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In Lesotho, international treaties and conventions are not self-executing, and must be
domesticated through legislation and policy in order to be enforced.
Institutional changes:
The department of social welfare within the Ministry of Health (MOH) was abolished in
2011 and the Ministry of Social Development (MoSD) was subsequently established as
a separate government line Ministry. Within MoSD there are three distinct departments the department of children’s services, department of disabilities and the department for
the elderly. The Director of children’s services is tasked with the care, protection and
development of children.
With the introduction of the CPW Act in 2011, a separate Children's Courts was
established in the capital city Maseru, to deal with children’s matters covered in the Act.
Applications for fostering and adoption remain the jurisdiction of the High Court of
Lesotho. Although specific children’s courts have so far been piloted in Maseru District,
the CPW Act does envisage that subordinate courts in all Districts practice in the same
physical premises with the same staff, but with the child-friendly procedures outlined in
the Act. Significantly more training of the prosecution and judiciary is required before
this can be an actuality.
The Government of Lesotho has established the Child and Gender Protection Unit
(CGPU) within the Lesotho Mounted Police (LSMP) in each of the ten Districts for the
enforcement of the aforementioned pieces of legislation. Child Helpline is a new
reporting mechanism for members of the community to lodge complaints related to
children's matters in an anonymous manner. The telephone number is advertised on
billboards in some Districts.
The enactment of the CPW Act catalyzed a review of all related legislation, regulations
and policy to ensure alignment with the Charter. Committed donors such as UNICEF,
MSH and Global Fund have provided technical and financial support for such reviews
and operationalising the Act in the communities. Not all relevant documents have been
reviewed to date but the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) in cooperation with the MoSD intend
to complete this task in due course.