Child participation project developed by DCI-Colombia, 2003

From October-December 2003, 85 children from the municipality of Aquitania, located 260km from Bogota, Colombia, developed micro-projects in order to raise awareness on child labour and children�s rights. The children, aged between 8 and 13 years, developed these projects with the support of their teachers and DCI-Colombia. The children were selected from two rural schools, two urban schools and from a group of non-school-going children who are supported directly by DCI-Colombia. All of them had previously received a form of child rights education and had been introduced to the child labour phenomenon. Two groups of children then created posters in order to inform the wider community (including parents, other children, teachers, authorities, etc) on the rights of the child. The children also organised a demonstration to promote the rights of the child in which about 400 children participated. Another children�s group finally created a children�s council, with a similar structure to that of the municipal council, in order to discuss the rights of the child, child labour, education, etc. This was discussed live on a local radio-show. All the children participated actively in the different projects. This experience helped them to get to know their rights, develop a sense of confidence and made them feel more concerned in the decisions in the community. All the children showed enthusiasm in continuing this experience.

In order to guide the child in his/her reading and to clarify any possible doubts, a booklet containing operational guidelines is available in English, French and Spanish. This set of guidelines is intended for teachers, educators, parents and other interested individuals facilitating the child�s understanding of the book.

By purchasing this book and its reading guidelines, you will enable other children to discover their rights and to develop a child participation project.

For more information and/or to order copies of the book �The World of Working Children� and its reading guidelines in English, French or Spanish, please contact:

DCI-Child Labour Desk,
1 rue de Varemb�,
P.O. Box 88, 1211 Geneva 20,
Switzerland

Email : [email protected] Tel : +41 22 734 05 58 Fax : +41 22 740 11 45