Seven African states have achieved prohibition of corporal punishment of children in all settings, including the home, and recommendations to prohibit all corporal punishment of children have been accepted by 17 African states. On the other hand, 25% of Africa’s children live in states where corporal punishment is not fully prohibited in any setting.

These facts and more are graphically illustrated in the updated leaflet “Prohibiting all corporal punishment of children in Africa: progress and delay”. The briefing lists some of the states in which governments are most resistant to reform, including those where judicial corporal punishment – caning, flogging or whipping – is lawful as a sentence for crime under state, religious and/or traditional systems of justice. It summarises research which shows the appalling levels of punitive violence experienced by children in Africa. Designed to encourage urgent action, the briefing emphasises immediate opportunities for prohibiting corporal punishment in around 42 African states.

Download the briefing here (available in English and French).