Government-funded programmes and services for vulnerable - Unicef

CHAPTER 1
Children’s rights in South Africa
Children’s rights in South Africa are protected by international, continental and national law.
Three of the primary sources of law are the 1990 United Nations Convention on the Rights
of the Child (UNCRC), the 1990 African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child
(ACRWC) and the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act No. 108 of 1996).
These instruments guarantee the following rights for children and their families, which are
essential to the health, well-being and optimal development of all children:
● a name and a nationality from birth; 2
● basic nutrition, shelter, basic healthcare services, and social services;
● family care, parental care or appropriate alternative care;
● protection from maltreatment, neglect, abuse or degradation;
● protection from work practices that undermine child well-being;
● appropriate treatment when in conflict with the law;
● to have their best interests taken into account in every matter concerning the child;
● adequate housing;
● social security, including appropriate social assistance;
● basic education.
Who is a child?
The Children’s Act, No. 38 of 2005 as amended takes its lead from the Constitution
(section 28(3)), the UNCRC (Article 1) and the ACRWC (Article 2) in its definition of a
child as a person under the age of 18 years.
Vulnerable children
All children are vulnerable due to their inherent characteristics.
Their vulnerability arises from their physical characteristics, special emotional
and developmental needs, their dependence on adult care and guidance, lack
of legal capacity and inability to access many government services without
adult assistance. (Liebenberg 2010: 229)
However, the government has recognised that some children are made more vulnerable
than others due to the social and economic realities within which they live. Policy and law
have prioritised the realisation of the rights of those children made more vulnerable by
‘additional circumstances which aggravate their exposure to risk’ (Liebenberg 2010: 230).
Which children are vulnerable?
Regionally, vulnerable children are defined as:
Children who are deprived or likely to be deprived or harmed as a result of
their physical condition or social, cultural, economic, political circumstances
and environment, and require external support because their immediate care
and support system can no longer cope. Examples are children living in a
household whose parent/s is infected with HIV, lives in a child headed or
2 UNCRC, Article 7 and ACRWC, Article 6
3