THE 2ND INTERNATIONAL
CONFERENCE ON CHILD PROTECTION
IN AFRICA, 2023.

The International Conference on Child Protection (ICCP) in Africa is a biennial event organized by the Government of Kenya through Department of Children Services (DCS) in the Ministry of Labour and Social protection in collaboration with UN agencies; universities; and practitioners in both non-governmental and private sector organizations. The Technical Working Group (TWG) of the Directorate for Children Services is organizing the 2nd International Conference on Child Protection in Africa. The conference was held between 22nd – 24th November 2023 in Nairobi, Kenya. This conference brought together key actors and stakeholders in the field of Child Protection in Africa and beyond. The conference focused on violence against children which is a menace at both regional and global level. Participants shared and interrogated existing evidence and charted pathways to ending violence against children in the interest of creating safer environments.

The ICCP Africa 2023 built on the success of the 2016 International Conference on Best Interest for Children in the Justice System (see published papers from the conference IJAC Journal BIC Special Edition 2019) and the ICP Conference 2018, Nairobi, Kenya whose theme was “Resilience, Innovation, Evidence”.

The conference came three years post the global COVID-19 pandemic and only seven years to the realization of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. It provided an opportunity for child protection practitioners to consult on programs that improve resilience against violence against children, the innovations and evidence of their effectiveness or lack of it. All under the principle of zero tolerance to violence against children. The ICCP Africa 2023 provided an opportunity to solidify previous successes in light of contemporary issues identified by stakeholders – that is, the urgent need to stop all forms of violence against children across the globe. The conference identified capacity gaps and emerging good practices as evidence to inform policy, legislation and program changes in the best interest of children in Africa. The organizers acknowledge that there is opportunity to learn from other continents, and that the outcome of the conference benefited children across the world.