Paper: Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding in DR. Congo

Paper details

Paper authors Steven Mulinzi Malaki
In panel on Children and Improved Crisis Response
Paper presenter(s) will be presenting In-Person / Online

Abstract

The population of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is 52% children, considered as all persons under the age of 18 (UNICEF, 2014).
Eastern DRC devastated by war and violence since the mid-1990. Several illegal armed groups, as well as units of the regular army, commit serious human rights violations and are responsible for the state's widespread insecurity.
Zones are affected differently by conflict and violence according to accessibility and density of the population. Illegal armed groups are particularly active in remote areas where state security forces are less present.
These conflicts and these different forms of violence affect children and young people different ways. Children and youth who participated in the evaluation were that they grow up in a climate of insecurity and disorder, with a limited vision of the future. Young people run the risk of being enlisted in armed groups illegal
Many children and young people in the DRC are actively engaged in peacebuilding to combat this instability and precariousness. The difficulty is yet they are marginalized because of traditions cultural and paternalistic traditionally seen as violent actors or victims, children and young people are not considered the agents of a positive change.

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Presenters

Steven Mulinzi Malaki
National Partnership of Childr...