CHILD PARLIAMENT IN SUNYANI MUNICIPALITY: AMPLIFYING CHILDREN'S VOICES IN DECISION-MAKING

Children have valuable perspectives on the issues affecting their lives. Providing them with opportunities to express these views and contribute to solutions is essential to building inclusive communities.

On the 19th to 23rd of October, the Centre for Learning and Childhood Development (CLCD Ghana) held the Child Parliament initiative in Sunyani Municipality, Bono Region, Ghana, as part of the EPIC Project: Engaging Policymakers in Intersectoral Collaboration for Children.

The initiative introduced children to parliamentary processes and encouraged them to develop their public speaking, deliberation, and critical-thinking skills. It also provided a platform for them to discuss issues affecting their well-being and explore how their voices can contribute to decision-making and local development.

The event also featured the presentation of awards to participants of the Build Me a Future (BMaF) Challenge, recognizing young innovators and celebrating their contributions towards identifying solutions to challenges within their communities.

Through these initiatives, CLCD Ghana continues to promote meaningful child participation and encourage collaboration among stakeholders to ensure children's needs, rights, and priorities are considered in policy making.

The project is implemented in Ghana by CLCD Ghana in collaboration with the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP). On the project is the University College London (UCL), FLACSO Argentina and National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).

Because children deserve not only to be heard, but also to participate in shaping the decisions that affect their lives.