This article recounts an initiative led by World Vision and the Protection Cluster on the occasion of the Day of the African Child 2025 in North Kivu. The event brought together local authorities and humanitarian actors under the theme of planning and budgeting for children’s rights, within the context of a prolonged crisis. Discussions centred on emergency education, the fight against child exploitation, support for reintegration centres, and the need for reliable data to inform decisions. A powerful testimony from a young former street child strengthened the call for concrete action. World Vision concluded by emphasising that protecting childhood is an investment in peace and the future of the country.

This policy brief, Investing in the Future, presents a compelling case for expanding and increasing funding to Zambia’s School Feeding Programme as a strategic response to child hunger, malnutrition, and poor educational outcomes. Drawing on recent national and global data, the brief outlines the profound impacts of undernutrition on children's health, learning, and future prospects, particularly in rural areas. It highlights how, despite increased government allocations from K39.4 million in 2023 to a proposed K534.4 million in 2025, over 60% of eligible children still remain uncovered by the programme.

“I want to ask our leaders to make sure that our safety and well-being are always prioritised, everywhere, all the time,” says 10-year-old Patience. On this Day of the African Child, Patience reminds us that children’s protection is not negotiable.

The Analyses, Design and Planning Tool for Child Protection (CP ADAPT) is designed to help field offices conduct a prioritisation child protection issues and their root causes, as well as a mapping of the formal and informal systems that are in place to protect children.

In the Titiaka community in Kadjebi, trained volunteers are leading peer-led sessions to promote the wellbeing and protection of children through World Vision Ghana’s Nurturing Care Groups.

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This article highlights a powerful celebration of the Day of the African Child 2025 in Luwowoshi, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Organised by World Vision and local partners, the event gathered over 900 people, most of them children, around the theme: “Planning and Budgeting for Children’s Rights: Progress Since 2010.” Confronted with alarming issues such as child labour, violence, and dropping out of school, children spoke out with strength and emotion. They denounced the abuses they face, shared their dreams, and urged adults to ensure their right to education, protection, and well-being. Figures such as Nestor and Alicia, both 14, carried their peers’ voices through moving advocacy messages, calling for collective mobilisation towards a safer future. In concrete response, World Vision distributed nearly 600 school kits to vulnerable children, easing their return to school. The initiative was praised by teachers, who emphasised the need for community support to combat child hardship.

​The Analysis, Design and Planning Tool for CPHA is designed for contexts of humanitarian crises to assist with the identification, prioritisation and analysis of CP issues to inform programme priorities, design, and overall strategies.