:: Representative for Africa 2009-2011

''Your wisdom, your skill, your talent, your creativity can take you some where but what keeps you there is character.''

My name is Jonathan Ssembajwe and I am one of the two EICYAC Regional Representatives for Africa. I have been a child activist for more than 8 years and I head a children and youth broadcasting team in Uganda. I work with children and young people who participate in radio programs sponsored by the African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect (ANPPCAN Uganda), a partner organization with ECPAT.

I have followed up on many cases of child abuse in Uganda which has made me a well known child rights activist in Uganda. Now that I am an EICYAC Representative for Africa, I hope to extend this to many other African countries. I have worked and I am still working with ECPAT Uganda to fight against sexual exploitation of young people and to fulfill all the ECPAT goals.

I have designed proposals for child and youth-lead programs on different radio stations in Uganda and now many radio stations have youth programs purposely to fight for the rights of young people. Also, I have participated in many conferences for children and young people, both internationally and locally.

I am looking forward to work closely with my fellow EICYAC Representative for Africa, the representatives from other regions and the ECPAT Secretariat in mobilizing more young people and the general public to engage them in the fight against the sexual exploitation of children, to promote child and youth participation and to support all ECPAT goals.
On a personal basis, I am Ugandan, from East Africa. Currently I am studying journalism. I am a humble person, I enjoy traveling, meeting friends, watching movies, music and sports.

:: Representative for Africa 2005-2008

''....synergy is never achieved by solo input...''

I am Vickie, from Kenya, holder of a bachelors degree in commerce and currently planning to  do my masters in Finance. 

I am responsible for the region of Africa and as you can imagine I really don’t get bored.

This region is challenging but interesting as well.The African region is vast both in terms of geographic area as well as diversity of cultures.It is especially challenging to communicate effectively with the youth from all over Africa due to limited access to internet as well as the language barrier between the East(english speakers) and West African youth(french speakers). However despite these challenges, the African youth have demonstrated their eagerness to fight against CSEC in the region as well as come up with solid ideas of how to participate actively in the fight.It is interesting to see how their diversity helps them come up with truly unique solutions to fight CSEC in their respective societies.

As part of my job within EICYAC I do have the chance to meet lots of people, attend meetings and organise projects. If you want to find out what keeps me from sitting at home and watching TV.