Story by Theophilus Chuma
ZIMBABWE is committed to strengthening child protection systems and amplifying children’s voices across the country, Vice President General (Rtd) Dr Constantino Chiwenga has said.
Speaking on arrival in Gaborone on Friday ahead of the SADC World Children’s Day commemorations, the Vice President who is representing President Emmerson Mnangagwa said Zimbabwe’s participation reflects its determination to upholding children’s rights and ensuring that young people influence policies that shape their future.
“We have come to attend the fifth Regional Children’s Celebrations or Commemoration. This is the United Nations Children’s Day, but then the region decided to celebrate this day together to recognise the importance of children in the region. It started with Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and others were coming in. Now we are quite happy, we now have Namibia in, Mozambique, Malawi, South Africa, and we have Eswatini, they have all joined. This is a day when the children interact, and specifically for the Zimbabweans, we have the junior parliament, and we have the child president,” he said.
Dr Chiwenga stressed the value of regional collaboration and knowledge sharing, noting that collective action is crucial for advancing child welfare and strengthening programmes that protect and empower young people.
“It is this time that the children give to the Presidents what they feel should be done by authorities for them. Because they are the future leaders of tomorrow. And so I am here to represent His Excellency the President, who was supposed to be coming here to join with his colleagues in the region to commemorate this day,” he said.
The SADC regional World Children’s Day is a gathering hosted annually and rotates among member states since 2021 to provide a platform for children to express their views, engage in dialogue, and influence policies that affect their rights.
Globally, World Children’s Day is marked on November 20 every year, but for Southern Africa, the event is being held earlier to allow for greater participation by member states.
