Policy-makers need to move faster to redress historical and present-day inequities facing children in South Africa. This is the key conclusion of a review jointly undertaken by UNICEF and the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) and launched recently at a three-day seminar that saw experts from Government, civil society and academia putting the spotlight on children’s rights. The review was described as an advocacy tool that would help the children’s sector make its case to state institutions on a foundation of “solid statistical evidence”.

Entitled “South Africa’s Children: A Review of Equity and Child Rights”, it is a quantitative assessment of how well the country and its provinces are faring in giving practical effect to the numerous facets of children’s rights. It acknowledges that “significant progress” has been made since 1994 in fulfilling children’s rights across a range of indicators, but also reveals marked disparities across racial, socio-economic and provincial lines – disparities often concealed behind favourable national averages.

Child mortality rates, for instance, are declining but remain high for a middle-income country. One in 16 children dies before his or her fifth birthday, and children in the poorest households are “four times more likely to die before the age of five years than the wealthiest children”.

The purpose of the seminar was both to reflect on the country’s achievements and to explore the underlying reasons for the persistence of these disparities.

“The South African Human Rights Commission is concerned with the disparities that currently exist in the realisation of children’s rights in South Africa,” said Commissioner Lindiwe Mokate. “While there have been significant resources allocated towards the betterment of children’s lives, the majority of children in South Africa live in poverty, and their basic needs are not met.”

Aida Girma of UNICEF said, “Translating child rights from principles into action is about looking behind national aggregates with an equity lens so we can identify children who are deprived, analyse the patterns and drivers of inequity, and put in place policies that address disparities. … Even as South Africa is making progress toward the Millennium Development Goals, we see gaps between the richest and poorest children widening.”

A quick review of some of the report’s selected key indicators paint a vivid picture of the levels of inequity in certain provinces in South Africa:

• nationally, 87% of births take place in public health facilities (in the Eastern Cape, it is 71%);
• nationally, there is 90% full immunisation coverage among children under one (in Mpumalanga it is 72%);
• nationally, there is 18% prevalence of stunting among children 1-9 years (in the Eastern and Northern Cape, it is 28%);
• nationally, there is 5% prevalence of wasting among children 1-9 years (in the Northern Cape, it is 19%);
• the national prevalence of HIV among pregnant women is 29% (in KwaZulu-Natal it is 40%);
• the national prevalence of HIV among children 2-14 years is 2.5% (in the Free State it is 4.1%);
• nationally, 43% of children under five are exposed to an ECD programme (in Gauteng it is 59% and in KwaZulu-Natal, 33%); and,
• nationally, 99% of children of primary-school age attend an educational institution (this figure is consistent across all provinces).

“Through continuous reflection on South Africa’s progress in the realisation of children’s rights, and rigorous engagement with government and relevant stakeholders, we will ensure that all children, irrespective of the circumstances they are born into, have a chance of a life of dignity and respect and can thus contribute meaningfully towards the development of their country,” said Commissioner Mokate.

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