“peace for my homeland mali” - every last child€¦ · the ‘integrating child protection...

PB 1

2018

“PEACE FOR MY HOMELAND MALI”

THE VOICE AND VISIBILITY OF CHILDREN AFFECTED BY ARMED CONFLICT

IICRD

2 i

Published by

Save the Children East and Southern Africa Regional Office

P.O. Box 19423-00202Nairobi, Kenya

Tel: +254 711 090 000 Email: [email protected]: www.savethechildren.net

Technical reviewers: Anthony Njoroge, Anthony Ombara, Mans Welander, Anta FallJoram Kibigo, Maryline Njoroge, Rita Kirema, Mory Camara

Design, layout and printing

Almond Print LimitedSouthern House, Nginda Street, Lower Ground Floor

Cell +254 734 676678, +254 716 900430Email: [email protected], [email protected]

www.almondprintkenya.com

2 i

Acknowledgements

The close collaboration and team spirit of the stakeholders involved at various levels and stages contributed to the success of the consultations with children affected by the armed conflict in Mali.

We would like to thank the staff of Save the Children Mali, including the Country Director, the heads of the Mopti and Gao offices, their staff in charge of administration, security, advocacy, and child protection for their crucial roles in organizing and carrying out the consultations.

Our gratitude also goes to the national civil society organisations - le Conseil Consultatif National des Enfants et Jeunes du Mali (CCNEJ), le Parlement des Enfants, l’Association pour la Promotion des Jeunes et Enfants Communicateurs du Mali (APJEC), and l’Association des Enfants et Jeunes Travailleurs (AEJT) – for their contributions to the consultations. A special thanks to the teachers of the schools visited as well for assisting with the mobilization of the children.

The availability of the parents, the staff of the NGOs, government technical services, and the representatives of the community-based organizations consulted contributed to the insightful information contained in this report.

We would also like to thank the International Institute for Child Rights and Development (IICRD), and in particular, Dr. Philip Cook, Jean Sewanou, and Armel Oguniyi, for designing the methodology used for this study and undertaking the consultations with the children and other stakeholders in Mali. Their efforts are much appreciated.

Lastly, we would like to particularly thank every child in Mopti and Gao, especially those of the public primary schools Idrissa Sow ‘A’ (Mopti) and Aljanabanja (Gao) who participated in these consultations. It is our hope that the voices of the children will be heard and that policies and decisions will reflect the messages they have shared in this report.

ii iii

Table of Contents

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS..............................................................................................................................................i

TABLE OF CONTENTS.......................................................................................................................................................ii

ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS.........................................................................................................................iii

LIST OF TABLES...........................................................................................................................................................iv

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.................................................................................................................................................v

1. INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................................................1

2. METHODOLOGY OF THE CONSULTATIONS............................................................................................2

2.1 characteristics of actors consulted................................................................................................................2

2.2 sample breakdown per tool and site of consultation.....................................................................................2

2.3 matrix of the consultations..............................................................................................................................3

2.4 data tabulation, processing and analysis.........................................................................................................3

2.5 major difficulties and mitigation measures.......................................................................................................3

3. KEY FINDINGS FROM THE CONSULTATIONS..........................................................................................5

3.1 impact of armed conflict on children...............................................................................................................5

3.2 forms of involvement of children in armed conflict.......................................................................................7

3.3 categories of child rights violated and abused during the armed conflict........................................................8

3.4 protective and risk factors in the children’s environment...........................................................................10

3.5 needs of children affected by the armed conflict........................................................................................12

3.6 children’s visions and dreams for their communities and mali......................................................................13

3.6.1 Children’s dreams for their communities and Mali...............................................................................................................................................13

3.6.2 Children’s recommendations to achieve their dreams..........................................................................................................................................14

3.6.3 Existing and potential strengths for achievement of dreams............................................................................................................................15

3.7 interventions targeting children affected by armed conflict..........................................................................17

3.7.1 Typology, goals and objectives of current interventions...............................................................................................................................17

3.7.2 Assessment of strategies and interventions in progress...............................................................................................................................18

3.7.3 Major challenges of the strategies and interventions in progress............................................................................................................19

4. RECOMMENDATIONS..................................................................................................................................20

5. CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................................22

6. ANNEXES........................................................................................................................................................23

visionary tree................................................................................................................................................................23

river of life....................................................................................................................................................................23

body mapping..................................................................................................................................................................24

social mapping...............................................................................................................................................................25

children focus group discussion guide......................................................................................................................26

key informant semi structured interview guide ........................................................................................................27

ii iii

Abbreviations and Acronyms

ACRWC : African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child

AEJT : Association des Enfants et Jeunes Travailleurs

APJEC : Action pour la Promotion des Jeunes et Enfants Communicateurs

AU : African Union

CBO : Community Based Organization

CCNEJ : Conseil Consultatif National des Enfants et Jeunes

CRC : Convention on the Rights of the Child

CSO : Civil Society Organisation

GREFFA : Groupe de Recherche, d’Etudes, de Formation et Femme Action

ICPAPSA : Integrating Child Protection within the African Peace and Security Architecture

IGA : Income Generating Activities

IICRD : International Institute for Child Rights and Development

MINUSMA : United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali

MOC : Operational Mechanism for Coordination

NGO : Non-Governmental Organization

TCCs: Troop Contributing Countries

TCEs: Training Centres of Excellence

iv v

List of Tables

Table 1: Breakdown of the samples per tool......................................................................................................................................................2

Table 2: Matrix of the consultations......................................................................................................................................................................3

Table 3: Typology of the rights violated and abused and their manifestations............................................................................................8

Table 4: Risk and protective factors....................................................................................................................................................................11

Table 5: Typology of the interventions................................................................................................................................................................17

Table 6: Assessment of the ongoing interventions and strategies................................................................................................................18

Table 7: Recommendations formulated by the stakeholders consulted.....................................................................................................20

iv v

Child participation is one of Save the Children’s thematic areas in accordance with Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC),

which recognises that children have a right to have their views heard and considered. This implies that children have a right to be informed and involved in decisions and actions that affect them and to have their views taken into account. The ‘Integrating Child Protection within the African Peace and Security Architecture’ (ICPAPSA) project has been conceptualized with child participation as a key objective and vital to the effective delivery of the project. The project is implemented in West and East Africa, with the focus countries for the consultations with children being Mali and South Sudan.

The overall goal of the project is to enhance the capacity of the African Peace and Security Architecture to prevent and respond to violence against children. The intended outcome of the child participation work is that by 2019, children affected by armed conflict contribute to decisions and processes of the African Union (AU), Regional Mechanisms or Bodies, and Member States.

The objectives of the consultations with children are to engage children affected by armed conflict to share their experiences and provide recommendations on policies and processes affecting them at local, national and regional levels, as well as to strengthen the capacity of national civil society organizations (CSOs) working for or with children in mainstreaming child participation principles and processes in their work. The consultations were conducted with children affected by armed conflict in two selected regions of Mali: Gao and Mopti. During the consultations, the children were encouraged to express their opinions, share their experiences and needs, and formulate recommendations. The consultations, co-facilitated by members of four national CSOs1 and IICRD as part of the project team, took place during the last two weeks of May 2018.

A child-centred, participatory qualitative research approach adapted to the context of conflict was implemented. Based on the qualitative sampling method, a total of 80 children (40 girls and 40 boys) aged 8 to 16, and 20 adults were consulted in the two regions identified by staff from the country office. The qualitative data collection tools namely (i) the visionary tree, (ii) social mapping, (iii) the river of life, (iv) body mapping, and (vi) the focus group discussion guide

1 Conseil Consultatif National des Enfants et Jeunes du Mali (CCNEJ), Parlement des Enfants, Association pour la Promotion des Enfants et des Jeunes Communicateurs du Mali (APJEC), and Association des Enfants et Jeunes Travailleurs (AEJT).

were used in a dynamic and participatory approach with children. As for adults, the semi-structured interview guide was the tool used. Data was analysed using a descriptive, logical, and inductive approach2 for qualitative data processing and analysis. The software QSR Nvivo was also used to code and categorize themes and sub-themes. The analysis of the data generated key findings that can be used for advocacy as well as to improve programmatic interventions.

Highlights from the experiences of children include:

• The impact of armed conflict on children:Due to the armed conflict, some children and youth associated with armed forces and rebel groups exhibit violent behaviours such as incest, rape, sexual abuse, and armed banditry including on the roads. The insecurity has had a negative impact on regular school attendance. In addition, school drop-outs, early pregnancy and early marriages have been observed among girls. The crisis has also created a commercial sex worker network which is underway especially in Gao region.

• Forms of involvement of children in armed conflict:

Some children were enrolled in armed forces and rebel groups. Exploited as ‘agents’, other children were involved in armed banditry and in various forms of violence such as rape, and the trade and consumption of drugs. The girls were used in the camps for various chores (cooking, laundry) and to satisfy the sexual desires of combatants.

• Categories of child rights violated and abused during the conflict:

According to the children, CSOs and parents, the rights to protection (physical integrity), participation, development, and life and survival were violated and abused during the conflict by various actors.

• Protective and risk factors in the children’s environment:

The mosque (“...we pray there, jihadists do not attack mosques”), the health centre (“... they treat us there when we are sick”), houses (“at home we are safe because our parents protect us”), and NGO offices including Save the Children (... they help in

2 Blaise, Mireille (Ph.D.) et Martineau, Stephane (Ph.D.), L’analyse inductive générale : description d’une démarche visant à donner un sens à des données brutes, Recherches Qualitatives – Vol. 26(2), 2006, pp. 1-18, http://www.recherche-qualitative.qc.ca/documents/files/revue/edition_reguliere/numero26%282%29/blais_et_martineau_final2.pdf (original document in French)

Executive Summary

vi 1

the respect of child rights and support children...) were identified as safe places by children. Other places were mapped by the children as risky such as: the market (children are sometimes kidnapped in the markets), the school (targeted by jihadists), and the military camps and UN posts (exposure of children to bullets).

• Needs expressed by children: Access to education, health care, portable drinking water, protection, and safety (physical, social, food and nutrition) were the main needs expressed by the children.

