KCS Africa 2020
On the 8 and 9 of January 2020 more than 250 delegates from across the region joined us in Nairobi, Kenya, for our conference in Africa. The event, which focused on Child Safeguarding in Education and Youth Programmes provided KCS Members, child safeguarding practitioners and researchers with a platform to network, share experiences, the latest research, challenges and good practice.
The conference discussions covered child safeguarding through evidence-based communication and information, promoting donor and researcher involvement in supporting and undertaking studies, building capacity and improving knowledge of child abuse internationally. Topics were wide-ranging, covering:
- Safeguarding Children in Conflicts and Crisis Situations – One third of our members are operating development, education and health programmes in protracted conflicts and crises. How can we implement effective child safeguarding in the context of emergencies?
- Supporting Partners – Two thirds of our members’ support partners with multiple programmes in the region. How can we best support them to implement effective safeguarding measures?
- Safeguarding Culture in Education – Half of our network members support education programmes in the region. How can we work together to make sure all children are safe to learn?
- Victim /Survivor-Centred Approach – How do we best support the victims and survivors of abuse?
- Safeguarding Children and Youth in Sport – All children and youth have the right to participate safely in sport. How can we ensure they are protected from abuse?
- Child and Youth Participation in Safeguarding – Sharing good practice and developing key guidance for the network.
Copies of the presentations are available to members on our Community of Practice platform. If you are a member and need access, please do get in touch with one of our team.
A big thank you
We were blown away by the level of interest in the event, with registrations exceeding the capacity of the venue. The passion and dedication shown by the attendees, some of whom had travelled great distances to join us, was inspiring.
For this we would extend a big thank-you to everyone who attended, as well as to our fantastic speakers for sharing their experiences. Many thanks go to: Abdikadir Issa Farrah, Adam Makaka, Dr Laura Hills, Mourine Achieng’, Agnes Mutonyi Wasike, Prudence Akith Hainga, Martine Irakoze, Olayinka Omojokun, Dorcas Amakobe, Sarah Blakemore and Vijay Baskar.
We would also like to thank the Mastercard Foundation, for their sponsorship and support. We couldn’t have done it without their generous help. The success of this conference showed that there is a high demand for more regional child safeguarding conferences and training workshops. Regional events make training and knowledge exchange more accessible to smaller organisations that don’t have the budget to send delegates to Europe or the US. In total – just the Nairobi conference on it’s own – will help safeguard over 100,000 more children from potential abuse. With the help of such considerate sponsorships we aim to hold many more regional events around the world, not only in Africa, but also the Americas, Asia, Eastern Europe and Oceania.
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You can see a photo gallery of the event and speakers in our flickr account, or search Linkedin and Twitter for #KCSAfrica2020
Ways to give
This was an amazing event, brought a wide range of child safeguarding professionals together – and had real impact. But we couldn’t do this without the generosity of sponsors. Every donation helps make a difference, so please do consider giving.
