African Union [to 19 March 2016]
http://www.au.int/en/
[We generally limit coverage to regional and global level initiatives, recognizing that a number of country-level announcements are added each week]

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March 17, 2016
Water is critical to achieving Agenda 2063 Development Goals and Aspirations – AUC Chairperson
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – 16 March 2016: “Water is the source by which Africa’s development can be driven,” says the African Union Commission Chairperson, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, in her remarks at the closing session of Ministers of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene meeting that held on 15 and16 March 2016 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia…

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March 15, 2016
Girls’ education, child protection: UNICEF carves niche in Africa’s Agenda 2063
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – 15 March 2016: The Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Mr. Anthony Lake, has expressed UNICEF’s full commitment and support to work with the African Union on the education of girls and protection of children within the framework of Africa’s Agenda 2063. The UNICEF Executive and the African Union Commission Chairperson, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, agreed on these focus areas when they met at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Tuesday 15 March 2016.

The UNICEF Executive Director said that he was very impressed with Agenda 2063, which he noted was in sync with the Sustainable Development Goals, Agenda 2030. “Africa’s Agenda 2063 provides an opportunity for the transformation of two generations of girls in Africa,” Mr. Anthony Lake noted, lauding Dr. Dlamini Zuma’s leadership on human rights, particularly on girls’ rights, including the right to education.

“Girls’ education on the continent is very critical. We know the benefits of educated children to families and societies at large. Girls education is paramount, and therefore needs a lot of emphasis.” The AU Commission Chairperson said, adding that, girls should also be assisted beyond basic education so that they can proceed to higher education. “Primary education is important, but no country has developed with primary education alone,” she noted.

Aside from girls’ education, they also discussed the need to focus on nutrition to ensure proper early child growth, as well as give more attention to the protection of children in conflicts. Concurring with the UNICEF Executive Director, the AUC Chairperson highlighted the importance of focusing on the protection of both children and their mothers. This will protect girls from being made wives and boys from being soldiers when they are meant to be just children…