• Children’s visions and dreams for their communities and Mali:

The dreams and visions of the children were shared during the visionary tree activity. Their visions revolve around: accessing and attending school in a safe and peaceful environment; fully enjoying their right to protection; seeing Mali reunited and reconstructed; peace and the end of the conflict; and living in an environment of social cohesion, fair justice for all and without discrimination.

The findings of the consultations with the children as well as the information provided by the adults interviewed also made it possible to assess: (i) the relevance of the various

ongoing interventions; (ii) the impact of these interventions on the lives of the children affected by armed conflict; and (iii) the major challenges faced by stakeholders.

Based on the findings of the consultations, some potential topics for advocacy were also identified to support the national CSOs in developing their advocacy strategy for engagement with regional bodies and the Malian government. The themes include:

• Restoration of peace and peacekeeping in Mali; • Strengthening existing government services such as

access to justice, health, protection of schools amongst others;

• Resource mobilisation to support existing and establish new formal and non-formal child protection systems in communities;

• Meaningful and effective integration of the voices of children in the development and implementation of strategies and operations at local and national levels;

• Adoption by the National Assembly of Mali on the law on gender-based violence, and;

• Prevention of the recruitment of children by armed forces and rebel groups, and the demobilisation of enrolled children.

Figure 1: Map of the conflict in Mali. Source: https://www.populationdata.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/mali-conflit-2012-2013.png

vi 1

Child participation is one of Save the Children’s thematic areas in accordance with Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC),

which recognises that children have a right to have their views heard and considered3. This implies that children have a right to be informed and involved in decisions and actions that affect them and to have their views taken into account.

From 2013 to 2016, Save the Children, with support from SIDA4, developed and implemented the project ‘Strengthening Child Protection in AU Peace Support Operations’, as the first phase. The purpose of the project was to strengthen the protection of children and their rights in conflict situations by strengthening the capacity of African peacekeeping forces in East and West Africa to fulfill their mandate of protecting and preserving the rights of children in armed conflict. This was achieved through the development and launching of training curricula and toolkits to be endorsed by recognized Training Centers of Excellence (TCEs) and Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs), as well as the development and deployment of a training information management system (AMANI). Since the first phase of the project was strongly focused on the development of training materials, children’s participation was not a key objective and, therefore, this component was not developed. Children’s participation took place through consultations with children in northern Uganda and Côte d’Ivoire to ensure that the training effectively addressed the needs expressed by children through their contributions as children affected by armed conflict. The findings collected during the consultations were

3 Convention on the Rights of the Child, https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/crc.aspx.4 Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency

incorporated into the child protection training toolkit and is currently being used in skills acquisition exercises.

In its second phase, known as ‘Integrating Child Protection within the African Peace and Security Architecture’ (ICPAPSA), child participation has been identified as a key and vital objective for its effectiveness. Building on the outcomes of the first phase of the project, one of the limitations identified by Save the Children was that while it is encouraging that children and armed conflict are on the African political agenda and various mechanisms are in place to prevent and respond to violence against children affected by armed conflict, the reality is that the children whom they are designed to protect rarely inform such mechanisms. Consequently, decisions, policies and processes that do not involve children in their design can have gaps. Decisions, policies and processes affecting children are more likely to be effective in their intent if children are involved in their design, implementation and monitoring. The child participation work is expected to contribute to amplifying the voices of children affected by armed conflict at regional and national levels to influence policies and decisions, as well as capacity building of national CSOs on mainstreaming child participation principles and processes in their work and advocacy strategies at regional and national levels.

Over the last two weeks of May 2018, consultations with children affected by armed conflict in Mali were facilitated by the International Institute for Child Rights and Development (IICRD) in the regions of Mopti and Gao in collaboration with the project team and members of the national CSOs, through the use of various participatory data collection tools and methods with children and other stakeholders.

1. Introduction

2 3

The methodological approach used by IICRD in the consultations was based on its experience in implementing child-centered participatory qualitative

research, adapted to the context of conflict. Since the consultations with children were essentially a qualitative study, a “purposive” qualitative sampling approach was used. Thus, the sample size was determined based on: (i) a set of predetermined characteristics of the respondents; (ii) each data collection tool; (iii) the number of days available for data collection; and (iv) the number of people available for the activities.

2.1 Characteristics of actors consulted

Based on the characteristics of children affected by armed conflict as put forward by the project team (refugee children, orphaned, unaccompanied, used as combatants, exploited, associated with or otherwise affected during the armed conflict, etc.), the country office in Mali advised that children enrolled in the schools selected for the consultations in Mopti and Gao be consulted. This was crucial for the formation of homogeneous groups required for some data collection tools. Children involved in the consultations ranged from 8 to 16 years old and gender parity was met in the sampling process.

In addition, children with special needs were also identified to participate in the consultations to ensure respect for the principle of inclusion but in the field, the team did not meet this category of children. This impacted on the diversity of information obtained from the children with regard to various issues affecting them. In terms of ethnicity, children from different ethnic groups affected by the armed conflict

2. Methodology of the Consultations were consulted. Moreover, the level of education (children in school, out of school, not enrolled) was also considered. In this case, the team had access to schoolchildren in Aljanabanja (Gao) and Idrissa Sow ‘A’ schools (Mopti).

As for adults, they were targeted according to the following profiles: parents or guardians of children involved in the consultations; a local NGO/CSO manager working in the area; a representative of a community-based organization; or an official for local child protection services.

2.2 Sample breakdown per tool and site of consultation

The consultations required a careful selection of tools adapted to the conditions of children and the themes to be explored. Thus, the tools for the group activities (body mapping, social mapping, visionary tree, focus groups) and those for individual activities (river of life, drawings, writing) were calibrated. For adults, their views were explored with the use of semi-structured Interviews. The size of the sample defined according to the characteristics presented above was 80 children (40 girls and 40 boys), the same children consulted through the various tools used.

This sample forecast was rigorously respected in both Mopti and Gao, with the difference that some amendments were made to the number of groups formed for certain group activity tools in Gao on the basis of on-the-ground realities such as weather conditions and availability of the actors (other factors are detailed below in section 2.5). However, the said amendment did not prejudice either the quality of the information or the size of the sample. The sample broken down by tool and by site is as follows:

Sample broken down per data collection tool in Mopti

Tools Number of activities (tools) Number River of Life 40 40Group Discussion 5 (1 FGD mixed, 2 FGDs girls, 2 FGDs boys) 40 children (8 children per group)Visionary Tree 4 (2 mixed groups, 1 girls’ group, 1 boys’ group) 32 children (8 children per group)Body Mapping 4 (2 girls’ groups, 2 boys’ groups) 32 children (8 children per group)Social Mapping 4 (2 mixed groups, 1 girls’ group, 1 boys’ group) 32 children (8 children per group)Semi-Structured Interviews 5 parents (including 3 women); 5 civil society actors 10

Sample broken down per data collection tool in Gao

Tools Number of activities (tools) Number River of Life 40 40Group Discussion 3 (1 FGD mixed, 1 FGD girls, 1 FGD boys) 24 children (8 children per group)Visionary Tree 4 (2 girls’ groups, 2 boys’ groups) 32 children (8 children per group)Body Mapping 2 (1 girls’ group, 1 boys’ group) 16 children (8 children per group)Social Mapping 4 (2 mixed groups, 1 girls’ group, 1 boys’ group) 32 children (8 children per group)Semi-Structured Interviews 5 parents (including 3 women); 5 civil society actors 10

Table 1 : Breakdown of the sample per tool

2 3

100 people (80 children and 20 adults) were therefore reached during the consultations in Mali.

2.3 Matrix of the consultations

To achieve the objectives of the consultations, specific evaluation questions covering various themes within the context of children affected by armed conflict were developed:• Forms of involvement of children in armed conflict including conscription of children by combatants.• Categories of children’s rights violated and abused during the conflict.• Impact of conflict on children.• Protective and risk factors in the children’s environment.• Needs of children affected by the armed conflict.• Children’s visions and dreams for their communities and Mali.• Assessment and impact of interventions on the lives of children affected by the armed conflict.

The various tools were therefore calibrated to cover these themes during the consultations.

2.4 Data tabulation, processing and analysis

The data analysis framework focused on the predetermined themes of the consultations while leaving room for including unanticipated themes that typically occur during data collection. The data collected was manually stripped and then entered into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet per tool and per category of actors. The QSR Nvivo software allowed for coding and categorization of themes. Data analysis was done using the descriptive, deductive and inductive approach of qualitative data analysis. It should also be noted that data triangulation per tool, per site and per category of actors made it possible to verify and validate the opinions, perceptions and concerns of children and adults as highlighted in the report.

2.5 Major difficulties and mitigation measures

The difficulties encountered were related to administrative, climatic, linguistic, and religious (it was the Ramadan period) factors affecting the consultations. The consultations took place during the Ramadan period to avoid the difficulties

Tools Topics covered by the tool

River of Life: Most Significant Change • Impact of the conflict on children

Visionary tree• Children’s visions and dreams for their communities and Mali

• Needs of children affected by the armed conflict

Body Mapping • Impact of the conflict on children

Social Mapping • Protective and risk factors in the children’s environment

Focus group discussion guide

Semi-structured interview guide

• Forms of involvement of children in armed conflict including conscription of children by

combatants

• Categories of children’s rights violated and abused during the conflict

• Impact of the conflict on children

• Needs of children affected by the armed conflict

• Assessment and impact of interventions on the lives of children affected by the armed conflict

of mobilization of the actors and possible socio-political upheavals during campaigns for the presidential elections which were scheduled to take place in July. This fasting period had a significant impact on the participation not only of those who supported the process technically but also and especially on the concentration and availability of children and adults consulted. This difficulty in the areas for the consultations was reinforced by climatic, administrative and linguistic difficulties particularly in Gao: excess heat (40 degrees on average during the day); administrative and security procedures prohibiting the movement of Save the Children vehicles after 5pm; and limited knowledge of the Sonhraï language by the CSO members co-facilitating the consultations.

