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2020 Local Governments Protecting the Rights of the Child in the context of…

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Local Governments Protecting the Rights of the Child in the context of COVID-19

 


June 24th, 2020

Written by UCLG-CSIPDHR Secretariat



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Credits: 
free stock photos (Pixabay)

 

COVID-19 has exacerbated pre-existing vulnerabilities, widening socioeconomic inequalities and putting millions of households under stress across the world. Local governments from Chile to Korea and Austria to Cameroon have risen to the challenge and put in place measures to combat the spread of the pandemic as well as its consequences over city residents rights. It is in the framework of these debates that a particular focus has been placed over the rights of the child, due to the closing of schools and the new scenario posed by home confinement. Indeed, many families don’t have the means to keep up with homeschooling, including technical equipment or an adequate environment at home. Many others struggle to explain the pandemic to kids, as well the need to comply with public health measures or deal with the stress caused by the situation.


So, how did local governments manage to address these challenges and protect the rights of the child? And which ways did they find to overcome existing limitations in terms of existing capacities and available resources? Are there any relevant innovations or emerging initiatives that could help us reshape human rights practice in the context of the rights of the child? Also, what are mayors and local leaders from human rights cities thinking when it comes to assessing the COVID-19 crisis and its aftermath from a rights of the child-based perspective?



Cities provided the means, tools and methodologies to support homeschooling while tackling the digital divide



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Credits: Yogendra Singh (Pixabay)  


Grigny Mayor Philippe Rio (France) has been an advocate of the Educative City vision for years: “An agreement bringing all local stakeholders together in favour of every child’s success” in his own words. In the context of COVID-19, Mayor Rio notes how “we should put all our energies to ensure that every kid can keep up with his or her schooling through measures that allow us to break the digital divide” like handling laptops to children from economically disadvantaged families.


While Gringy has cooperated with local stakeholders to distribute 100 laptops within the city, other local governments in Spain have done the same: Fuenlabrada has delivered 370 smartphones with access to internet (which also allow to keep track of these kids’ situation); Vallirana has cooperated with a private foundation to do the same with 50 laptops; and Rivas Vaciamadrid focused on providing tablets and sim cards. Gwangju, a much larger city than the former ones, has also supplied 2,600 smart devices to schools for supporting remote education among kids from low-income families and covered their internet fee during this time; Vienna did a similar exercise, purchasing up to 5,000 laptops.


Other local governments have taken a more ambitious approach, putting in place entire platforms to support the homeschooling process for both children, parents and teachers. Bogotá’s “Aprende en Casa” platform (Learn at Home) might be one of the most relevant examples, which includes a TV and Radio channel with educational materials, as well as guides for parents and teachers on how to support kids keep up with their learning process in spite of the closing of schools. The platform is especially devised for kids, who can access all kinds of learning and motivations materials as well as tips. Perú’s capital, Lima, has also taken advantage of digital technology to support homeschooling and training among children and youth. It has created various free courses on digital technologies and the city’s education department Facebook page is also offering all kind of links to educational materials and live events. As a matter of fact, the “Escuela de Lima” provides educational materials for both children, teenagers and adults, trying to foster an adequate environment at home for learning and conviviality.


Cities have also adapted their own education services to the quarantine period and beyond, including additional services such as libraries, book clubs and study areas. Rivas Vaciamadrid has adapted its book club and opened its doors to on site / online sessions as soon as it has been possible. Taipei also opened its parent-child centre recently, allowing parents and kids to have a safe space to have fun or study out of home. Cities like Fuenlabrada focused on the other hand on channeling local university students willingness to support homeschooled students, providing free tutoring and educational support in their subjects. Fuenlabrada’s network gathered 120 voluntary teachers and reached more than 600 students in total.




Helping kids understand the pandemic and take up their role in keeping everyone safe


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​Credits: Alexandra_Koch (Pixabay) 


In developing their communication efforts around the pandemic, various local governments have also put their focus on children, finding imaginative ways to address kids directly. The City of Vienna developed a short video explaining how the pandemic works, why is it necessary to keep up with quarantine measures and how does this affects kids’ daily lives - including homeschooling or leisure. The City of Berlin did a similar exercise, producing a short video aimed sensitizing children on the need to follow several public health recommendations. The video was translated to English, French and Spanish too. The Mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, has found an alternative way to communicate with kids, which is to allow all kids in the city to send their own questions about the pandemic, implemented quarantine measures and the same future (When will they be able to go back to school? When will they be able to hug their grandparents? How is this going to affect the city’s future?) by video messages. The same Mayor has answered to their questions in a live video session which was also broadcasted in Instagram.


 


 Monitoring the situation of children with specific needs and providing support or safe spaces


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​Credits: congerdesign (Pixabay)  


Given that the pandemic is causing millions of households across the world to lose part of their daily income, many local governments have also established or reinforced existing mechanisms to support children in the city directly. Mexico City has reinforced its cash transfer program Mi Beca para Empezar” (My Scholarship to Get Started) to support kids in families struggling due to the crisis. The City of Gwangju has also send education instructors to offer educational guidance and help them adapt to remote classes. The City of Bogotá also reinforced its programme of cash transfers for kids living in vulnerable households, while maintaining free meals for kids in public schools as in before the quarantine.


Vienna has maintained several schools and kindergartens open so that they could provide a safe environment to those kids in need. Austria’s capital also tried to monitor the situation of children in the city by calling their families at home directly, inquiring about their situation and specific needs they may have. Vienna initiatives are part of a larger, structural focus devoted by the city government to the rights of the child, which can be seen as a specific feature of its well-recognized human rights city model. Indeed, in previous years, the city already made specific efforts to “localize” and raise awareness on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and participated in working groups around human trafficking. A strong public system of schooling and monitoring now allowed the city to shift its already existing infrastructure to the new challenges raised by the quarantine.


The City of Gwangju was also attentive to the to the needs of students with disabilities, considering both the needs of the kid and their guardian when following up homeschooling. Online lectures were provided to blind students (either by text or dotted files so they can be used through the braille information instrument). Coordinating with national agencies, the City also produced materials for deaf students and students with developmental disabilities. Teachers produce the task depending on each student’s level and deliver the task directly or via email to the students. After then, they check the results of their performance in their task. The Gwangju Special Education Online Learning Support Group, which consists of 48 teachers, is also sharing how to utilize the online system and discussing the way to provide better remote classes for the students with disabilities.