Banjul, 9 February 2018
Malawi has submitted its fourth progress report to the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACERWC) on implementation of the amicable settlement agreement reached in October 2016 between IHRDA and Malawi in the Malawi children’s case before the ACERWC.
According to the report dated 7 February 2018, Malawi organised a workshop on the harmonisation of laws on the definition of a child from 14-15 December 2017. The workshop was attended by sixty participants from across Malawi, including relevant State institutions, civil society organisations and the media. This workshop was a follow-up to the meeting of harmonisation Task Force held in August 2017.
The report also states that Malawi is looking forward to the review of its initial and combined report on the African Children’s Charter later this month.
By this report, Malawi reaffirms its commitment to the October 2016 amicable settlement agreement, and its political will to cooperate with the ACERWC in ensuring the welfare of children in Malawi.
It should be recalled that in 2014, IHRDA, on behalf of children in Malawi, had filed a complaint against Malawi before the ACERWC, challenging section 23 (6) of the Malawian Constitution which had set 16 years as the age of majority, contrary to the provisions of the African Charter of the Rights and Welfare of the Child to which Malawi is a party.
