Realising Young Children’s Right to Health Under the Convention on the Rights of the Child
The Promise – and the Reality in Bangladesh and Kenya
In: The International Journal of Children's RightsSearch for other papers by Gary W. Reinbold in
Current site
Google Scholar
I consider young children’s right to health under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, using an established medical and social science framework for studying children’s health and the complete reporting histories under the crc of two countries, Bangladesh and Kenya. Although the crc recognises rights corresponding to almost all of the factors that contribute to child mortality and growth faltering, its effectiveness has been reduced by substantive limitations on those rights, procedural limitations in enforcing those rights, and an inefficient state party reporting process. Kenya’s few successes in realising those rights all occurred recently and mainly involved societal factors, which have not yet produced significant improvements in young children’s right to health. Bangladesh achieved earlier successes that primarily involved proximate factors and it has experienced significant decreases in child mortality and growth faltering rates, but its failure to address broader societal factors may make it difficult to further reduce those rates.
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Scherer and Hart (1999) observed that the education provisions in the crc are unique in defining not only the substantive rights, but also the goals in recognising those rights.
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Van Bueren (1999) emphasised the need for (a) a comprehensive framework for realising children’s rights, (b) an annual children’s budget, (c) a National Programme of Action for children, (d) a child impact analysis of economic policies, (e) conforming all new laws to the crc, and (f) quasi-judicial remedies such as an ombudsman.
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Hammonds & Ooms (2004) observed that the minimum core obligations identified by the cescr relating to the right to health closely mirror crc Article 24. Of course, the crc predated the cescr’s comment, so this similarity provides no guidance on the intent of the crc’s drafters.
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Also, the Committee (2005) added a ninth general area addressing two optional protocols to the crc.
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Responding to this concern, in 2009, the un adopted guidelines for harmonised reporting under the crc and five other international human rights treaties to reduce the burden both on states parties and on the treaty bodies. The harmonised system requires states to submit, and keep current, a common core document including information that is relevant to multiple treaties and to also submit periodic reports under each treaty including information that is specific to that treaty (un Secretary-General, 2009). The Committee (2010) has adopted guidelines for the treaty-specific reports to be filed under the crc.
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Kenya (2001) described the main causes of poverty as: (a) lack of access to factors of production; (b) sluggish economic growth; (c) large families and rapid population growth; (d) lack of productive skills and low levels of education and training; (e) bureaucratic planning, targeting, and resource allocation mechanisms that limit access to help for the poor; (f) inequitable income distribution; (g) poor health, including aids and disabilities; and (h) changes in social structures resulting in the breakdown of extended family support systems. Kenya (2006b) listed its poverty alleviation programmes to include (a) the Poverty Eradication Commission, (b) school feeding programmes, (c) the Constituency Development Fund, (d) the Local Authority Transfer Fund, (e) the Local Authorities Service Delivery Action Plan, and (f) free primary education. Kenya did not describe that any of these programmes addressed family size, population growth, income distribution, poor health, or changes in social structures.
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Bangladesh’s (2003a) second report provided the fertility rate for 15–19 year olds (144 per 1,000) and the percentage of girls who had given birth or were pregnant by age 19 (58 per cent).
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Realising Young Children’s Right to Health Under the Convention on the Rights of the Child
The Promise – and the Reality in Bangladesh and Kenya
In: The International Journal of Children's RightsSearch for other papers by Gary W. Reinbold in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
I consider young children’s right to health under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, using an established medical and social science framework for studying children’s health and the complete reporting histories under the crc of two countries, Bangladesh and Kenya. Although the crc recognises rights corresponding to almost all of the factors that contribute to child mortality and growth faltering, its effectiveness has been reduced by substantive limitations on those rights, procedural limitations in enforcing those rights, and an inefficient state party reporting process. Kenya’s few successes in realising those rights all occurred recently and mainly involved societal factors, which have not yet produced significant improvements in young children’s right to health. Bangladesh achieved earlier successes that primarily involved proximate factors and it has experienced significant decreases in child mortality and growth faltering rates, but its failure to address broader societal factors may make it difficult to further reduce those rates.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 471 | 52 | 7 |
| Full Text Views | 300 | 5 | 3 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 136 | 8 | 4 |
