States for various results.
Khin-Sandy Lwin of UNICEF who signed the agreement with Dr. Jules reiterated the need to support and implement further programmes for child and youth development despite the harsh financial challenges affecting the countries of the Eastern Caribbean.
The UNICEF official acknowledged the value of the relationship with the OECS as a fundamental and critical platform for facilitating dialogue and implementation of key interventions for the advancement of children in the region.