For example, these factors forced the team to revisit the breakdown of the sample in Gao (3 focus groups of children were constituted instead of 5 for language reasons); and the river of life activity was completed well beyond the time allotted (during the focus groups, children who were free were busy deepening and finalizing their rivers of life). The unavailability of children also led to a reduction in the

Table 2: Matrix of the consultations

4 5

number of completed body maps (6 instead of 8). In addition, the children’s limited understanding, expression and writing skills in French not only impacted the management of time, but also brought some difficulties in following each child individually, discussing and transcribing ideas especially when using the river of life and body mapping tools respectively at the level of description of the most significant unfortunate events and at the time of individual filling of the body maps.

To overcome these constraints, the facilitation team had to institute adjustments and appropriate adaptations during data collection. However, these difficulties did not prevent the achievement of the objectives of the consultations.

4 5

Apart from the conflict that occurred in 2012 with the

attack of Mali, especially northern Mali, by various

armed rebel groups, other recurring events such as

the attack in 2017 with several hundred dead and injured

people at the Operational Coordination Mechanism camp in

the region of Gao5 still mark the history and living environment

of the Malian people in general and the populations of Gao

and Mopti in particular. During and after the conflict, these

populations (especially women, girls, and children) were

particularly victims of various forms of violence. The security

environment remains fragile in Gao and Mopti where there

are frequent reports of armed banditry and kidnappings. In

addition, there are mines and explosive remnants of conflict6.

Hunger, limited access to drinking water, hygiene, sanitation

and other basic social services, the closure of hundreds of

schools due to insecurity, the absence of teachers in these

areas affected by the armed conflict, and the non-return to

school of several thousand children are all elements that

describe the environment in which the children of Mopti and

Gao are living as highlighted during the consultations.

This section of the report is organized by the themes

discussed and describes the results of the consultations.

3.1 Impact of armed conflict on children

The impact of armed conflict on children is a matter of

grave concern. A plethora of literature, NGO reports on

countries experiencing armed conflict, and the multitude of

actions undertaken by governments, the United Nations, and

local and international CSOs, all point to the importance

of this concern. Since 2012, the conflict in Mali has been

widely addressed by organisations at various levels. In its

2017/18 annual report on the state of human rights around

the world, Amnesty International reported that the 2012

conflict in Mali has dealt a severe blow to the human, social

and cultural rights of people living in conflict zones. More

than 150,000 children have been deprived of the right to

education and more than 500 schools closed by jihadists.7

During the sixty-seventh session of the General Assembly

of the United Nations Security Council in May 2013, the

Secretary General presented an annual report entitled

5 UNHCR Mali Operational Update, 1-31 January 2017, https://data2.unhcr.org/fr/documents/download/53709, p. 2.6 General Assembly of the UN Security Council, ‘Children and armed conflict: Report of the Secretary-General’, 16 May 2018, https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/a_72_865_s_2018_465.pdf, p. 17-18.7 Amnesty International Report 2017/18: The state of the world’s human rights, https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/POL1067002018ENGLISH.PDF, p. 252-254.

“Children and Armed Conflict”.8 As stated in the report “…A total of 115 schools were looted, damaged, bombed, used for military purposes or contaminated with unexploded ordnance.”. In its document titled “Mali Conflict and Aftermath: Compendium of Human Rights Watch Reporting 2012-2017”9, Human Rights Watch extensively reviewed and presented the human rights situation in Mali during the 2012-2013 armed conflict, the political upheavals that accompanied it, and the spread of armed groups’ activities and abuses on children and populations from 2012 to 2017.

During the focus groups, one of the topics discussed extensively with children related to their perception, understanding, and description of the extent of the impact of the armed conflict on themselves and their peers. The body mapping activity also allowed children to exchange among themselves on this subject and to visualize the impact of the conflict on themselves. Overall, the opinions of the children on the issue match well with the situations described in the above mentioned reports.

According to a key informant in the NGO sector, the armed conflict has resulted in some children and youth associated with armed and rebel forces and groups exhibiting violent behavior such as theft, sexual violence, and armed banditry especially on the roads. Children reported that the armed conflict prevented their regular school attendance in addition to increasing school drop-outs, early pregnancies and early marriages of some girls. The conflict also gave rise to a commercial sex worker network of young people in the region of Gao, according to the same key informant. In addition, drawings made during the body mapping activity made it possible to assess the extent of the conflict on children through a comparative analysis of the ‘before and after’ situation categorized as follows:

• Protection and emotional security According to the children, before the conflict they had peace; they wanted to study. They felt protected and could come and go as they wished. They did not see combatants and there was cohesion and mutual support among people. But during and after the conflict, “the war destroyed everything”. A child wrote: “My heart and my head are troubled, I cannot take a pen

8 General Assembly of the UN Security Council, ‘Children and armed conflict : Report of the Secretary-General’, 15 May 2013, https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Children%20and%20armed%20conflict.pdf, p. 21-23.9 Human Rights Watch, ‘Mali Conflict and Aftermath : Compendium of Human Rights Watch Reporting 2012-2017’, 2 February 2017, https://www.hrw.org/report/2017/02/02/mali-conflict-and-aftermath/compendium-human-rights-watch-reporting-2012-2017.

3. Key findings from the Consultations

6 7

and write, I cannot go where I want”. Other unusual facts in the daily lives of children, but now recurrent, were expressed by their exposure to dead bodies, the sounds of gunfire, hearing people from their environment uttering death threats, and the recurrence of “bad news” such as kidnappings. “I’m often scared; I often have nightmares ... I do not trust anyone anymore …”. “During the war in Gao, my family and I decided to go to Bamako. Others even left Mali for Niger, Burkina Faso, Algeria or Mauritania.” - 11-year-old girl, 4th grade, Gao.

These are some of the experiences of children as highlighted during the river of life activity: “The day my father was killed was an unfortunate day for me. He went out to the shop, fetch water and to eat. He came home with food when terrorists shot him. He died. Every evening, when I pretend to sleep, I hear my mother crying. My sister was married and I stayed alone with my mom and my dad’s younger brother”. – 10-year-old boy, Gao.

“The death of my sister is the event that made me the unhappiest. She was my closest sister. She loved me and protected me. She lost her life during an attack in Gao. She was returning from her holidays in Bamako when their bus was attacked. They were searched, their property (watches, jewelry, money ...) were snatched and they were finally shot. Many people lost their lives including my sister, and others were injured”. – 11-year-old boy, Gao.

A section of the children in Mopti during a focus group discussion © Save the Children

• Games and recreation, culture and participationFor children, the pre-conflict situation was very conducive to their development. They used to hear shouts of joy, and go to concerts and parties. They could go and play with their friends without a problem. But nowadays it is not possible. “Because of the insecurity, my mother tells me not to go play ball”. According to them, there is no more play and games. “I no longer play where I want…it is only at the mosque where I can play”. On several body maps, we also saw descriptions that indicated children no longer talk about their rights with their friends and relatives.

• Food securityThe armed conflict has also, according to the children, had consequences on their access to food. According to the body maps, the conflict increased the scarcity of some foods to which children were accustomed in their families. Also, the quantity, quality, and frequency of meals was impacted by the conflict. To illustrate the situation before and after the conflict, here are some statements shared by children from the drawings made during the body mapping: “We ate delicious food, we ate all we wanted before the conflict, but now I sleep often without eating anything and I’m worried about what I’m going to eat”; “I don’t eat well. I cannot find animal milk anymore”; “There is now under-nourishment and hunger: always, I’m hungry, we do not eat enough, we do not find much to eat”.

6 7

• Environment and social cohesionThe impact of this aspect is reflected differently in the children’s opinions on the drawings. Indeed, for many, the village and the city were busy before the conflict. “There was security, peace in our hearts”. They dreamed of beautiful things, people traveled; there was not a lot of distrust. The armed conflict destroyed the beautiful atmosphere and “spoiled things”. In the drawings of the children in Gao, they reported for example that houses were destroyed; they saw bullet holes on the walls.

• EducationThe closure of some schools, the refusal of some parents to let their children go to school due to insecurity, and the destruction of schools were highlighted by the children participating in the research. In addition, corporal punishment in schools and the rehabilitation and/or renewal of school infrastructure and equipment were also important concerns for the children. With regard to corporal punishment, it is important to note that it is not a direct consequence of the armed conflict; the children just reported it as a situation that affects them in their daily lives.

The river of life activity was a way for children to express, through drawing and writing, the story of their lives during the conflict. Testimonies gathered during the activity also reveal that the deaths of their parents and relatives and the violence they witnessed have had an impact on their lives.

These are the elements related to the extent of the impact of the armed conflict on children according to their understanding. The analysis of these aspects shows that children pay attention to changes in their environment; they observe everything and really understand the damage that the conflict has caused in their lives and in their environment. The armed conflict has left deep scars in them. Their testimonies and the exchanges during the focus groups reveal that they also aspire to a significant change in their living conditions.

3.2 Forms of involvement of children in armed conflict

In the report “Children and Armed Conflict “10, the UN noted that the conflict in Mali has had a particularly heavy impact on children, and denounced their recruitment into armed groups. The report also mentioned that in addition to child soldiers, sexual violence against girls, rapes and forced marriages with combatants were experienced. This issue was

10 General Assembly of the UN Security Council, ‘Children and armed conflict : Report of the Secretary-General’, 15 May 2013, https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Children%20and%20armed%20conflict.pdf, p. 21-23.

discussed with adults during the interviews, to understand how they perceived or experienced children’s involvement in the conflict and the repercussions engendered by the phenomenon. The cross-tabulation of reported information shows that the involvement of children in the conflict varied by sex.

Children were involved in the conflict for the defense of the territory claimed by armed groups, through their enrollment in armed groups. “Boys were enrolled. They took part in the popular uprising movements and died”, said a technical service manager from a local NGO.

Boys served as messengers in particular and helped to commit armed banditry, violence against women including rape, forced marriage, and the facilitation of the sale and consumption of drugs. According to an NGO representative, “the conflict left a bad legacy for children. Since these children were exploited and regularly committed despicable acts on behalf of their masters, the behaviors they developed during their enrolment continued. Some of them still display and commit human rights abuses by their jihadist masters”. During the data collection period, a 15-year-old boy even raped a 40-year-old woman and the case was being prosecuted. A key informant mentioned that each week, such cases of sexual violence are reported.

