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Workshop on the Situation of Children in Haiti


These are reflections on the solutions needed to help the children of Haiti.
Excerpt from the report produced following the workshop on the situation of children in Haiti

Project Duration : July 7, 2010

On July 7, 2010, a workshop was held in the Ottawa offices of Global Affairs Canada to discuss the situation faced by Haitian children, just as Haiti was beginning to rebuild following the earthquake that occurred previously that year, on January 12. The project was initiated by the Canadian Forum on Children and Armed Conflict – a network operating under the auspices of Peacebuild and coordinated by the IBCR. Some 40 representatives of the Government of Canada and non-governmental organisations working in Haiti attended the workshop.

Goals :

The main goal of the workshop was to influence action plans and political decisions at a time when humanitarian action and rebuilding efforts were becoming increasingly reinforced. In collaboration with its partners, IBCR produced a situational analysis of children in Haiti, to identify priorities relating to children’s rights in the rebuilding strategies following the earthquake that had devastated the country. After the New York summits, the Bureau and its partners were concerned that children’s rights were not being taken into account in the rebuilding plans and strategies. And yet, in an emergency situation such as this one, children are not only a highly-vulnerable group, they are also the key to rebuilding and to the future. Civil society players and those in power therefore needed to take appropriate and coordinated measures to protect and ensure the participation of children.

The workshop, which was divided into two sessions, enabled participants to review the situation faced by Haitian children and develop an action strategy. A representative from the Government of Haiti spoke at the beginning of the workshop, along with delegates from the Government of Canada and the Forum. Canadian politics in Haiti, the situation of children in the country and a situational analysis (prepared by five major non-governmental organisations: Plan Canada, Save the Children, UNICEF, World Vision and War Child Canada) were presented and focused on the following:

  • Children, education and early childhood development in Haiti
  • Children in Haiti: health, nutrition, water and sanitary network
  • Justice, security and children in Haiti
  • Violence committed against children in Haiti
  • Child labour and economic opportunities for children in Haiti

Following the presentations, various representatives of the organisations facilitated thematic workgroups to produce recommendations for medium- and long-term actions. The results of these discussions were presented and drafted into a report , which included all the recommendations proposed during the meetings for each subject discussed.

  • Intervention locations : Ottawa
  • Project duration: July 7, 2010 - Closed
  • Partners :
  • Highlights:
    • About 40 participants took part in the workshop
    • Publishing of an analysis report and recommendations
  • Fields of activity and expertise :
    • Advocacy and institutional support
    • Children in emergency situations

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