THE Rights of the Child Commission (ROC) has requested that Parliament clarify Article 222A of the Constitution, so as to allow it to access funding in consonance with the stated procedures.The ROC made the appeal in its annual report for the year ended December 2011, that was tabled at the last sitting of the House.

In the compendium, ROC Chair Aleema Nasir recommended that greater cognisance be taken of the Commission’s work programme, with respect to its constitutional mandates, in order for realistic sums to be voted on.
The Commission’s budget of $43M was cut to $15M, 34 percent of the initial requirement.
According to the report, the “magnitude of the shortfall” hampered the intended work programme of the Commission, since the allocation only facilitated minor activities and payments of the salary of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and other Commission stipends.
“The output of the Commission was, by no means, as pronounced as it was intended,” the compilation said.
It added that despite the budget cuts, the Commission succeeded in crafting its five-year strategic plan; securing data from a birth registration research and survey; hosting a formal session of the Children’s Parliament, training sessions and its first annual retreat, among other activities.
The report also recommended sensitisation sessions for Members of Parliament (MPs) on the Convention of the ROC and its mandates.
Written By Vanessa Narine