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Al-Ahram Weekly 25 Nov. - 1 Dec. 1999 Issue No. 457 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 25 Nov. - 1 Dec. 1999 Issue No. 457
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters 'Our dearest investment for the future'
By Dahlia HammoudaSomething surprising has happened in the past decade. Children have taken centre stage on the political and social landscape. Testament to this is the conference held this week -- presided over by Mrs Suzanne Mubarak and attended by a host of government ministers -- announcing the beginning of a new decade for the Egyptian child.
The conference, "A Future Vision for the Second Decade for the Egyptian Child 2000-2010", held at the Cairo International Conference Centre from 20 to 22 November, discussed the future of education, health, culture and social care for children.
To an audience that included ministers, policy makers, educators and members of non-governmental and international agencies, Mrs Mubarak said in an opening address that the conference comes at a time when Egypt is attempting to renew the spirit of its social work after its achievements on the economic front.
In 1989, President Hosni Mubarak issued a presidential decree declaring the years 1989-1999 as being dedicated to protecting the Egyptian child. This document, along with the tireless efforts and sound directives of Mrs Mubarak, had an extraordinary mobilising power, generating a high level of commitment on behalf of children across the country. In the same year, the National Council for Childhood and Motherhood was established. The council -- which organised the conference -- is the main body entrusted with setting plans, policies and programmes for the advancement of children and women.
What objectives lie behind all this focus on the child? "Our hopes are pinned to a child with a strong, healthy body and an enlightened mind; a child able to learn, take initiatives and be creative; a child who can deal with others and respect their feelings, thinking and differences; one who has deeply ingrained democratic values of tolerance and positive participation, as well as responsibility bearing and the respect of the rights of others," Mrs Mubarak said.
According to Mrs Mubarak, the conference's main role is to embody this vision and crystallise this philosophy, as well as reviewing the human investment plan which began years back, in light of the changing world circumstances.
Looking back, Egypt's efforts in children's rights and their protection have preceded international work on the issue. The presidential decree of 1989 came shortly before the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child was signed later in the same year. The convention spells out the basic human rights that children everywhere -- without discrimination -- have. Ratified by all countries in the world except US and Somalia, the convention protects children's rights by setting standards in health, education and legal, civil and social services. In 1990, the largest gathering of world leaders in history assembled at the UN to attend the World Summit for Children, in which the Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children was adopted. Egypt was one of six initiating countries to organise the summit.
Pointing to the successes of Egypt's first child decade, Mrs Mubarak spoke of the great leaps forward made in the three vital fields that directly affect the child -- health, education and culture. The establishment of time-bound, measurable goals helped to mobilise resources and commitment and shape new initiatives with clear aims in all three fields.
Four school children representing the group of non-governmental organisations involved in children's rights issues presented Mrs Mubarak with a document listing their hopes for the future.
Before a boisterous crowd of school children at the conference's closing session, Mrs Mubarak declared that the conference has fulfilled one of her dearest wishes: Egypt's success in founding a national awareness of children's issues.
Continuing her speech amid periodic bursts of loud applause by the children, Mrs Mubarak said. "The issue, as I envision it, extends to include what is more than the first or second decade of the child, to reach the social contract itself."
However, all efforts to improve the status of children would only be partially successful if one vital component goes missing from the equation. "The role of the family is the independent requirement that leads all others," Mrs Mubarak said. "A mother who is reasonably educated and sufficiently healthy and a responsible father who is committed to his family are a source of support to our ambitions for the child. A family built on love and close ties produces a child who is physically and mentally healthy."
Mrs Mubarak also highlighted the importance of the preservation of embedded societal values and reconciling these with modern-day challenges. "The family is the main receptacle of the values which children learn. We want our values to be consistent with our thinking and to stem from our history, while at the same time being congruous with the spirit of the age and its great changes."
Mrs Mubarak said the support and care that the Egyptian family requires to fulfill its role can only be extended to it through a joint effort, in which the various and comprehensive social programmes -- for women, health, education, employment, housing and rural development -- are interwoven. The coordination of governmental and private efforts to reach a harmony of collective action will lead us to a unified social vision and a collective social responsibility, she said.
While children have definitely inched up the Egyptian agenda, many areas of child development remain stagnant. Child labour, street children, juvenile delinquency, female illiteracy, substandard schooling and inadequate environmental planning all constitute major problems.
But the advances of a decade represent a promising beginning and the momentum that was built is continuing. "The president's ratification of a new decade for the Egyptian child is a continuation of the bias for the future," said Mrs Mubarak. "This conference's discussions and working papers have formulated a comprehensive plan of action that will realise our ambitions for our children...our dearest investment for the future."
