Kigali, June 12, 2024 – The Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace, and Security’s African Centre of Excellence is delighted to announce its celebration of the Day of the African Child. A celebration that will be held in Kigali, Rwanda from June 13-14, 2024. The Dallaire Institute’s year’s event is themed: "How Protecting Education from Attack Helps Secure Peace and Security for all Children in Africa.” which aligns with the African Union’s (AU) theme for the Day of the African Child entitled: ‘Education for all children in Africa: the time is now’. Both themes fit well in the theme of the African Union for the year 2024 that reads "Educate an African fit for the 21st Century: Building resilient education systems for increased access to inclusive, lifelong, quality, and relevant learning in Africa.” That was adopted at the 36th Ordinary Session held in February 2023, the AU Assembly of Heads of States and Governments.
The celebration of the Day of the African Child will bring together the Dallaire Institute’s esteemed partners and key stakeholders including the AU, Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA), Save the Children, UN Women, Child Society Forum for Child Rights, subject matter experts, security institutions and academic institutions among others. They will explore the current state of attacks on education and children in Africa, discuss international political commitments and regional initiatives to protect children and education, and highlight the community-based initiatives to protect education from attacks that can be strengthened and replicated to sustain peace and security in Africa.
The Day of the African Child was instituted in 1991 by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the OAU (the current AU) and is celebrated annually on June 16th to commemorate the 1976 Soweto Uprising, where thousands of black school children took to the streets and protested the apartheid government's mandate for black high schools to be taught in Afrikaans – a tool of oppression by the white minority at that time. Tragically, hundreds of young protesters were killed and more than a thousand were injured.
In 2023, Save the Children reported that attacks on education across Africa rose by 20% with around 411 reports of violent incidents targeting schools, teachers, and children, most of which were reported in Nigeria and Sudan.
"This year’s celebration of the Day of the African Child serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of investing in the education, protection, and empowerment of African children, ensuring that they safely have access to the necessary opportunities to build a better future – education being the first and the most important one” said Maj Gen (Rtd) Ferdinand Safari, the Director of the Dallaire Institute African Centre of Excellence. "This is a call to action for all of us to renew our commitment to the protection of the rights and welfare of African Children”
The Dallaire Institute African Centre of Excellence remains dedicated to fostering a world where children are at the heart of peace and security. We firmly believe that collaborating with governments, security sector actors, communities, international partners, and by involving children in the decisions that affect them, we can significantly contribute toward realizing a safe, supportive, and enriching environment for children across Africa and the globe.
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About the Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace, and Security
The Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace, and Security advances innovative strategies for preventing the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict and armed violence. Through interdisciplinary and applied research, global advocacy, capacity building, and engagement (with the security sector and communities), the Dallaire Institute advances understanding about the dynamics which perpetuate intergenerational cycles of armed violence and the factors which increase the insecurity of children. Through this work, the Dallaire Institute is building a holistic approach to preventing children’s recruitment and use in armed violence while also pursuing the ultimate vision of building a world where children are at the heart of peace and security.
The Dallaire Institute employs a dual lens that prioritizes the protection of children, while also recognizing the significant operational impacts of child recruitment and use on security sector actors. The Institute has 15 years of experience working directly with members of the security sector including the military, police, intelligence, and corrections to prevent the recruitment and use of children in armed conflict and armed violence through the strengthening of operational, strategic, and tactical capacities.
The Dallaire Institute is a global organization that has been housed and accredited by Dalhousie University (Nova Scotia, Canada) since 2010. The Institute has two regional centres of excellence—the African Centre of Excellence (located in Kigali, Rwanda) to promote and lead programmes in sub-Saharan Africa, and the Latin American Centre of Excellence (located in Montevideo, Uruguay). Established in 2019, the African Centre of Excellence has been leading continental efforts to deliver tactical, prevention-oriented training to African defence and security sector personnel and to build the capacity of local communities to prevent the recruitment and use of children. The Institute also maintains a direct partnership with the Dallaire Centre of Excellence within the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF CoE) based in Ottawa, Canada. Over the years, the Institute recorded significant impact on their capacity building initiatives, policy guidance, and research creation and mobilization on advancing the children peace and security agenda.
Maj Gen (Retd) Ferdinand Safari
Director
Dallaire Institute’s African Centre of Excellence for Children Peace and Security