Joining Forces for All Children in Kenya(JFCK) has called on the government to allow children to have access to budget information.
JFCK is an alliance of six child-focused international NGOs namely: ChildFund Alliance, Plan International, Save the Children International, SOS Children's Villages International, Terre des Hommes International Federation and World Vision International.
Their aim is to use their collective power to accelerate change to secure children, their rights and end violence against them.
In a press briefing held at Sarova Hotel on Wednesday, Childfund Kenya country director Alice Anukur said it is important that Children in Kenya are given feedback on how the issues that they have persistently raised previously, are being addressed by both the national and county governments.
She said that children have the right to access government information, as adults do.
“Engagement with children, consulting with them, listening to them and providing feedback is one of the focus areas for the Joining Forces For All children in Kenya as we advance the progressive realisation of the rights of children,” Anukur said.
“In all the communities where we work in Kenya, one of our priorities is meaningful and effective participation and engagement of children in all matters that affect them.”
She recommended that the National Treasury should initiate a process of simplifying the budget documents further in child-friendly versions.
Anukur added that the State Department for Basic Education should disseminate such budget information to all children through schools so that they can understand what is in the Budget for them.
Further, she said that civil society organisations, especially those who focus on the promotion of the rights of children should prioritise dissemination of government budget documents to children.
“This includes sensitising children to ensure their rights are being addressed through government budget allocation and implementation,” Anukur said.
She reiterated that providing feedback to children on how the budget for the current financial year has been utilised to address their needs, is critical.
“Civil society organisations should interrogate the Budget Implementation reports for the current financial year (that ends on 30 June 2023), as shall have been published by the Office of the Controller of Budget, so as to demonstrate how Children have been reached with the implementation of the current budget,” Anukur said.
“This should be taken up by Civil Society Organizations in collaboration with the Office of the Controller of Budget and the Auditor General.”
She insisted that these guidelines will provide further guidance to ministries, departments and agencies on how to allocate adequate resources for the implementation of child rights programmes and child protection services for children in Kenya.