New index ranks African countries on child welfare

The survey, which ranks 52 African countries on more than 40 indicators, finds that some of the poorest nations are the most child friendly, because they have laws and policies in place to protect children's rights. In addition, they have targeted their limited resources to provide basic needs for their children.

Assefa Bequele, the forum's executive director, said, "While we should be grateful for all the assistance given to us by non-African actors, I think it is time that we as Africans should speak out and reclaim our own destiny" by becoming "a moral voice for Africa's children."

"For the first time we can assess the behaviour and performance of African governments systematically and transparently using the child friendly index and, by so doing, hold these governments more accountable for their children's wellbeing," he said.

"We will be able to monitor progress and failings more easily [by] using this powerful instrument, which is the first of its kind in Africa and, to our knowledge, the first of its kind anywhere."

The report lists the top 10 most child friendly governments, starting with the best, as Mauritius, Namibia, Tunisia, Libya, Morocco, Kenya, South Africa, Malawi, Algeria, and Cape Verde.