APRM • SECOND COUNTRY REVIEW REPORT OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA 226. Vulnerable children and young persons: The 2009 census revealed that 43% of the Kenyan population is under 15. Infant mortality rate declined to 39 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2014 and under-5 mortality is 52 deaths per 1,000 live births according to KDHS 2014. This is a decline from the KDHS 2008-9 statistics indicating under-five mortality and infant mortality have declined from 115 and 77 to 74 and 52 deaths per 1,000 live births respectively. The registration of children at birth helps to attach important rights to children such as healthcare and education; however a high number of children in the rural areas have not benefitted from births registration. Only 68% children are registered and about only a quarter of these have birth certificates. 227. It is estimated that there are over 2.4 million orphans resulting from HIV & AIDS deaths alone.23 Cash transfers of KShs 4000 have been made to families with orphans and vulnerable children to promote community driven childcare and protection. Government has placed emphasis on this programme, funding it to the tune of KShs 2.8 billion in 2011/2012, KShs 4.4 billion in 2012/2013, KShs 8 billion in 2013/2014 and KShs 7.9 billion in 2016/17. 229. The incidence of violence against children is still high. Vulnerable and poor children and young persons continue to face exploitation, neglect and abuse. The most common forms include child labour, trafficking, sexual violence and harassment in education institutions and domestic violence. The 2010 National Survey on Violence against Children sponsored by UNICEF revealed that 32% of females and 18% of males experience sexual violence: 66% of females and 73% of males experienced physical violence and 26% of females and 32% of males had experience a form of violence. It also found that 76% of women aged between 18 and 24 had experienced gender-based violence at least once by the time they were 18. Although the law prohibits corporal punishment in the private and public sphere it is still practiced in some form. The establishment of specialised courts is improving access to justice for children and other vulnerable groups but poor and vulnerable children are not able to access the justice, law and order mechanisms. 230. Trafficking children and young persons across borders and internally for domestic work has continued to present challenges for protecting vulnerable children. This is despite the intensified efforts of the counter trafficking network comprising of government and civil society and development partners to combat it. The large numbers of victims and resource constraints cause difficulties in providing shelters and significant victim assistance. 231. The KDHS 2014 report reveals that circumcision of girls at younger ages is trending; 8% of girls had their genital area sewn up by the age of 14. The cultural premium on this ritual remains high and many children are taken to hospital to have the procedure far from the watchful eyes of law enforcement. Government has exerted concerted efforts to eradicate this practice together with civil society through awareness raising, community engagement among other strategies. 23 Republic of Kenya ‘Special Programmes Sector MTEF 2011/12 – 2013/14 Sector Report | 119 |