Children changing their world

Fifteen years ago, there was an outcry about the fact that half of the world’s population was not adequately consulted and involved in decisions that affected them – gender equality were the words on everyone’s lips. But a different half of the world’s population still continues to be ignored in decisions about development – children under 18 years of age.

Plan flagship report on ‘understanding and evaluating children’s participation in development’. 

The report was compiled by three researchers* who undertook field visits to countries where Plan is engaged in the promotion of children’s participation – Kenya, Ecuador and India.

Sander Stoepker

“The report pulls together the evidence of the impact of children’s participation from a number of sources – from the literature, from interviews with staff from a wide range of organisations and from engaging with children and young people involved in participatory projects.” Steinar Sivertsen, Chair, International Board of Directors, Plan.

The changes – both positive and negative – that children’s participation may bring are grouped into four distinct areas of children’s lives: personal, familial, communal and institutional.

The positive impacts highlighted include:

• increased self-confidence;
• acquisition of life skills;
• greater parental support and less abuse;
• community awareness and concern for children’s issues;
• enhanced community development and improvements in schooling.

One example of a positive impact, as quoted in the report states that in Thika, Kenya, adults described the numerous occasions when children had spontaneously decided to perform their songs, poems and dramas about HIV/AIDS at village functions. It is through such initiatives that children begin the process of raising community awareness of the challenges they face, and pass their newly-acquired knowledge and information to adults.

Plan has taken on the challenge of children’s participation by developing our entire organisational approach in one where we work with children, rather than for children. The approach – Child Centred Community Development – has allowed children to become involved in community-wide consultation processes.

“In a world where we are struggling to make headway towards achieving the goals set internationally for development by 2015, we cannot afford to ignore the contributions of over six billion children, the majority of whom will be adults by the time 2015 arrives.” Sivertsen concludes.

*The report ‘Understanding and evaluating children’s participation in development’ was prepared for Plan by Jason Hart, Jesse Newman and Lisanne Ackermann with Thomas Feeny.

Click the title below to download the 'Children changing their world' report