Advancing Children

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Advancing Childrens Rights through rights-based
budgeting- Work of the CBU

• Mario Claasen Stanton Scholtz
• Childrens Budget Unit, Idasa

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Structure of Presentation

• Purpose of Presentation
• Overview of the Childrens Budget Unit
• Activities of the CBU-including the Children
  Participating in Governance Project
• Conclusion
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Purpose of the Presentation

• To introduce the JMC to the CBU
• Familiarize the JMC on rights-based budgeting
• Introduce the JMC to the Children Participating
  in Governance Project impact of the programme on
  a child who participated in the Project
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Overview of the CBU- Objectives

• The Childrens Budget Unit conducts research,
  builds capacity and disseminate information that
  advocates for generation and use of resources for
  child rights realization, targeting governments
  and civil society organizations in developing
  countries.
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Context of Children in SA

• In 2004, just over 18 million children (49 of
  population)
• In 2004, 66 (11.9 million) children live in
  households with income of R1.500 p/m or less
• In 2004, 260 000 children under the age of 15
  years are estimated to be living with HIV
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Purpose of CBU Research

• Provide information on
• Programme design, budgeting, implementation and
  service delivery
• Recommendations for policy and programme
  development
• Provide information to
• Government officials, advocacy groups, monitoring
  bodies, research institutions, media and MPs.
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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CBU Research 1

• Rights based Framework specifically
  socio-economic rights
• If the socio-economic rights in the Constitution
  are to amount to more than paper promises, they
  must serve as useful tools in enabling people to
  gain access to the basic social services and
  resources needed to live a life consistent with
  human dignity Sandra Liebenberg (2003 1-2)
• UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
• African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the
  Child
• South African Constitution
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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CBU Research 2 The SA Constitution

• Chapter 2 Bill of Rights
• Everyone has a right to housing, health care,
  food, water, education (basic further) social
  security (including social assistance)
• Sec 28 Rights of Children
• -Sec 28 (1) (c) basic nutrition, shelter, basic
  health care services and social services
• -Sec 28 principle of best interests of a child
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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CBU Research 3 Constitutional Obligations
towards realizing Child Rights

• Parliament and Provincial Legislatures
• National and Provincial Executives
• Courts
• Parents
• Human Rights Commission
• Private Sector
• Rights-bearers (beneficiaries)
• Media
• Civil Society
• International Bodies
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Debates on Jurisprudence

• Minimum core basic standard of rights delivery
  and thereafter progressive realisation
• Certain rights less qualified childrens rights
  in s28 s29 therefore a higher standard (rapidly
  as possible and reach all children in need)
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Emerging SE Rights Jurisprudence

• Reasonableness test for government programs
  (result of Grootboom TAC Judgments)
• Reasonable in conception and implementation
• Balanced and flexible
• Provision for crisis, short, medium and long term
  
• Not exclude a significant segment of the society
• Most urgent needs must be met
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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CBU Research 4 Research Methodology

• Laws, Policies and Programmes
• Budgeting
• Implementation and Service Delivery
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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CBU Research 5 Research Questions

• Has government put a program in place to deliver
  the right?
• If yes, are the most vulnerable targeted? Is the
  program non-discriminatory? Is it equitable?
• Program budget allocation since inception and
  MTEF allocations
• Percentage of total consolidated expenditure?
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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CBU Research 6 Research Questions

• Has the real value of the service increased over
  time?
• Have funds been wasted in the program due to
  non-spending of budgets?
• Are budgets administrative capacity sufficient
  to support implementation of the program
  according to plan?
• Is service delivery such that they are rolled out
  according to the program plan and are basic
  services provided to all children quickly?
• Is operational efficiency increasing?
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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CBU Research 7 Information Sources

• Government officials program implementation
  information, policy and budgets
• Advocacy organizations information on service
  provision
• Provincial and national budget book
• Budget reviews
• Policy and legal documents
• Survey data analysis
• Constitutional court judgments
• General comments from UN committees
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Capacity Building on Rights-Based Budgeting (1)

• Training should be utilized within the
  organization
• Target Audiences
• -Civil Society Organizations
• -Parliamentary Committees at National
  Legislature Provincial Legislatures
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Capacity Building on RB Budgeting (2)

