Against this background, Africa’s Agenda for Children: Fostering an Africa Fit for Children elaborates on the vision of Agenda 2063 in respect of children. In doing so, this Agenda takes cognisance of the elucidation in Agenda 2063 (paragraph
53) that ‘African children shall be empowered through the full implementation of the African Charter on the Rights of the Child’. By nurturing and nourishing its children, the present generation of Africans will promote the growth of the continent and secure its future.

By taking stock and prioritising future action, this document develops Africa’s agenda for children for the coming 25 years based on the lessons learnt from the past 25 years. By 2040, the rights of Africa’s children should be firmly protected, with full effect being given to the priorities in this Agenda.This is the Africa we aspire to.

This Agenda is informed by and builds upon numerous existing legal and policy frameworks, among which the following are the most salient:

• the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child;
• the AU Commission (Department of Political Affairs) Human Rights Strategy for Africa;
• the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child Strategic Plan (2015-2019);
• the Abuja Declaration and Plan of Action on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Other Related Infectious Diseases (2001);
• the Africa Fit for Children Declaration and Plan of Action (2001);
• the Call for Accelerated Action on the Implementation of the Plan of Action towards an Africa Fit for Children (2008-2012);
• the Monitoring and Evaluation Framework to Assess Progress towards Africa Fit for Children (Department of Social Affairs);
• the African Union’s Social Policy Framework for Africa (2008);
• Concluding Observations of the African Children’s Rights Committee;
• General Comments of the African Children’s Committee;
• Millennium Development Goals (MDGs);
• Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);
• African Child Policy Forum, The Africa Report on Children’s Wellbeing (2013);
• UNICEF The State of the World’s Children (2015); and
• AU Department of Social Affairs African Health Strategy 2016-2030.

The Agenda sets out ten aspirations, to be achieved by 2040, against a brief background contextualizing the particular issue. It proceeds to identify action steps, mostly, but not exclusively, to be taken by States, for the first period of the five-phased 25-year journey ahead.

The ten aspirations are the following:

• Aspiration 1: The African Children’s Charter, as supervised by the African Children’s Committee, provides an effective continental framework for
• advancing children’s rights.
• Aspiration 2: An effective child-friendly national legislative, policy and institutional framework is in place in all member States.
• Aspiration 3:Every child’s birth and other vital statistics are registered.
• Aspiration 4: Every child survives and has a healthy childhood.
• Aspiration 5: Every child grows up well-nourished and with access to the basic necessities of life.
• Aspiration 6: Every child benefits fully from quality education.
• Aspiration 7: Every child is protected against violence, exploitation, neglect and abuse.
• Aspiration 8: Children benefit from a child-sensitive criminal justice system.
• Aspiration 9: Every child is free from the impact of armed conflicts and other disasters or emergency situations.
• Aspiration 10: African children’s views matter.

These aspirations are followed by two further parts:

• the implementation of this Agenda; and
• monitoring and evaluation of this Agenda.