By: Derrick Kyatuka, Content and Communications Manager

The Japanese Ambassador to Uganda together with a team from the Ministry of Gender Labour and Social Development and leaders from Arua district and City commissioned a newly constructed child protection center to manage abandoned and trafficked children.

The Japanese Ambassador to Uganda Sasayama Takuya officially handed the Sh240 Million facility to Arua leaders on June 20, 2024. The facility is constructed by Save the Children (SCI) with funding from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (JMoFA).

The facility is to help strengthen the child protection system in Arua district and City with the overall objective of enhancing child protection service provision mechanisms for children at risk. This will be done through Improving access to coordinated, quality, age-appropriate, and timely services, Strengthening the local preventive and response child protection measures and services.

This is coupled with supporting advocacy programs towards improving the social welfare systems in Arua district and City. The Japanese envoy, Takuya said the West Nile region and Arua City is close to DR Congo and South Sudan with a number of children affected with difficulties that are similar to Japanese people.

“We are here to find the solution and best approach together with Uganda in protecting our children” Takuya said. He calls on all stakeholders to ensure the child protection center is utilised with commitment, better managed and protect affected children.

“Without your help and without your commitment, this building will be nothing, it all depends on your effort, our effort. We need a joint effort and strength to make good use of the facility. I am looking forward to the future look and future of the children in the West Nile region” Takuya said.

Thiyagarajah Priyah the Deputy Director for Program Development and Quality department in Save the Children Uganda said the project has been made possible with funding from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Child Protection system strengthening project is well aligned with government of Uganda priorities on child protection under the National child policy 2020, and the National development plan 3, Sustainable development goals pillar 16.2 to end abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence and torture against children.

Priyah said the project aims to create a stronger child protection system in Arua district and City. Focusing on three key objectives of improved access to quality child protection services, strengthened local child protection measures and improved social welfare systems.

The milestones achieved over a year has seen deployment of 13 social welfare officers and procured 13 motorcycles as transport means across Arua, supported by the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development (MGLSD) and local governments.

Partnered with MGLSD to disseminate the National Child Policy (NCP) 2020 at the district and city level, ensuring everyone understands child protection frameworks.

The project trained 47 key child protection actors, including government officials on child protection concepts, legal frameworks, and alternative care options.

The child protection reception center will serve as a regional reception center serving all categories of children in need of special protection within Arua district, City and the neighbouring districts.

The facility comes with separate rooms for boys, girls, adult chaperons and staff. It contains common room for children to interact, an office space and a store, three stances of drainable latrine, and one unit of three bathrooms for boys, girls, and adults.

“On behalf of Save the Children, I would like to express our sincere appreciation to the government of Uganda, the Ministry of Gender Labor and Social Development, Arua City, and Arua district local governments for the collaboration and support rendered towards spearheading the implementation of child protection programs within Arua and the entire country” Priyah said.

She confirmed that, a total of 202 Para-Social Workers across the three sub Counties of Ajia, Vurra and Logiri were trained and 103 bicycles given to support the work of Para-social workers within their communities.

The child protection reception center will serve as a regional reception center serving all categories of children in need of special protection within Arua city, Arua district, and the neighbouring districts.

Simone Macebeth Forbes, the national coordinator of the better migration management program at GIZ said the reception center is crucial for the protection of children in Arua.

“I am grateful for the support from Japanese’s government and other partners who made a commitment to support the project” Priyah said.

GIZ as a coordinating agency equipped the facility considering Uganda's effort of hosting over 1.6million refugees. She said trafficking of children can occur internally and externally as a reason for the facility.

Fred Nyabiroma, the Commissioner for Youth and Children Affairs Ministry of Gender Labour and Social Development commends the high level of self-accountability and service delivery from the Save the Children Fund for the job well done on protection of children.

He notes that Juvenile justice still remains a big challenge in Uganda with seven remand homes and the construction of the facility adds to the existing remand homes.

He calls for the need for social protection for Uganda using the existing systems and ensuring the successes registered in Nutri Cash and DRDIP support to West Nile.

He notes that 80percent of the prisoners are youth and they need skills to be self-reliant and reduce the high number of youth ending in prison.

Ronald Turyasingwire Musingwe, an official from the ministry of internal affairs department of protection of trafficked persons appreciates the efforts portrayed by the Japanese government to support Uganda through the child protection center to save children.

Basing his speech on the four Ps of Prevention, Protection, Persecution and Partnership to safeguard children who are abandoned and trafficked.

Paul Matyama, the Chief Magistrate Arua High Court Circuit said the effort from the Japanese government will be able to help do justice for children. As a Judiciary, our mission is Justice for all.

Denis Jawoko Okwai, Deputy RDC Arua said protection of children rights is well catered for in the constitution of Uganda and other treaties. He commended the government of Japan for the support.

Jona Mbigiti, the Deputy RCC Ayivu Division in Arua City commends the government of Japan for its efforts in developing Uganda and pledged for cordial relationships that have existed. He appealed to the Japanese envoy to extend support for horticultural crop production to empower the youth in agricultural growth.