As for girls, they frequently served in housework, including cooking and laundry in the camps. Some were used as sex slaves by combatants, others suffered forced marriage and in some cases others were left in the camps to play the role of ‘wife’ for all. Adult interviewees reported cases of pregnancy resulting from this violence; some of these girls are with children whose fathers are unknown. Because the perpetrators of the pregnancies are unknown, some parents are now obliged to take care of their daughter and her child. According to the technical service manager, “girls have been victims of violence and sexual abuse by jihadists. Forced marriages have taken place and so-called married girls are available to all in the camps to satisfy sexual needs. Once released, they come to testify. There were pregnancies and children were born. This supposes that they do not protect themselves.”

As for another key informant from the NGO sector, “rebel groups ransacked everything. Then they kidnapped girls and women. They perpetrated violence against girls and women. There is not a week when we do not come to the health center or the police station because of violence against girls and women: cases of rape (sexual violence with penetration), sexual assault, physical violence (beatings and whips), early and forced marriages, denial, crime and abuse.”. He continued to justify the scale of violence as a consequence of the conflict. Indeed, according to him

8 9

“violence against women was on a lower scale and insignificant before the crisis. But from 2012, when the conflict broke out, more cases of abuse were reported; rebels would rape girls and women at night. In 2010, 12 cases of sexual violence were recorded [by the NGO]; in 2014, more than 50 cases were recorded”.

In this situation, community life, including the experience of day-to-day violence and sexual violence perpetrated by children and youth associated with armed forces and groups, complicates the existence and increases the vulnerability of populations in general and children and youth in particular. In addition, their emotional security is undermined, and food and health needs are weighing on households that the conflict has already deprived of resources. As a result, sexual and reproductive health is at risk and the emerging commercial sex worker network is a growing concern.

3.3 Categories of child rights violations and abuses during the armed conflict

It is generally recognized that despite the fact that Mali has signed and ratified relevant treaties and conventions relating to the protection of the rights of the child that all parties involved in armed conflict must comply with11, in the case of abuses committed against the population, children are victims of several abuses on a large scale. In 2017, in an article by VOA Africa, the UN Secretary-General was alarmed by the sharp rise in violations and abuses of children’s rights in armed conflicts around the world. “Children continue to be disproportionately affected by armed conflict in many countries”, he said. “In 2017, there is a large increase in the number of violations against them compared to 2016 ... at least 6,000 verified violations attributed to government forces and more than 15,000 to non-state armed groups”, he pointed out.12

The consultations in Mali also sought to gather the opinions of children on the issue. Categories of rights violated and abused and their occurrence were discussed in children’s focus groups and also with adults for triangulation. The comparative analysis of the information provided by the actors (children, parents, CBO members, and government authorities) is presented in the following table.

11 Mali ratified the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC) on 3 June 1998, the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC) on 20 September 1990, and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict on 16 May 2002. Sources: http://www.acerwc.org/reporting-calendar/, and https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/TreatyBodyExternal/Treaty.aspx?CountryID=107&Lang=EN. 12 Augmentation des violations des droits des enfants dans les conflits, VOA Afrique, 27 juin 2018, https://www.voaafrique.com/a/enfants-et-guerre-des-groupes-congolais-maliens-yemenite-ajoutes-a-une-liste-noire-de-l-onu/4456388.html (original article in French)

Violation and abuse of the right to protection during the armed conflict

Manifestation according to CSOs

Children were flogged, drugged, and mutilated. There has been a resurgence of child labor, affecting both girls and boys. Rapes, incest and forced marriages were reported. Children carried weapons and there has been drug abuse. They have lived and experienced all forms of violence and abuse and have moved for many reasons looking for livelihoods and security. According to a key informant from civil society, “there is occurrence of the violation of the right to physical integrity through caning, flogging, forced sex, rape, and incest.” Also, according to another key civil society informant, “the security forces have married a number of girls by force.” “During the conflict, children were enrolled by force, girls married against their will. All this was done by force …”, said a manager from a local NGO. Manifestation according to the children

Death, amputation of hands and feet of some children, enrollment of children in the conflict and forced labor were reported. The conflict resulted in abuse (violence, rape) of children by adults, but also of adults by children and young people. In addition, insecurity in cities was also perceived as a violation of the right to protection, which is critical for children and their communities. It was reported that some children are obliged to work hard to take care of their families or siblings because of the consequences of the conflict. They have experienced very difficult and stressful times, which has had an impact on their physical and emotional integrity. Kidnappings also took place. The following quotes from children illustrate abuses of the right to protection:

• “It’s the war that hurt me the most. Because I saw the rebels killing women and children. I saw a woman being beaten by the rebels because of sharia law ... They slaughtered men like goats”. – 14-year-old boy, Gao.

• “One day, the rebels arrived in Gao. The war begun. They killed people: women, children and men too. Because of the war, people are poor in Gao. But the jihadists do not have the heart. And yet, it is the same blood that unites us. It’s also because the police are not doing their job well. That’s why I feel very sad. Peace for my homeland Mali.” – 15-year-old boy, 6th grade, Gao.

• “I lost my friend during the attack on the Operational Coordination Mechanism (MOC) on 18 January 2017. They were in the middle of a meeting when an MOC-branded vehicle filled with explosives suddenly hit them and killed a lot of them. At least a hundred people died and others were injured. Lifeless bodies were everywhere. I was scared and I was very unhappy.” – 15-year-old boy, Gao.

8 9

• According to a 12-year-old girl in Mopti, “the war has led to many unfortunate events, but I was particularly affected by the marriage of a girl in my neighborhood. She was forced into marriage because her parents lack means and because of the war.”

Manifestation according to parents

Children have been exposed to all forms of danger. Some children have lost their parents; other children are injured or dead, or traumatized by events. There were rapes, and recruitment of children by armed groups. The protection of the child has been violated and abused in every way, shape and form of the category.

Violation and abuse of the right to participation during the armed conflict

Manifestation according to children

No involvement of children in meetings and decisions made in communities, especially concerning the conflict and the impact it has had on their lives. The fear of giving opinions, talking with adults, and the isolation of children are seen as not respecting their right to participation.

Violation and abuse of the right to development during the armed conflict


Schools were either closed or occupied by armed groups. There was the separation of girls and boys in schools left open in line with Islamic beliefs defended by the jihadists, unlike the norms of formal national education.


Boys could not play football; girls were not able to have fun with each other at the river among other places where children play. There was the destruction and closure of recreation centers and schools.

“Many people died, and other people’s hands and feet were amputated. I lost my uncle, a tailor who sewed my party clothes and paid school fees for me. His death occurred by a stray bullet. I was late in my schooling due to lack of school fees. I did not play with my friends anymore. I’m afraid of enemies and bombing.” – 13-year-old girl, 7th grade pupil, Gao.

“The war in the north led to the loss of lives of many people. It affected me a lot. My parents did not like me to go play. I am often locked in the house”, said a 12-year-old boy, 6th grade pupil in Mopti.


Children were traumatized during the conflict, which impacted on their positive development. Occupancy of schools by rebels and jihadist groups and the closure of mainstream schools negatively impacted children’s education.Violation and abuse of the right to life and survival during the armed conflict


Many child combatants or ‘agents’ lost their lives for being at the forefront of the conflict or by stray bullets. Diseases, starvation, and malnutrition in children affected their lives and survival. Malaria and other childhood illnesses have made the lives and survival of children fragile due to the lack of health care facilities.


Lack of access to health services, the absence of doctors, the scarcity of food due to its high cost, the lack of functional health services and the precariousness of resources, and the lack of access to drinking water and electricity all led to the death of many people including children. The death of relatives, friends and parents mentioned frequently during the river of life, body mapping and group discussions with children illustrates the extent of abuse of this right.

“Gao’s attack began in 2014. There is no school, no market, no hospital. There was only death when the terrorists arrived in Gao. From around 10:30pm, terrorists broke all shops, and stole money and articles. But if people reacted, they shot at them or tortured them. They killed a lot of people in Gao town. Because of the attack, every morning my family cries and I too feel pain.” – 11-year-old girl, 6th grade pupil, Gao.

“In 2012, they attacked my elder brother, driver of a MINUSMA refueling company. It was one day, on the road to Timbuktu; my brother was attacked by armed individuals who burned his vehicle. They executed my elder brother and his apprentice drivers. It’s an event I cannot forget because my elder brother was everything to me. He did everything for me.” – 15-year-old girl, 8th grade pupil, Gao.

“I am unhappy because I lost my brother following his departure in the North during the war.” – 16-year-old boy, Mopti.


There was looting of drugs, poisoning of water sources, killing of several talibé children in addition to low access to basic health services.

Table 3: Typology of the rights violated and their manifestation

10 11

A body map as drawn by one of the children in Mopti © Save the Children

From the data gathered, one can conclude that the conflict resulted in the violation and abuse of all categories of the rights of children, making it impossible to respect the principles

of their application in accordance with the conventions, treaties and legislation in force in Mali. Certain events such as violence, the closing of schools and recreational centers, insecurity and dysfunctional operations of social services have reduced the opportunities and the effectiveness of mechanisms for the promotion and protection of children’s rights. Indeed, schools and recreational centers which contribute to the development of children and give them the opportunity to learn about their rights, self-protection, and also the chance to participate in school and community life on the one hand, and dysfunctional operations of basic social services and growing insecurity on the other hand reinforce and illustrate the principles of the interdependence and indivisibility of rights. Conflict exacerbates the violation of all rights and principles of the conventions, treaties and laws governing the rights of the child, as demonstrated in this section, leaving children more vulnerable. A 14-year-old boy, a pupil in 8th grade in Mopti said it all when he said: “With the war, several people died. I lost everything. My younger sister and my father died, my cow died and my bike was stolen.”

3.4 Protective and risk factors in the children’s environment

Taking into account the vulnerability of children due to the violations and abuses of all categories of their rights, several actions will only be possible when the risk and protective factors are known so as to minimize the risks and enhance protection for children. Social mapping was used as a data collection tool among many others during the consultations. Its usefulness is of paramount importance for CSOs and NGOs in planning future interventions taking into account the current situation.