• Participatory Learning Approach
• Content includes
• Key Budget Concepts
• Link between Budgets Rights
• Budget monitoring as Advocacy Tool
• Basic Budget Analysis Skills
• Developing an Advocacy Campaign
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Information Dissemination

• Research is disseminated to
• -Civil society organizations
• -Government Departments Officials
• -National Provincial Legislatures
• -Research Organisations
• -Participants of the research
• Research is disseminated through
• -Mailing lists
• -Idasa Website
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Children Participating in Governance Project
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Conceptual Framework

• Participation current in development discourse
• Key themes of empowerment and rights
• New focus on peoples capacities to advocate for
  entitlements
• Citizens participation means giving people
  access to information on which to base
  deliberation or to mobilise to assert their
  rights and demand accountability
• Kinds of participation being given information,
  being invited to offer opinion, being asked to
  take part in setting priorities, being involved
  in decision making
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Project objectives

• Create opportunities for children in SA to
  monitor government budgets
• Improve childrens participation in and
  researching monitoring for budgets and rights
  realisation that ultimately informs policy
  shaping
• Contribute to the alignment of government
  budgeting to rights realisation
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Our partners

• Implementing partners
• IDASA Childrens Budget Unit (Cape Town)
• Practical ministries Life Hunters (Port
  Shepstone- KZN)
• Molo Songololo Its Your Move (Cape Town)
• City of Cape Town Youth Development Programme
  (Cape Town)
• Disabled Childrens Action Group (DICAG)
  (Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Western Cape)
• Funding partners
• Foundation for Human Rights (European Union)
• Norwegian Centre for Human Rights
• Save the Children Sweden
• Ford Foundation
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Peer Facilitation Model

• Selection of 6/7 reps from each group
• Form core group of 25 peer facilitators
• Training at three workshops
• Linking budgets and rights
• Budget monitoring as an advocacy tool
• Developing a strategic budget advocacy campaign
• Games used in workshops as main methodology
• Peer facilitators are the primary link to
  constituency groups
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Reference group

• Highest decision-making body gives strategic
  direction to the project
• 2 child participation experts, representatives
  from parent bodies, nominated peer facilitators
• Meetings 7 December 2004, 30 March, 22 August,
  21 November 2005 25 January 2006
• Assist with compiling research of key lessons and
  the methodology of the project as well the
  training manual
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Impact on the children

• First flight and residence in a hotel
• Media exposure
• Involvement in diverse group of youth
• Participation in Brazil learning exchange
• Global Jamboree
• Career options
• Active and valued citizenship
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Children participating in governance in Brazil

• METHOD it is important to know the history and
  the present state of your place... In order to be
  able to debate with the government on money
  allocation which will be in the budget? I found
  this interesting and a clever thing to do a
  way to change the budget. Zakithi
• SUPPORT . there is so much interest amongst
  those in government to help them with this
  project and news easily spreads because of the
  media connection they have. Nonto
• STRUCTURES two child delegates representing
  teenagers and two representing children in the
  local committees Zakithi
• ADVOCACY They have gone and challenged the
  government which they say was a very bumpy ride
  because they were not taken seriously and people
  saying they are being used (government alleged
  that the children were furthering the agenda of
  the CEDECA and not their own) but finally their
  proposals are taken accepted but not saved (no
  actual programmes were developed). So now they
  are monitoring those proposals (amendments)
  because they say they are waiting for a long
  time thinking they are giving the government time
  but rather their work and input was not taken
  seriously. Zakithi
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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Childrens opinions of the project

• I went ballistic when I heard I was chosen (16
  year old Louise from YDP)
• I think I was chosen because I am outspoken.
  (21 year old Alex from DICAG)
• Personally this workshop means a lot to me
  because maybe I will end up working for
  government and it has clarified lots of things
  for me. (16 year old Zakithi from Life Hunters)
• I was very happy the time we organised the
  workshop but when the day arrived I was very
  nervous. (18 year old Stanton from Its Your
  Move)
• By showing them (budget monitors) how to link
  the budget with there rights gave them a sense of
  power.(15 year old Abby from the YDP)
• Some of our municipal officials are interested
  about this project, this will surely break the
  concrete I assumed was between children and
  government. (18 year old Khanyi from Life
  Hunters)
• Idasa-Childrens Budget Unit

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CPG Experience and Impact on a Child active in
the Project