Projects

Fourth Workshop on Integrating Key Children’s Rights Competencies in Practical Police and Gendarme Training Programmes in Africa, The Middle East and Haiti

Discussion workshop – Lomé, Togo – November 2012

Project Duration : November 5 to November 7, 2012 

An initial brainstorming workshop was held in Ouagadougou in November 2009 to mark the 20th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (OHCHR). It was attended by the IBCR, representatives from non-governmental organisations, such Francopol and the International Organisation of La Francophonie, as well as representatives from some 10 police and gendarmerie schools in French-speaking Africa. The goal of the meeting was to raise participant awareness on children’s rights in general, and more specifically, on the how to apply the principle of the best interests of the child in police practice. The discussions held at this meeting revealed certain shortcomings among police and gendarmerie forces in their application of child protection standards, as well as inconsistent child rights training in educational institutions. Thus, there was an urgent need to address this situation by developing a common strategy.

In light of the enthusiasm generated by the initial workshop, the meeting was subsequently held annually, first in Cotonou, then in Dakar (lien rapport) and Niamey (lien rapport). Every year, the event attracted several countries to discuss the important cause of children, and one of the most notable results was the adoption of six key competencies to be taught to police and gendarmerie officers to ensure they are prepared to uphold child protection principles when carrying out their duties. The workshops also led to the design and development of national action plans to adapt the proposed approach to the specific contexts of each country.

In November 2012, the Fourth International Conference on Security Forces Training on Children’s Rights was held in Lomé, Togo and attended by 22 delegations from Africa, the Middle East and Haiti.

Goals :

The purpose of the meeting in Lomé, which was attended by 80 representatives of police and gendarmerie training academies, was to report on the various activities conducted since the 2011 meeting in Niamey. The delegations were asked to provide a status update on the integration of the key competencies required by all officers to uphold children’s rights. Six countries from Central and Western Africa (Togo, Guinea, Niger, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Cameroon) presented their experiences in adding training modules on children’s rights to the basic training offered at their academies. The other participating delegations drew from their experiences and developed their own action plans, adjusting them to their own national situations, best practices and latest trends. For the first time, English-speaking delegations (Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, Swaziland and Zimbabwe) and Arab-speaking delegations (Iraq, Occupied Palestinian Territories and Jordan) joined the meeting, making the discussions truly global in scope. A report summarising each country’s objectives was prepared during this meeting (lien vers le rapport).