Homa Bay County launches child protection policy

Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga. [File, Standard]

Governor Gladys Wanga's administration, in partnership with various organisations, has launched a policy to protect the rights of children.

The policy dubbed Homa Bay County Child Welfare and Protection Policy aims to tackle obstacles that impede the development of children.

The County Executive Member for Gender, Sarah Malit, presided over the launch of the policy at Omiro Health Centre in Kabondo Kasipul Constituency during a celebration to mark the International Day of the Girl Child.

Malit, who was accompanied by the director of Gender Evelyn Ododa and her counterpart for Inclusivity Lucy Odwar, said the policy is going to strengthen strategies for fighting against defilement, child pregnancy and HIV.

She noted that the policy had laid down proper strategies for curbing the triple threat.

The CECM noted that many girls in the county were still in danger of defilement. However, she expressed hope that the policy will help address the vice.

"This county used to have a teen pregnancy prevalence of 33 percent before 2022 but today it is 23.2 percent. The policy we have launched today is going to help to reduce the vice significantly because it has various interventions for thwarting the vice," Malit said.

The policy also focuses on other forms of boys' and girls' rights violation and how to address them.

Other risks addressed in the policy include inadequate funding to increase child networks and platforms to increase child protection, gaps in addressing child online protection among others.

The leaders who attended the function expressed commitment to advocate for protection of children's rights in the county.