A group of girls with their facilitator during the social mapping activity in Gao © Save the Children

10 11

Risk factors in order of importance

According to the children consulted, there were risk and protective factors that impacted their safety and wellbeing, the key points of which are summarized in the table below.

1. Military and UN camps: rebels can attack camps and children can be victims of stray bullets.

2. Cemetery: because there can be bombs. 3. River: because children can drown in the water.4. Cars and buses: because children can be victims of

accidents.5. Football fields: fields can be attacked by terrorists.6. Schools: armed bandits can attack the school at any

time.7. Markets: children can be kidnapped and jihadists can

attack with bombs.8. Roundabouts and barriers: because rebels can attack

gendarmes and police and children can be victims of stray bullets.

Protective factors in order of importance

1. Health centers or hospitals: For the care provided.2. Mosques: They are considered by children as peaceful

places where they can take refuge and pray. “… Rebels do not attack mosques”.

3. Schools: As a place of education, children also consider them as a safe place and because they are in the presence of adult teachers.

4. Save the Children office: “They help children to respect their rights”.

5. Enda Mali and Action Mopti: These organizations support children in various ways, facilitating their access to basic social services in Mopti and Gao (Mopti and Gao for Enda Mali and Mopti for Action Mopti).

6. UN/MINUSMA and Malian army camps: Availability and location of these units in Gao provide security for some children. “They protect us against rebels.”

7. Roundabouts and barriers: The presence of gendarmes and police at these places is considered by children as a factor of security. “Gendarmes and policemen are there to protect us.”

Risk and protective factors explained further

For children, military and UN camps, schools, markets, gates and roundabouts are both protective and risk factors. In several groups, the school was identified as the former site of some armed groups. As a result, schools remain vulnerable to rebels. But at the same time, children reported that they are safe due to the attention of teachers who take care of them.

As for the market, there are adults who are numerous and will be able to protect children from any attack. “They are our parents; they are from Mali”. From these perspectives, the market is secure for children. However, jihadists can access the market with bombs or machines to kill several people at once. This is why the market is both a risk and protective factor.

UN/MINUSMA camps, camps for the Malian army, barriers and roundabouts are protective factors because of the presence of the defense forces. Indeed, security forces and patrols are operating in these places for reasons of security. Thus these environments are protective factors for children. But at the same time, the rebels are targeting these camps, and their presence thus becomes a risk factor because when they are attacked by terrorists, children who will be in these areas will be victims of stray bullets. Hence, they are both a risk and protective factor.

Results from the social mapping exercise depicting safe places (marked in blue) and unsafe places (marked in red) © Save the Children

Table 4: Risk and protective factors

12 13

In light of the perspectives highlighted by children in the research, risk and protective factors from the points of view of adults and children may differ. Children and parents were very flexible in their analysis and the reason for their opinions is an important and useful point in the learning process to better understand the logic of their thoughts. It is up to CSOs and NGOs to take this into account in future consultations on the one hand and in planning for the implementation of recommendations and other programmatic interventions on the other hand. 3.5 Needs of children affected by the armed conflict Periods of conflict are generally moments where there is high vulnerability and neglect of the essential needs of children. Failing to consider the real needs and opinions of children would lead to inappropriate decision making. To ensure that child participation principles are respected and future interventions of NGOs, CBOs and CSOs are relevant and sustainable, mapping of the needs of children affected by armed conflict was conducted during the consultations. These needs were particularly expressed in one-on-one interviews with key informants and the children themselves during the focus groups. • Education: In Gao and Mopti, children expressed

their educational needs through a desire to access a safe learning environment (without violence including corporal punishment in particular). As some schools were destroyed, there is the need to rebuild and equip classrooms. According to key informants including NGOs, since 2012 many children have dropped out of school, especially in nomadic areas, therefore the schooling of children and reintegration of all out-of-school children is urgent. The introduction of school canteens to keep children in school, the donation of school kits to children, and the fact that education is free of charge are other elements reported by children and parents. They also hope that there will be plans to train teachers and offer vocational training to out-of-school and illiterate children and also young people.

• Protection: In the area of protection, the needs of children were presented in relation to issues of sexual violence, and the prevention and fight against forced and early marriages. Supporting children to obtain their birth certificates and thus contributing to the facilitation of children’s support in court was frequently mentioned by adult actors interviewed particularly NGOs. Statements relating to: (i) information and awareness raising to prevent armed conflict, (ii) psychosocial care of victims of sexual violence and forced marriage, and advocacy

for the enforcement of laws protecting girls and women against forced marriage and violence, (iii) adoption of orphaned and non-orphaned children supported for better monitoring and suggested coaching are significant concerns. A small number of participants also mentioned the creation of camps or homes for street children, and the prevention and fight against violence in schools, especially corporal punishment as related to the needs of children.

• Food and nutritional security: To allow children to eat healthily, the adults interviewed suggested that strengthening the financial capacity of parents through income generating activities (IGAs) could help address the needs of children. Supporting disarmed and demobilized children to develop their life plans, and the creation of training and employment centers for children and young people could also address the nutritional needs of children.

• Health: the sexual and reproductive health needs of adolescents and young people, medical assistance, children’s access to safe drinking water, the construction of latrines in the community and at school were all needs expressed by children, parents and NGOs.

• Games, play and recreation: at this level without exception, both children and adults expressed the need for construction of safe recreation spaces for children. This need is compounded by the fact that many leisure centers were destroyed and jihadists also banned opportunities for girls and boys to play together. Games such as football and recreation along the river are forbidden for girls.

• Psychosocial and counselling services: From the experiences shared by children of frequent nightmares, it implies a psychological issue that needs to be addressed.

According to children and adults, to meet these present and future needs, there are existing actors who can play a helpful role. These actors include NGOs, public authorities, and grassroots community organizations such as: • The Barkhane Force • Local authorities, prefects, governors and mayors • Religious and traditional leaders • Humanitarian organizations such as Enda Mali, Action

Mopti, Groupe de Recherche, d’Etudes, de Formation et Femme-Action (GREFFA), Save the Children, and UNICEF

• Women’s associations

• Organized children and youth networks and movements

12 13

3.6 Children’s visions and dreams for their communities and Mali This section addresses the children’s dreams, the conditions and recommendations needed to achieve them, and the strengths to be maximized to achieve them in accordance with the three components of the visionary tree13.

Visions and dreams as shared by children during the visionary tree activity in Gao © Save the Children

3.6.1 Children’s dreams for their communities and Mali The dreams or visions of children were gathered, then organized by ideas and reformulated into the following dreams: • Peace, reconciliation, social cohesion and security The children dream of a Mali reconciled and rebuilt. A radiant Mali existing in peace and social cohesion, with an end to conflict and insecurity, and the establishment of justice for all. “My country Mali, reconciled without conflict, whose cities are rebuilt and people prosper and treat children with equity and without any discrimination.” “My dream is that Gao becomes a region where people love children.”

• Education in peaceful schools Access to quality education for all children, an education system reinforced by the availability of school facilities and educational materials in a positive learning and teaching environment where children access basic social services. Through this dream, they intend to build and equip classrooms, latrines, drinking water points, school canteens, educational materials and qualified teachers, and for them to learn without violence. They dream of the reopening of closed schools and also of the return to school of some teachers as well as the return of many children who had dropped out of school when schools were occupied.

13 The visionary tree activity required children to draw a tree with three sections: the fruits, which represented their visions or dreams (individual or collective); the roots, which represented individual and collective strengths on the part of children, parents, communities etc; and the trunk, which represented their recommendations and action plans in order to actualise their visions and dreams.

14 15

• Child protection The protection of children through the withdrawal of armed groups, security, mine clearance, eradication of early marriages and violence against girls in Mali where children are protected, their rights promoted and respected and where people travel without being attacked by bandits. • Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Children’s access to adequate drinking water, and hygiene and sanitation facilities in the community and at school.

• Health, disease prevention, and child development Health for all, especially children, through access and availability of quality medicines, mosquito nets, vaccines, and functional hospitals in close proximity. In addition, they aspire to have sufficient food through access to at least three healthy and balanced meals in the family per day and the promotion of school canteens. They also dream of growing up in communities, with full access to games and recreation through the promotion and development of safe play and entertainment spaces.

• Leadership and responsible citizenship The children have great ambitions for their future taking into account the conflict situation in Mali, and mentioned various people in society whom they consider as role models. They dream of becoming “Manager of Save the Children”, “Minister”, “Teacher”, “Member of Parliament”, “Marabout” among others to help the poor, and to serve the community. Indeed, NGOs including Save the Children have played and continue to play a vital role in rehabilitation and reconstruction. The political and administrative authorities (ministers and Members of Parliament), traditional and religious leaders (marabouts), and educators including teachers are also important when it comes to reconciliation and negotiations with the parties involved in the implementation of the peace agreement. It might be inferred that children have seen qualities in these personalities and they would like to play these same roles in society and thus transform the current situation positively through their contributions.

Two boys share their ambitions for the future during the consultations in Gao © Save the Children

3.6.2 Children’s recommendations to achieve their dreams For the fulfillment of these dreams, essential provisions and actions recommended by the children to various actors are as follows:

The Malian Government • Put an end to the conflict and promote solidarity and

peace by strengthening community dialogue for peace according to the motto of Mali (one people, one goal, one faith).

• Involve traditional and religious leaders in the process of reconciliation and promotion of peaceful communities.

• Put in place a plan for close monitoring of schools by

14 15

the authorities of the education system to ensure that teachers resume work and are more present in their schools.

• Reopen closed schools, build new schools, and recruit qualified teachers.

• Ensure the protection of children by dispatching security forces throughout major cities and removing explosive devices.

• Support parents in effectively caring for their children by creating income-generating activities such as livestock and agriculture among others.

• Put in place job creation measures for out-of-school youth to get them out of alcoholism and banditry.

Parents and their communities • Rehabilitate the city, and build health centers and

additional classrooms. • Involve children in decision making and uphold the rights

of children and teach them their rights and duties.

NGOs • Increase awareness on social cohesion among

community members. • Organize vaccination campaigns to prevent diseases. • Fight injustice and advocate for the treatment of children

with respect and dignity. • Ensure the total care of orphaned children in particular. • Rehabilitate the city, and build health centers and

additional classrooms. • Distribute food kits and school supplies, and assist

in layout of playgrounds or spaces in schools and communities.

