Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Persons in Southern Africa

Across Africa, numerous children and vulnerable adults continue to suffer in silence, exposed to abuse, neglect, exploitation, and harmful traditions that undermine their fundamental rights. This important and timely work examines the complex social, cultural, and economic factors that sustain these injustices and calls for stringent safeguarding frameworks grounded in human dignity and social justice. Drawing on local and global perspectives, it challenges governments, faith communities, policymakers, and civil society to confront different forms of child and vulnerable adult abuse and take decisive action to protect the defenceless. Both an essential resource and an urgent call to action, this work inspires everyone to stand with the vulnerable and help build an environment where every person can live free from any form of abuse, harm, fear, and exploitation.