ABSTRACT
To examine the relation between governance and children’s rights across two continental regions as diverse as sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America is to step into a minefield of generalized assertions that can be easily confounded by numerous exceptions. Both regions are extraordinarily diverse. Sub-Saharan Africa, which for purposes of brevity I henceforth refer to as Africa, consists of 52 nation states and hundreds of different ethnic groups, many with their own languages or dialects and unique cultural distinctiveness (United Nations Statistics Division, 2013). The total population of Africa is estimated at over 949 million, of whom approximately 43 percent (408 million) are under the age of 15 years (Population Reference Bureau, 2015, p. 11). In Latin America (excluding the Caribbean) there are 21 countries and some 587 million people who are differentiated by a variety of ancestries, cultural attachments, languages, and socio-economic backgrounds. Twenty-seven percent (157 million) of Latin America’s populace is below the age of 15 (Population Reference Bureau, 2015, pp. 12-13). In view of these extensive demographic differences, and the corresponding diversity of national histories and political systems, a discussion of the governance of children’s rights across these two large continents risks generating broad claims that gloss over the many cultural, political, and legal particularities of children’s rights that prevail from one country to another, as well as within each country. And yet, in light of a shared legacy of colonialism and post-colonial political and economic volatility, it is worthwhile to consider the issue of governance broadly as it relates to the status of children’s rights across both continents. In this chapter, therefore, I examine the role of African and Latin American governments in following through on their obligations as articulated in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC; United Nations General Assembly, 1989). Overall, despite constitutional changes and child rights legislation that have been undertaken in most countries, a combination of internal constraints and external pressures has limited the effectiveness of governments in promoting and protecting children’s rights. This has led to an expanding role of civil society organizations (CSOs) in maintaining support for
the welfare and the rights of children. As I will conclude, CSO engagement has stimulated the emergence of a transnational field of child rights advocacy that is now essential if children’s rights are to remain an issue of state governance throughout Africa and Latin America.
