Why a new organisation?

• Action carried out so far and ongoing is far from adequate given the scale and complexity of the problems. The work of the NGO community remains largely fragmented and invisible because of a lack of co-ordination and sharing of the knowledge base and does not sufficiently address the multi-faceted problems confronting Africa's children.
• Much remains unknown about many problems concerning African children, for example, child abuse, child bondage, child-headed households; or for that matter, the situation of children with disability.
• Political sensitivities impede genuine dialogue and action by governments and international organisations alike. Well-intentioned public pronouncements in support of international conventions are seldom backed up by credible public investment or appropriate legislation. Lack of governmental capacity to design appropriate policies and programmes is often a problem.
• The dominant paradigm remains insufficiently supportive of children's rights. The justification of for example child labour in terms of traditional African norms has to be challenged. Given the intimate link between the status of women and children, the many and varied obstacles to women's empowerment must be removed.

The problems are thus immense and the approaches required complex and sometimes even controversial on intellectual, traditional and social grounds. Ultimate victory will only come by changing the climate of opinion in African countries amongst the public, opinion leaders and policy-makers.

Children have a legitimate role to play in this. Moreover the proper arena for debating new ideas and defining the vision and strategy has in the first instance to be Africa and African institutions themselves. Hence the African Child Policy Forum.