Ayşe Nur Gençalp / Save the Children Türkiye

Campaigning for her rights: Asia, 17, from Tanzania

3 min read

19 Apr 2021 Tanzania

Asia is a 17-year-old from Zanzibar, Tanzania. She's been working to campaign for children rights and the fight against violence in the Isles. Here's why she does it.

Asia is a member of the local children’s council, where she discusses issues affecting children and advocates for positive change. She says children face a number of challenges, and because they don't have awareness about their rights, they can be scared to report when they are abused. Her council aims to educate the public - especially those in rural areas - on the importance of protecting children's rights.

“We benefit a lot from these councils as whenever we meet, we discuss a lot of things including our rights. These councils are very important in the fight against violence, child marriages and pregnancies,”

“We have visited various schools educating children on their rights, avoided abuse and being able to report issues of violence, we have been educating parents on the importance of protecting children by ensuring that they monitor their children's walks and behavior all the time,”

Asia says discrimination and violence against women and children has adverse impacts on the community and the country as whole, and calls for intensive efforts to fight it. She urges the government to strengthen policies and laws to punish those who have been abusing children.

Asia (17) is a form five student from Zanzibar, Tanzania, who has been working to campaign for children rights and the fight against violence in the Isles. She is a member of the children’s council, where she is able to discuss issues affecting children and advocate for positive change. According to Asia, being in the children council has made her very strong and confident through the knowledge and skills to achieve her life dreams. She says children face a number of challenges, which include low awareness about their rights and thus they sometimes fear to report whenever they are abused. She also says that the councils also educate the public especially those in rural areas on the importance of protecting children rights as well as registering them in children councils. Asia says discrimination and violence was not only confined to women but children as well, a situation which calls for intensive efforts to fight it as it has adverse impacts to the community and the country as whole. She urges the government to strengthen policies and laws to punish those who have been abusing children. Asia’s father, Makame, is very supportive of Asia’s campaigning and is thankful to Save the Children and other stakeholders for their efforts to ensure that Zanzibar’s children access their rights and remain protected. Makame says after getting information that there are children councils in the Isles, he came back home and talked to his children including Asia and took all of them to the council for registration. Secilia Bosco / Save the Children Tanzania

But Asia's work doesn't just help other children - she's also seen a huge personal benefit.

"Personally, I can confirm that through the trainings I have learned and benefited in many ways. First, I have gained confidence: as a young girl I wasn't confident enough to stand in front of people and speak, but now I do that with confidence. I have also travelled to many places both here in Unguja and on the mainland.”

Now, she dreams of becoming a child rights lawyer. She's started studying relevant subjects in high school, and says that she's "looking forward to my bright future as well as a bright future for many other girls in my community.”

Asia’s father, Makame, is very supportive of Asia’s campaigning. When he found out that there are children councils in the Isles, he came home and took all of his children to the council for registration.

“I thank my parents for being so supportive to me, especially since my father has been very close to ensure that I fulfill my duties well, I always feel protected having supportive parents like them.”

Save the Children strives to get children’s voices heard and promote child-friendly policies in an environment where children have little to no voice to influence issues that affect their lives. In Tanzania, there's little space for children to participate in government, law, or policy processes, and those from rural areas, with disabilities, and from low-income families are disproportionately affected.

Save the Children works in Tanzania to protect children’s rights and advocates for public investment in children by ensuring that resources are allocated for sectors such as health and nutrition, education, and protection. In 2018, we reached 844,020 people in Tanzania in our child rights governance interventions.