Introduction
The documentation and monitoring of vulnerable children are essential components in the development of effective prevention and protection policies. Improving data collection and supporting child protection information systems are indispensable in planning interventions and improving monitoring of child protection services and systems. This is one of UNICEF’s strategic priorities.
Since 2002, with the support of partners at the global level, 1 UNICEF has endeavoured to develop indicators related to certain issues of child protection. Despite some progress in data collection, available data remains limited. The region of West and Central Africa lacks necessary research capacities and systematic child protection information and monitoring mechanisms. As a result, it is one of the regions that suffers most from a lack of visibility and evaluation of protection situations and interventions.
The objective of this report is to review the initiatives carried out in the last four years in West and Central African countries with regard to child protection information and monitoring systems. An analysis of the different options available in the region reveals i) the advantages and limits of each approach; ii) the difficulties experienced in collecting, analyzing and disseminating protection data; iii) the lessons learned and the challenges in this area; and iv) a proposal for a UNICEF framework of intervention to strengthen national child protection information and monitoring systems in the region.
