17. The Committee particularly calls upon the State Party to give attention to the best interests of the child in custody cases where children are confiscated by their fathers only for child support and maintenance reasons. 18. The Committee appreciates the criminalization of sexual offences against children; nevertheless, the State Party has failed to ensure the protection of girl victims of sexual offences through prosecution of offenders in courts of law. Many offenders are not being prosecuted as required by the Sexual Offences Act, 2006 due to cultural practices; in certain cases, girls are forced to marry the offenders. The lack of prosecution and the practices of the community are against the best interests of children and seriously affect their development. The Committee recommends that the State Party take measures to ensure that sexual offenders are prosecuted with the full might of the law to ensure the deterrence of other potential offenders and reduce forced child marriage. Survival and development 19. The Committee notes with appreciation the provision of free child birth services in public hospitals and health centers to prevent infant mortality. However, the public health centers are not well equipped and staffed, which compromises the quality of health care service delivered by the State and puts at risk the survival of children. Another factor affecting the survival and development of children is the prevalence of teenage pregnancy. The Committee, therefore, recommends that the State Party increases the budget allocated for health care services; that it intensifies efforts to train and educate health staff, and also continuously strives to provide better health facilities. It also recommends that the State Party takes all the necessary steps to reduce teenage pregnancy by educating teenagers and their parents and also by properly implementing the Sexual Offences Act. 20. The Committee welcomes all the measures the State has taken in relation to food and nutrition security such as the formulation of the National Food and Nutrition Security Policy and the National Nutrition Action Plan 2012-2017. While acknowledging the measures the State has taken, the Committee has qualms that the arid and semi-arid lands (ASAL) are still fully dependent on food aid. Children die due to malnutrition in these areas. The Committee, therefore, urges the State Party to devise and plan strategies in which it can efficiently address the issue of malnutrition in these areas. Child participation 21. The Committee congratulates the government of Kenya for establishing children’s assemblies in all counties. The Committee encourages the government of Kenya to give due consideration to the views of children in policy making as well as budgeting. The Committee encourages the State Party to provide children 6