• Provide psychosocial services for children affected by armed conflict.

3.6.3 Existing and potential strengths for achievement of dreams The last stage of the visionary tree activity allowed children to explore existing assets and strengths that could contribute to the achievement of their visions or dreams. • Qualified persons to assist with mine clearance. • The existence of children’s and youth clubs and the

willingness of children themselves to participate in making decisions that affect their lives and to work for the promotion and respect of their rights.

• Technical and financial support from NGOs such as Save the Children, Enda Mali, Action Mopti, and GREFFA.

• United Nations agencies like UNICEF and MINUSMA. • The Children’s Parliament. • Town halls and public services. • Community and communal health centers

• Existence of schools, for children to resume their schooling.

• The willingness of parents to let children attend school. • Religious and traditional leaders. • Art houses and playgrounds for recreation. • Community and youth organizations.• Creation of frameworks and processes for consultations

within communities to support greater child and youth input in local protection systems strengthening, peace-building and conflict resolution.

• Presence of security forces (military, police). • Political parties and their capacity to influence policies. The analysis of these assets by the children show they are attentive to their environment and have realistic goals on what can help them reach their dreams for a peaceful society. To achieve their dreams, they seek to draw on human and material resources offered by the above assets. It is up to the national and local duty bearers to support children and community members to utilize these strengths in order to achieve their dreams.

A complete visionary tree as drawn by children © Save the Children

16 17

3.7 Interventions targeting children affected by armed conflict The consultations in Mopti and Gao were also an opportunity to interact with parents, local government officials, and NGO staff including Save the Children. The following themes resulting from dialogue with these actors relate to various interventions in progress for the prevention and fight against the involvement of children in armed conflict. 3.7.1 Typology, goals and objectives of current interventions Faced with the damage caused by the 2012-2013 Malian conflict with sporadic attacks in later years, including the attack on the MOC in Gao in 2017 and the negative legacy passed on to children and young people associated with rebel groups and armed forces, humanitarian NGOs, UN agencies and public authorities undertook various interventions, with two major goals to achieve: (i) addressing violence against girls and women, and (ii) improving the living conditions and well-being of vulnerable children and families affected by the armed conflict. To achieve this, interventions addressing prevention, response, care, socio-economic reintegration, and strengthening of protection systems were developed. Their objectives seek to:

• Raise awareness among communities, especially adults, about the rights and duties of children and especially their right to protection, and also among parents about their roles and responsibilities for the well-being of children.

• Take care of survivors of violence against girls and women (legal, medical, and psychosocial assistance).

• Develop partnerships with modern and traditional justice mechanisms.

• Establish child protection mechanisms. • Provide solutions and alternatives to children’s

vulnerabilities. The achievement of these objectives requires the implementation of effective and impactful interventions. They are presented below by category according to their nature. These interventions are led by Save the Children, Enda Mali, GREFFA, Action Mopti, and UNICEF in collaboration with other NGOs and CSOs. The details by type of interventions are found in the following table.

Vulnerability prevention interventions • Prevention of violence against girls and women

through the establishment of community policing as well as child protection committees, awareness raising, and training on the protection and rights of girls and women.

• Awareness raising on the risks, challenges and mitigation measures of migration.

• Training and awareness raising on the promotion and protection of women, children and the family.

Interventions targeting vulnerabilities experienced by children and youth affected by conflict • Establishment of reception centers, listening, guidance

and interaction among children. • Case management and family reintegration. • Rehabilitation of schools. • Awareness raising on protection against mines and

explosive devices. • Psychosocial support for survivors by sharing and

trusting each other. • Medical care of survivors by accompanying them to

health centers. • Legal and judicial assistance. • Organization of resilience workshops for children.

Socio-economic and vocational integration interventions • Training and socio-economic integration of

adolescents and young people. • Support for income-generating activities (IGAs) for

adults, especially women. • Construction of vocational training centers.

Interventions to strengthen child protection systems

• Capacity building of protection actors. • Support in obtaining birth registration and birth

certificates. • Establishment of children’s clubs and CBOs for the

promotion and protection of children’s rights.

Table 5: Typology of ongoing interventions Different strategies have been adopted by these ongoing interventions and incorporate one or more of the following strategies:

• Partnerships or collaborations with community radios, law firms and medical practitioners in terms of awareness

18 19

raising and legal and medical care of survivors within communities.

• Participation in clusters, frameworks and forums for protection actors for visibility, experience sharing, coordination, and synergy.

• The benefits, opportunities and advantages of migration of children and communities.

• Projects managed by the communities in collaboration with the town halls and decentralized technical government services, taking into account the needs and realities of the environment and actions linked with the development plan.

• Capacity building of protection actors in general to better support interventions, and providing quality services to children and communities.

3.7.2 Assessment of current strategies and interventions

According to the actors interviewed, the various current interventions and strategies to respond to the worrying situation of children are generally satisfactory. Indeed, the strategies are bearing fruit due to the synergy of local actions and the involvement of communities in designing and implementing interventions. The interventions and strategies are identified and managed by the communities and integrated into the communes’ social and economic development program. However, some government officials interviewed believe that the strategies adopted by NGOs do not involve enough technical services of the state at all levels. The table summarizes the results and outcomes of current interventions according to the interviewed actors.

Key results of the interventions accordingto the actors • Establishment of four therapeutic listening centers in

Gao, Ménaka, Bourem and Assongo. • Construction of three professional and apprenticeship

training centers in N’tilite (Gao), Menaka (in the town), and Essouck (Kidal).

• Reintegration of many children into schools. • Development of community infrastructures such as

water, sanitation and hygiene. • Visible contribution of the media to awareness raising

activities about the right to protection. • Awareness raising of children and adults on mines and

explosive devices. • Existence of a transit and orientation center for children

associated with armed forces and groups. • Functionality of the Child Protection Working Group

and Gender Based Violence (GBV) subgroup in Gao.

Changes registered by the interventions according to the actors

• The survivors are able to denounce their abusers and accept to be supported (previously, this was not possible).

• Improvement of living conditions in households. • Behavioural changes towards migration and mobility of

children. • Awareness on the part of parents about the rights of

the child and their responsibilities and roles in relation to these rights.

• Positive changes in community members’ knowledge, attitudes and behavior regarding mines and explosive devices.

• Parents and community members’ positive behavioural changes with respect to children’s education, understanding that it is not necessarily through violence that children should be educated.

• Disarmament and demobilization of some children from armed groups and forces.

Some successes recorded according to the actors • Several survivors have benefitted from care and socio-

economic reintegration. • Access to psychological, medical and legal care services. • Training and socio-economic integration of 675 children

and young people by ENDA Mali in Gao – this is from a project of emergency support and strengthening the resilience of children affected by mobility which ran from 2017 to 2018.

• Significant reduction of violations of children’s rights as reported by children and adults.

• Issuance of birth certificates to many children due to the fact that the jihadists have destroyed some birth registration centers and birth certificates are mandatory to defend children in court.

• Free registration of vulnerable children in schools granted by the educational support centers.

• Several children ambassadors trained to raise awareness among their peers to attend school.

• Some children were rescued from armed groups and forces and were placed in the Gao Transit and Orientation Center.

Table 6: Assessment of the ongoing interventions and strategies

18 19

3.7.3 Major challenges concerning the current strategies and interventions Despite these results, the actors face enormous challenges in protecting conflict affected children in Mali. The major challenges are as follows: • Limited financial, material and human resources – these do not allow interventions to effectively cover the affected

communities resulting in limited geographical coverage; few communities benefit while most communities share the same needs.

• Low levels of reporting cases of violence among girls and women by themselves or other witnesses. • Increasing insecurity of conflict-affected areas. • Sustainability of interventions owing to limited resources. • Closure of schools in nomadic areas since 2012 because no teacher wants to return for security reasons – this has led

to growing vulnerability of children.• Better involvement of state technical services by NGOs in their interventions – for good coordination, synergy of actions,

and to avoid duplication of interventions.• Limited development of innovative strategies for effective child protection (mass awareness, creation of community child

protection mechanisms). • Limited resources to support specific needs for children such as disability and mental health. • Limited behavioural change among community members regarding awareness and respect for child rights and child

protection, as well as violence towards children.

20 21

4. Recommendations

The children and adults interviewed in Gao and Mopti made the following recommendations to the Malian government, African Union, United Nations, parents,

religious leaders, children, and NGOs and CSOs including Save the Children.

Recommendations to the Malian government As the Malian government is the first guarantor of the rights of children and has signed and ratified international and regional conventions, treaties and agreements, the recommendations made by the respondents are summarized as follows:

• Create an enabling environment for children’s access to basic social services including education, health, registration, civil status, food and nutrition security, environmental security, clean water, games and recreation. The government should also build school infrastructure, equipping them and ensuring sufficient qualified personnel. Public support services should be made functional in particular medical services, centers of reception and listening, and the existing judicial and legal services.

• Ensure its responsibilities for resource mobilization, coordination and monitoring of NGOs’ actions, technical services and decentralized head offices involved in the field of child protection.

• Ensure territorial integrity, sovereignty, security, national reconciliation, and promote social cohesion and peace. To this end, fight against insecurity, train soldiers to defend the country, put an end to corporal punishment, clean up and develop the streets, and rebuild cities and towns.

• Ensure the implementation and enforcement of laws governing child protection in general, and protection of children against armed conflict and their recruitment in particular, while facilitating the formulation of new laws to improve the living conditions of children and young people.

• Create jobs for young people to significantly reduce rampant insecurity throughout the country and particularly in the northern regions.

Recommendations to the African Union (AU)

• Support the Malian government to regain its sovereignty, territorial integrity, reunification and national reconciliation and to ensure the safety and wellbeing of people, particularly children, by ensuring compliance with the laws governing children’s rights

and their protection in armed conflict, as well as supporting mediation for the implementation of the peace agreement.

• Support peacekeeping initiatives in Mali, as well as reconstruction and promotion of social cohesion.

Recommendations to the United Nations agencies

• Support Mali to regain its sovereignty, unity, territorial integrity, peace and social cohesion, as well as ensure compliance with international conventions for the prevention and fight against the recruitment of children in armed conflicts.

