Child Rights Act, 2007
The landmark Act protecting the rights and welfare of children in Sierra Leone, giving domestic effect to international children's rights standards.
Summary
The Child Rights Act, 2007 is Sierra Leone's comprehensive statute on the rights and welfare of children. It gives domestic effect to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, defining a child as a person below the age of eighteen.
The Act sets out children's rights — to a name and nationality, to education, health and parental care, and to protection from discrimination, exploitation, harmful labour and abuse. It establishes the best interests of the child as the paramount consideration, sets the minimum age of marriage, and regulates child labour.
It also provides institutional and procedural protections, including child welfare committees, family courts, rules on parentage, custody, maintenance and fostering, and arrangements for the care and protection of children in need, including children in conflict with the law.
Main provisions
- Defines a child as a person under 18 and makes the child's best interests paramount.
- Guarantees children's rights to name and nationality, education, health and parental care.
- Protects children from discrimination, abuse, exploitation and harmful labour, and sets the minimum age of marriage.
- Establishes child welfare committees and family courts.
- Provides for parentage, custody, maintenance, fostering and adoption.
- Provides for the care and protection of children in need and children in conflict with the law.