CMC:
JAMAICA HAS recommended the establishment of high-level national councils for children as part of efforts to achieve the United Nations (UN) goal of 'A world fit for children'.
Stafford Neil, Jamaica's ambassador to the United Nations, said moves to achieve the goal were being hampered by inadequate institutional capacity and budgetary constraints.
According to Mr. Neil, collaboration between parliamentarians and civil society to promote child-focused budgets is necessary for attaining the U.N. goals.
Speaking on behalf of the Group of 77, at a U.N. Special Conference on Children, he said Jamaica has supported many child-related initiatives and hosted the regional conference on children in 2000.
He said the Government has adopted a national action plan to address children's rights, and that domestic legislation has been enacted to complement that plan.
In addition, Neil told the conference that Jamaica has established a Child Development Agency that promotes programmes for children and equips adults to be better parents.
MULTI-SECTORAL APPROACH
He said the agency has adopted a multi-sectoral approach that addresses violence against children, child labour, and the problem of street children.
Mr. Neil also said Jamaica has taken numerous steps to improve childhood health, and was committed to providing free, compulsory education at the primary level.
The U.N. envoy also disclosed that the Government has established a child-specific national human rights institution, a juvenile unit in the police force and a victim support unit for child victims.
But Neil said that, though Jamaica is committed to combating HIV/AIDS, it is still confronted by significant challenges.
He said Jamaica still needs adequate resources to attain its targets of reducing the proportion of infected infants by 20 per cent by 2005 and 50 per cent by 2010.