• Support child protection NGOs and the government to mobilize financial resources to address the challenges of creating jobs for young people and non-existent, dysfunctional or insufficient social services. These include youth employability actions, health, educational, water, hygiene and sanitation infrastructures, while strengthening interventions in the event of disasters such as during floods.

Recommendations to parents, religious leaders and children themselves

• Protect children from recruitment as combatants in armed conflict.

• Raise awareness in families and communities to better protect children and agree to adopt abandoned and unaccompanied children.

• Religious leaders must advocate for child rights and work with the government and NGOs to maintain peace and social cohesion.

• Children themselves must:• Denounce the perpetrators of violence and abuse.• Educate their peers and parents about the rights and

duties of children.• Continue with their education to achieve their

dreams.

Recommendations to other NGOs and CSOs including Save the Children

• Strengthen ongoing interventions including resilience workshops, distribution of food and school kits, prevention, response and psychosocial, legal and medical care, and socio-economic reintegration of survivors.

• Strengthen collaborations, partnerships and experience sharing among actors to bridge

20 21

technical and financial gaps, and geographical coverage. NGOs and CSOs should explore opportunities for partnerships to mobilize resources to not only invest in the areas of need expressed by children, not all of whom necessarily have the technical skills or resources, but also to meet in quality and quantity the needs of communities while reviewing procedures to be flexible during times of crisis. For example, Save the Children can collaborate with Enda Mali and GREFFA for medical and socio-economic reintegration interventions that these NGOs are already doing, but in a limited way due to lack of resources.

• Provide non-existent, insufficient or dysfunctional social services: reopen school canteens, rehabilitation of classrooms with the necessary equipment, birth registration, etc.

Table 7: Recommendations formulated by the stakeholders consulted In addition to the above recommendations by the actors, the research team also formulated categories relating to future research studies to be carried out, capacity building, and the readjustments necessary for the interventions in progress. Indeed, for reasons of efficiency and relevance, some research topics would be needed with regard to education, health, protection and gender such as: • The situation of schools in nomadic areas in order to

establish solutions or alternatives to the education of children living in these areas as well as violence in schools and corporal punishment, which exacerbates the already existing effects suffered by children.

• The extent of violence against women and girls in relation to their sexual and reproductive health and taking into account the commercial sex work under development in Gao.

• The improvement of the birth registration system is mandatory. To have a better understanding of the specific support to provide, it is recommended to conduct an in-depth study.

• Participation of children in programs offered by NGOs as well as peacebuilding in Mali to better understand how they will better contribute to the implementation of programs and also to their vision of a peaceful and united Mali.

As for the readjustment of ongoing interventions and strategies, it is essential to support NGOs to extend their interventions in psychosocial, medical, legal care and socio-economic reintegration while ensuring the Involvement of state technical services in all phases of the interventions, as well as reinforcing the resilience workshop programs that are much appreciated by all the actors consulted and work on the scaling up of interventions that is greatly desired. In the face of the challenges of protection in schools and the promotion of social cohesion and peace, which are sought after by all actors, capacity building and the development of projects related to certain topics are essential such as: • Contributing to the promotion of peace by building the

capacity of civil society organizations on child protection and social cohesion, and developing programs to promote peaceful communities.

• • Developing sexual and reproductive health programs

for adolescents and young people.• • Child-friendly school initiatives, promotion of positive

discipline, and development of life skills such as school and community confidence to eliminate violence, especially corporal punishment in a learning environment.

22 23

Enhancing child participation within the African peace and security architecture resulted in the undertaking of consultations with children affected by the armed

conflict in Mali. The processing and analysis of data collected in Gao and Mopti allowed for the mapping of the situation of children affected by the armed conflict through the impact of the conflict on their lives, the involvement of children in armed conflict, the types of rights violated and abused during the armed conflict and their manifestations, as well as the visions and dreams of the children relating to their communities and Mali. The main conclusion from the consultations is that the conflict has negatively impacted children in a number of areas. Enlisted against their will by government forces and armed groups, they were involved in the conflict in various ways. The insecurity generated by the conflict in Gao and Mopti has had a negative effect on the regular attendance of school, as well as massive drop-outs. Early pregnancies and early marriages reported by the participants also reflect the situation experienced by children. Questioned on the protective factors present in their environment, the children reported that they are most secure in the presence of mosques, health centers, houses, and NGOs working in their localities. As for risk factors, these included markets, schools, and military and UN camps. Faced with all this, the children expressed needs for their secure access to schools, the reopening of closed schools, and quality access to other basic social services. The children dreamt of a peaceful and unified Mali, where social cohesion and fair justice for all

prevail without discrimination. Attending school in a safe and peaceful environment and fully enjoying their right to protection are also key aspects of their dreams for the future. In light of the key findings from the consultations, potential advocacy issues can be identified to support CSOs in developing their advocacy strategies with the Malian government and regional bodies. As examples, these topics relate to: (i) the restoration of peace and peacekeeping in Mali; (ii) the strengthening of existing state services; (iii) the mobilization of resources to support the functioning of formal and non-formal child protection systems within communities and at the national level; (iv) the effective involvement of children in the development and implementation of strategies and operations at all levels (local and national); (v) adoption by the Parliament of the law on gender-based violence; and (vi) preventing the recruitment of children in the armed forces and rebel groups, and the disarmament and demobilization of child soldiers. Indeed, during the consultations, it was clear that children are not involved in decision-making concerning issues related to armed conflict. It is important to develop advocacy actions led by children and empower them to claim their rights. There are also policies and interventions at the regional level which require the views of children to shape and guide these policies. Any recommendations for these child rights mechanisms should, as part of their implementation, seek to answer the question of how to create more meaningful space for children to contribute and participate in broader decision-making processes.

5. Conclusion

22 23

Data collection tools

• Visionary Tree• River of Life tool• Body Mapping tool• Social Mapping tool• Children Focus Group Discussion guide• Key Informant Semi Structured Interview guide

Visionary Tree

This tool can be used by participants to envisage an ideal environment and a world without conflict. This tool also helps participants to explore and express their vision of peace.

The objective is to explore how children can be better protected and supported while living in a conflict context, and to consider recommendations to strengthen practice and policies to increase realisation of such a vision.

This tool will serve as the accumulation of needs and recommendations that were gathered during the consultations.

Time needed: 60 - 90 minutes

Use with individuals or groups: Initially facilitate in separate focus groups of girls and boys of certain age groups. However, girls and boys could then present and discuss their findings to further discuss and analyse their experiences. This activity can also be facilitated with caregivers and other community stakeholders.

Materials needed: A4 paper, pencils, erasers, crayons, scissors, flipchart paper, tape, glue, post it notes.

Practical steps: • Explain to children and young people (or adults) that

they are going to have the chance to dream about what it would look like if children were better cared, protected and supported in families and communities while living in a conflict context.

• Children or young people (and/or adults) are encouraged to find a quiet place to lie or sit down comfortably, to close their eyes, and to breathe deeply. They are asked to dream what it would look like and feel like if children were better cared, protected and supported in families and communities while living in a conflict context. Dream about how children should be treated, listened to and cared for. Dream about the ways the community can

6. Annexesbetter support and protect children. Dream, dream…. Allow a few minutes’ silence to dream and visualize…

• After 5 minutes of meditation provide the children or young people with A4 paper, pencil and crayons to draw their vision or dream.

• Once the drawings are complete (allow 10-15 minutes), the shape of a large tree (on big sheets of flipchart stuck together) is placed in front of all the participants.

• Encourage each child to briefly describe their vision [and ensure a written record of their sharing] and to stick

their ‘dream’ in the top part of the tree.• Collectively the participants can build the tree where:

o The fruit represents their vision or dream (individual and collective).

o The roots represent their individual and collective strengths as children, within communities etc.

o The trunk represents their recommendations and action planning to move towards their vision(s).

• Encourage the children to record their suggestions for the roots of the tree – using different colour pens and post it notes to record the strengths of: a) children, b) parents, c) communities, d) wider civil society, e) governments that can be built upon to increase children’s care and protection in families and communities.

• Finally, the participants share their ideas for the trunk - their recommendations and action planning to move towards their vision(s), including any additional support needs from communities and governments to better

care and protect children.

River of Life

This tool is based on drawing, writing, storytelling and sharing of experiences within a group of children. This exercise will allow children to revisit and document the story of their life.

GoalThe activity will enable children affected by armed conflict to:• meditate on the various situations that have affected

their lives both positively and negatively • strengthen their sense of belonging to a group• learn from real-life experiences of their peers• express their needs and desires for the future• participate in a social and experiential activity

Duration: 1h 30min plus time to document the findings

Materials: A4 paper; markers of different colours

24 25

Practical steps: Prepare in advance the space for the activity. Explain to the children the purpose of the activity, its duration and requirements. Give participants a large sheet of paper and markers.Ask them to imagine that their own life is a river that flows from their birthdate to the present time. Then, ask them to take a few minutes to consider where they have been and what has happened to them that has been very significant in shaping the direction of their life. They would need to think about the most exciting moments of their life as well as the various difficult or painful moments of their life. Then ask them to create on the paper a picture that reflects the river of their life. They are free to represent their river as they wish and use any signs, symbols, drawing, sentences etc.

When all the stories are done, you can do a large group debrief of the experience.

Questions you can ask include: • What was it like for you to tell your story to this group? • What was it like for you to hear all of these stories?• What surprised you? • What insights have you gained from your group?

Body Mapping

The body map is a participatory tool which can be used to explore children and young people’s views concerning different ways in which living in conflict or post conflict contexts has affected their lives.

Key Objectives:• To explore girls’ and boys’ views and experiences with

regards to the different ways in which living in conflict or post conflict contexts has affected their lives.

• To analyse and record disaggregated information concerning the experiences of girls and boys of different

ages and backgrounds in different contexts.

Time Needed:This tool takes approximately 40-60 minutes to facilitate with groups of children and young people.

Materials Needed:Flipchart paper, tape, flipchart pens.

Key Steps:• Large sheets of flipchart are stuck together. A child or

young person is asked to volunteer to lie on the sheets

to have their body shape drawn around to create a large body map which represents children and young people.

