Childline Kenya

Childline Kenya owes its existence to three founding organizations, Plan International Inc, the Kenya Alliance for the Advancement of Children (KAARC) and SOS Children Villages Kenya whose sole objective was to create a complaints and reporting mechanism to contribute to the ending of child abuse in Kenya.

In November 2006, Childline Kenya launched the 0800-221-0800 child helpline. This clearly demonstrated the role that the civil society can play in supporting children to be safe, grow up in a non-threatening environment and participate by voicing their concerns and those of friends and peers. Barely a year and half later, lessons learnt from the 0800-221-0800 helpline contributed to a development of the 24 hour national and emergency service helpline 116 which was launched in May 2008.

This indeed was a major achievement not just for Childline Kenya but for the Government of Kenya-Department of Children Services, all the key players in the child protection sector and most of all the children Kenya who can now reach for help a phone call away.Childline Kenya partnered with the Department of Children Services in the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Development, and as a result has an agreement with the Ministry to manage the national child helpline.
116 is the African Child Helpline number currently used by Kenya, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Guinea Conakry, Namibia, while others are still lobbying for the number from their respective governments. They include Uganda, Lesotho, South Africa among others.

Through the child helpline 116, Childline Kenya has demonstrated great potential for enhanced child protection programs in the country and beyond.