RUYIGI, December 26th (ABP) – Ruyigi province (eastern Burundi) still experiences a certain number of challenges that remain to be addressed following the lack of monitoring of children by certain parents.
Such a declaration comes from the advisor to the governor of Ruyigi in charge of Social and Cultural Affairs, Mrs. Alphonsine Nahayo. This was when this province celebrated International Children’s Rights Day on Friday, December 22, in Nyabitsinda commune.
That person in authority reminded families, and especially parents, to reconsider the upbringing they give to their children and to put rigor into it so that their future is more secure and sustainable. She pointed out that in Ruyigi province; the competent authorities are doing their best to guarantee the rights of the child.
However, she stressed, one should not ignore there are still cases of school dropouts and children who go to neighboring country, Tanzania, to look for job, while there are some who wander around urban centers and others who do small business.
Mrs. Nahayo indicated that other children are victims of quarrels between their parents and end up leaving households because they do not have school materials, food or clothing and other basic needs. She noted that in that region of Kumoso, there are still young girls who marry at an early age and those who drop out of school following unwanted pregnancies.
To that end, she called on the entire community to fight against this bad practice because, she affirmed, these illegal unions sometimes lead to the separation of families, polygamy or polyandry, and children suffer from negative repercussions at the psychological, mental and even physical levels. She urged the quadrilogy and the joint security committees to identify the perpetrators of those poor practices and bring them to justice so that they are punished in accordance with the law.