• The body image (and body parts) is used as a focus to explore and record participants’ views regarding the different ways in which living in armed conflict or post conflict contexts has affected their lives. For example, key questions relating to the body map include:

• (Head) How has conflict or post conflict contexts affected their mind, the way they think, and/or their learning? (explore both positive and negative examples)o (Eyes) What have they seen with their eyes as a

result of living in conflict or post conflict contexts? How has the context affected the way people see children and young people? How has the context affected their perceptions of the world?

o (Ears) What have they heard as a result of living in conflict or post conflict contexts? How has the context affected the way people listen to children and young people; or the way children and young people listen to adults?

o (Mouth) How has the context affected the way people communicate to each other and the way adults communicate with children and young people and/or the way children and young people communicate with one another?

o (Main Body) How has the conflict or post conflict context affected their health? What forms of abuse have girls and boys been subjected to?

o (Heart) How has the conflict or post conflict context affected the feelings people have for different people in their community or nation? How has it affected their own feelings and people’s feelings towards them? Who did they get support from in times of need?

o (Arms/Hands) As a result of the conflict or post conflict context, what kinds of activities are they more or less involved in? (for example, forced work/unforced work/forced to carry/use guns/study/play etc)? Does anyone use their hands in a negative way (for example, to beat them or harm them?)

o (Legs/Feet) As a result of the conflict or post conflict context, are there any changes in where children and young people do or do not / can or cannot go? (for example for work, study, income generation or through internal displacement – for example, to leave/or return to their village, to live in/or leave an Internally Displaced Persons [IDP] camp etc)?

• Enable general discussion on the body:o What are your views about these various impacts of living

in conflict or post conflict contexts? What are the most negative impacts? What are the most positive impacts?

24 25

o Do you think the impacts described here are similar for all groups of girls and boys in the community? And/or have are some children (girls or boys of different ages) more or less impacted by the context?

• Ensure careful documentation of children’s views.• When analysing the results from different body maps

produced from discussions with different groups of girls and boys (of different ages or from different geographic backgrounds) it will be useful to analyse differences in views and experiences according to gender, age, dis/ability, ethnicity, geography, socio-economic background, socio-political context, living context (for example,

internal displacement from homes and villages) etc.

Facilitator’s Notes: To enable the views and experiences of girls and

boys of different ages and backgrounds to be heard, it would be best to facilitate the body map exercise separately with groups of girls and boys in key age groups (for example, 6-10 years, 11-14 years, 15-18 years).

To ensure effective documentation and disaggregated information gathering of children’s views, it would be useful to have two people recording children and young people’s views during this activity. One person could capture children and young people’s views alongside key body parts on the body map. The other person could take more detailed records of children’s views (noting gender, age, key background information of the participant) in a notebook.

While exploring children and young people’s views and experiences, encourage them to share positive and negative examples of how the conflict or post conflict context has affected them. For example, post examples may highlight children’s resiliency and the ways in which children and young people positively cope with adversity faced.

In country contexts where it is relevant, encourage reflection and sharing of different experiences of being internally displaced – for example, having to move from homes and communities, issues related to poverty, living in IDP camps and/or of returning home. What were the benefits and disadvantages in each respective setting; what were the challenges faced in being internally displaced and/or returning home.

Also where possible, encourage reflection and sharing of children’s experiences of when they were part of armed militia groups, and/or their experiences of returning to their families and/or communities.

Social Mapping

Understanding children’s experiences in the context of their communities and neighbourhoods requires a nuanced understanding of how they engage with the physical and social world around them. This includes the relationships in their lives, the places they spend time, the activities they engage in and their perception of safety and risk in their community. Social Mapping provides a way for children to not only talk about, but show their experience of social support and risks in very tangible terms. It is an entry point to identify the relationship between the challenges (risks) and strengths (protective factors) facing children in a community and link these with places of risk and/or places of safety. This activity can also enable discussions about more sensitive topics, such as risky behaviour exhibited by boys and girls, and should be handled carefully.

Objective: To develop a more nuanced understanding of children’s perspectives of social support and related risk and protective factors, groups of especially vulnerable families and vulnerable children and self-protection practices.

Time required: 1h 30min plus time to document the findings

Materials required: Large sheets of paper and several packages of different coloured markers/pens

Practical steps :

1. Map the communityCreate a simple map of the community (not too detailed or technical but with enough space for major geographical features of the community including children’s neighbourhoods, places where they engage with key people, play, schools, clinics, places of worship, other places children gather. think of day and night, weekend and weekdays, and different times of the year).

2. Map places, people, and social spaces of safety and protection for childrenUsing a different coloured marker (e.g. green), identify protective places as part of the social map drawn by children. Encourage rich discussion for protection from family, friends, community, spaces for play, sport and games, government services such as schools, hospitals, protection services, cultural places and other places where people gather. Also, probe for where these things differ for boys and girls, different ages and how they differ at different times of the day, seasons etc. If the groups wish, they can code these things using their own symbols.

26 27

3 Map places, people, and social spaces of risk for childrenUsing a different coloured marker (e.g. red), identify risky places, pay particular attention to child protection threats such as violence, abuse, exploitation. Children will often focus on physical threats such as traffic accidents etc. Try and bring this back to child protection (in some cases these threats will have a protection relation, e.g. poor children have to live on the streets and may be at risk of traffic accidents). Probe for differences among boys and girls, different ages etc as above.

4 Rank Top 4 Risk and Top 4 Protection FactorsAsk participants to rank the top 4 risk and protection factors from 1 being the safest to 4 being the least safe, and importantly state why this decision was made. Please ensure the 4 risk and protective factors are clearly listed on the map, taking photographs of the maps. Note takers should observe and record discussions and debate to see if boys and girls agree or differ on some issues etc.

It is critical that these questions are asked in a layered format – one question at a time in which children are given approx. 15-20 minutes to complete each question. Encourage children to use symbols and explain why they have identified certain places (e.g. why is that place risky/safe?).

Children Focus Group Discussion Guide

i. Perception of armed conflict by children 1.1. What comes to mind when you hear the words ‘armed conflict’? 1.2. Which groups of children come to mind when you hear about ‘children affected by armed conflict’?

ii Perception and description of the situation of children affected by armed conflict2.1 What are the characteristics of children affected by armed conflict?2.2 What are the roles and attributions of boys affected by armed conflict? What are the roles and attributions of girls affected by armed conflict?

iii Categories of the rights of children affected by armed conflict that have been violated and abused3.1 What are the categories of the rights of children affected by armed conflict that have been violated and abused? • Protection • Participation• Development• Life and survival

3.2 How do violations and abuses of the rights of children affected by armed conflict manifest?• Protection • Participation• Development • Life and survival

iv. Key interventions and strategies implemented by Save the Children and other organisations in the area of child protection 4.1. What are the interventions by Save the Children and other organisations or similar actors? 4.2. Which strategies have been adopted by Save the Children and other organisations working in this area?4.3. What appreciation do you have for the strategies and interventions implemented by Save the Children and other actors?

v. Impact of the interventions on the lives of children affected by armed conflict5.1. In your opinion, what are the key results of the interventions?5.2. What changes have been brought about by the interventions of Save the Children and other NGOs in your life?5.3. What are the successes from the interventions?5.4. What are the major challenges or points to be improved in your view?

vi. Urgent needs of children affected by armed conflict

6.1. In your opinion, what are the current needs of children affected by armed conflict?6.2. In your opinion, what are the future needs of children affected by armed conflict?6.3. Which actors can help to meet these present and future needs that you have just mentioned?6.4. How do you think these actors can be helped to help children affected by armed conflict to meet their present and future needs? 6.5. If advocacy should be done on the wellbeing and resilience of children affected by armed conflict and the prevention of conflict affecting children, which themes should be addressed in your view? 6.6. What are organisations such as Save the Children and others already doing that you think they should continue doing? 6.7. What are organisations such as Save the Children and others doing that they should change or do differently in the future?

26 27

vii. Suggestions and recommendations for your wellbeing and resilience, and for the prevention of and fight against the engagement of children in armed conflict to the following actions:

7.1. The Malian government 7.2. The African Union 7.3. The UN and specialised agencies 7.4. Save the Children and other NGOs 7.5. Other actors (please specify)

Key Informant Semi Structured Interview guide

i. Context and justification of your organisation’s commitment to address involvement of children in armed conflict in Mali

a. Characteristics of the context that justifies your organisation’s engagement in implementing interventions related to children affected by armed conflict.

b. Legal and institutional reasons for your organisation’s engagement in issues affecting children affected by armed conflict.

ii. Perception and description of the situation of children affected by armed conflict a Characteristics of children affected by armed conflict

b Involvement of boys during the armed conflict

c Involvement of girls during the armed conflict

iii Rights of children violated and abused by armed conflict

a. Categories of the rights of children violated and abused• Protection • Participation• Development • Life and survival

Manifestation of the categories of the rights of children violated and abused • Protection

• Participation• Development • Life and survival

iv Purposes and objectives of your organisation’s interventions in preventing and addressing involvement of children in armed conflict

a. Purposes of your organisation’s interventions b. Objectives of your organisation’s interventions

V. Key interventions and strategies of your organisation’s interventions a. Interventions of your organisation b. Strategies adopted by your organisationc. Assessment of the strategies and interventions

vi. Impact of the interventions on children affected by armed conflict a. Key results of the interventions b. Changes registered by the interventions c. Successes registered by the interventions d. Areas of improvement

vii. Urgent needs of children affected by armed conflict a. Current needs and future needs of children affected by armed conflict b. Potential actors to help meet current needs and future needs c. How to enable actors to meet these needs d. Advocacy themes to address the wellbeing and resilience of children affected by armed conflict, and the prevention of armed conflict e. Good practices to reinforce for the futuref. Practices to improve on in the future

viii. Suggestions and recommendations toward the following actors:

a. The Malian government b. The African Union c. The UN and specialised agencies d. Save the Children e. Your organisation

28 PB

Save the Children East and Southern Africa Regional OfficeP.O. Box 19423-00202, Nairobi, Kenya

Tel: +254 711 090 000 Email: [email protected]: www.savethechildren.net

IICRD