SPEECHES

2000/22 CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

NOTES FOR AN ADDRESS

BY

THE HONOURABLE LLOYD AXWORTHY

MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE

CONFERENCE ON WAR-AFFECTED CHILDREN IN WEST AFRICA

ACCRA, Ghana

April 28, 2000

(3:30 p.m. EDT)

This has been a landmark conference. It proves that when people come together and work toward defined goals, much can be accomplished.

This conference was born from our partnership with Ghana and your commitment to security in the sub-region. Together we had one overarching goal: to put an end to the suffering that war has brought to the children of West Africa.

Let me take a moment to pay tribute.

West Africa has been a leader and model for all of us.

You did not wait to take action when you saw acute suffering in Liberia and Sierra Leone. ECOMOG [Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group] has taken great risks to make the sub-region safe. Your commitment to peace and security has been great and deserves support.

During the past two days, we have discussed a wide range of issues and adopted a holistic agenda -- one that deals with the root causes of conflict and one that will help us better understand and prevent the future exploitation and suffering of children.

You have put forward some very concrete recommendations, recommendations that Canada will help where it can to implement.

First and foremost, Canada will support the call for the immediate release of all children abducted and held against their will by armed groups.

Canada supports establishing programs to rehabilitate and reintegrate these children. It is important that in doing so local traditions and values are employed. This will not only heal wounds and close breaches, but will also help to unite societies and prevent a repeat of the violence of the past.

Incorporating child rights and protection of civilians in military training programs will also have a positive impact.

Prevention is key. Implementing early warning and response systems will undoubtedly help protect all members of society, especially the most vulnerable.

Agreement to have an annual "West African Week of Truce for War-Affected Children" so that humanitarian assistance can be moved in and children's immunization programs can be conducted is vital. This week should also serve another important function: registering births. All those who have not been registered should be, for two reasons. First, this gives individual children identities and access to rights and services. Second, it serves a useful data collection function, whereby we can finally begin to know the numbers and extent of the impact of conflict on West African children.

I also believe that we cannot talk about protecting the rights of children without including young people in the discussion. I am encouraged that you have decided to ensure that young people are included as participants and advocates, and that ECOWAS [Economic Community of West African States] will develop a children-to-children network within West Africa.

Here in Accra, the 21 West African youth delegates held their own conference. Yesterday, Foreign Minister Gbeho and I participated in the first-ever live Internet broadcast between Africa and Canada with them. Conducted by the Canadian non-governmental organization [NGO] "War Child," it linked students in schools across Canada with these war-affected children.

The calibre of the dialogue among these young people was inspiring. They inherently understand the problems -- they live with them daily.

I believe that if we gave them the power and resources, they could sit in this room and within hours resolve the problems. The warlords of this world would not stand a chance against the power of their energy and ideas.

To enact this agenda, however, more than declarations and speeches are needed; leadership and accountability are necessary.

Without strong leadership that is answerable to the public will, children will remain vulnerable.

Our challenge now is to ensure that what has been adopted in the Declaration and Plan of Action indeed becomes that: action.

Canada is committed to immediate and longer-term follow-up of this Plan of Action.

In the short term, Canada will commit to funding the following:

an ECOWAS mechanism for child protection: Canada will help fund an assessment of existing capacity and a needs assessment for a child protection unit within ECOWAS, identifying areas for donor involvement in the region ($300 000);

a sub-regional initiative for military training in child rights and protection: Save the Children Sweden, with Canadian financial support, will be training instructors in national armed forces on a country-by-country basis within West Africa ($52 000);

youth engagement: on the ground, we will help Talking Drum Studios, an NGO with a great deal of experience in Liberia, to launch a radio training and capacity-building media project with young people and adults in Sierra Leone ($100 000).

At the political level, I will ensure that Canada takes elements of this agenda to the Security Council, the G-8, and the Human Security Network.

Canada will continue to convene meetings with the international community to discuss follow-up and implementation, both locally and in capitals.

It is my hope that this conference has set a standard for future conferences on war-affected children.

As many of you know, Canada will be hosting an international conference on war-affected children in September. It will feed recommendations made here and in Canada to the Special Session on Children in 2001.

We must all collaborate to carry this agenda forward, so that we do not fail the children of West Africa again. We must restore a sense of hope to them and their families and ensure that each of them has a long, productive and secure life.

Thank you.