Home ›› 17 Jan 2022 ›› Editorial
The child sensitive social protection programme has received wide attention from policy makers for its proven immense benefit. This programme is an initiative to reduce vulnerability of children and improving their health, nutrition, education and psychological well-being. Household poverty is a key driver of vulnerability of a child and it drives out children to accept various odd and non-formal jobs such as jobs in local shops, tea-stalls, restaurants, rickshawpulling and as domestic workers to aid families. Only single poverty reduction initiatives for families may not solve the difficult situation of children of a family. A comprehensive child sensitive social security program is vital for reducing poverty of families as well as protection of children from difficult situation. Improving well-being of children, increasing school retention and attendance and reducing worst form of child labor needs child focused social protection program. The families need to be made responsible to grow child with all basic rights by inserting conditions in all kind of SafetyNet programs. The Government has been implementing various social safety net programs for increasing income of families and reducing house hold poverty so that child can be reared with due care and basic rights. If holistic care for the child is not approached, child of poor families may be at risk always.
The government has many social assistance programs through cash and kind transfers designed to address different dimensions of poverty including geographical, seasonal and life cycle related vulnerabilities. The Employment Generation Program (EGP), Vulnerable Group Development (VGD), Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) and some other programs that aims to keep family out of poverty so that they can be able to send their kids to school. The objective of these noble programs is not achieved when ineffective targeting, non-transparent selection process of beneficiaries and nepotism or biasness works at grass root level. Again, existing social protection programs with similar objectives are being implemented by multiple departments. Thus, it creates overlapping and duplication of works and it results in inefficiency and higher operational costs. Child marriage, child labor, undernutrition, school dropped out, lack of knowledge of antenatal or postnatal care for children still remain as great challenges in realizing obligation of child rights enshrined in the Bangladesh constitution and UN Convention on the Rights of Child (CRC). The disadvantaged family needs child friendly universal social security program aiming assistance to children which may support to overcome the crisis. Since violence, abuse, exploitation against child and discrimination within family and society still persist, universal program is only the option to address the crisis.
Social protection is enshrined in article 15 (d) of the Bangladesh constitution and it is also included in the National Social Security Strategy 2015 and its accompanying Action Plan 2018 covering maternity care and protection, old age pensions, workplace accidents and unemployment benefits for workers. We have 114 different social protection programs, primarily centered around food distribution and cash transfers. These programs need to be better coordinated and integrated under a coherent institutional framework to ensure inclusive coverage of vulnerable populations including children to reduce financial risks, food shortages and hardships as well as antenatal and postnatal care of the children including their mother.
Piecemeal approach of safety net program has been struggling to break the vicious cycle of poverty and vulnerability of children. Again, safety net programs for children with limited coverage, inadequate benefit and absence of effective institutional mechanism has not been able to capture the extreme poverty where children are most vulnerable. The government with technical assistance of UNICEF has been implementing mother and child benefits program (Maternity Allowance and Working Lactating Mother Allowance Program) to provide protection, antenatal and postnatal care for the children up to the age of 4 years. Like this, each safety net program needs some conditionality for the family to spend some money for their vulnerable children. Investment in children is imperative to build the cognitive capital that enable the children to reach full potential and become wealth of a nation.
The universal child protection coverage may minimize discretionary authority of the departments who authorize list of vulnerable families with children. Furthermore, children in unemployed families have more sufferings. According to the World Bank, there are 3.3 million Bangladeshis live in extreme poverty despite governments programs to improve education, health condition and reducing poverty. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the unemployment rate in Bangladesh in 2019 was 4.19 per cent According to the 2019 data of the Ministry of Labor and Employment, the total number of unemployed in Bangladesh is 26 lakh 8 thousand. The figure has significantly increased during the current covid 19 pandemic crises.
Child protection laws, UNCRC and SDGs obligations to protect and promote the rights of children need to be coordinated in line with the concept that no one is left behind. The present government has adopted, revised, and enacted various policies and legislations such as the Children Policy 2011, Bangladesh Labor law, Women and Children Repression Prevention (Special Provisions) Act, 2000 for children's right to health, education, cultural activities and leisure, protection, birth registration and identity. Birth registration is made compulsory and free for all to protect children from negligence, exploitation and abuse and to promote their wellbeing.
Aim of child rights intervention may be effectively achieved if the child benefit programs are universally implemented like free and universal primary education, universal free text books distribution, concessional transport fare, free primary health care, universal immunization with the principle of equality and non-discrimination.
Poverty, malnutrition, disease, disrupted education, abuse and exploitation, violence and displacement due to river erosion affect children differently than adults. Thus, social protection policies and programs need to be child-sensitive, addressing children’s age and gender-specific risks and vulnerabilities throughout the life cycle, to maximize beneficial impacts and minimize the adverse effects on them. Their physical, mental, spiritual, moral, social and cognitive development may be attainable if there is a universal dedicated mother and child benefit program irrespective of family status. All children up to age of 4 with their mothers need to have a mechanism for entitlement of allowances and health care facilities. But rich family may not opt for the benefit at their own as because they have their own capacity. The government has arranged facilities for children’s antenatal or postnatal care at hospitals but mothers are not sensitized to receive those facilities. Thus, a holistic awareness campaign and some compulsion measures may help to sensitize families in receiving antenatal and post-natal health care services.
The Covid-19 pandemic has worsened the livelihoods and incomes of marginal families. Income shocks of families negatively impacted on realising child rights. The coronavirus pandemic has also triggered an indirect effect on child marriage, and school dropped out. Children in extreme poverty especially street children, orphan child in fragile contexts, disaster-prone, displaced due to river erosion, and those living in slum areas have more sufferings. Universal approach may relief them from this hard situation of life. Access to free primary health care, free primary education facilities are in place. More and more programs are designed to address the risk of child exploitation, abuse, violence, discrimination, social exclusion but in fact implementation approaches do not get momentum as desired from the top of the management in many cases for which results are not optimistic. Still street children’s and children living in slum areas, in most cases remain out of any provision because of non-universalism and discretion. Only universal mechanism can bring them all under safety net program. Nation will be immensely benefited if inclusive and universal child benefits program is strengthened and monitored. A commitment of employer that no child would be engaged as labor in his or her factory may improve the adverse situation for children. Effective implementation of laws relating to eradication of child labor and monitoring on elimination of worst form of child labor are also crucial.
Development partners, private sector, NGOs, civil society and media may extend support to strengthen and scale up inclusive and universal child-sensitive social protection alongside government intervention that meets the needs of all rights to children. The child of today will be the best citizens of tomorrow who will build a better Bangladesh ie Sonar Bangla as visualized by the father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
The writer is a former Senior Secretary to the Government of Bangladesh.
