The project "Children’s Fund" was set up in 2005 to support activities aimed at fighting child trafficking and the worst forms of child labour in Burkina Faso.
The overall objective was to contribute to the strengthening of human capital and the promotion of social protection. The specific objective was to strengthen the legal, institutional, socio-economic and cultural environment so that it was conducive to the promotion and protection of child rights.
The project activities were categorized into three components :
Component 1 aimed to strengthen the legal and institutional environment thereby facilitating the promotion and protection of child rights at national level. Activities :

• Advocacy for the inclusion of child trade and trafficking topics in the national education policy.
• Strengthening of the legal and institutional framework for the promotion and protection of child rights.
• Support in drafting thematic studies and in implementing recommendations.
• Capitalisation on the experiences of the Children’s Fund and dissemination of good practices at national level.

Component 2 aimed to develop the capacities of the local and regional authorities in the project priority area so that they could better fulfil their role, particularly in the social sector, helping children who were victims of or had been exposed to trade and the other worst forms of child labour. Activities:

• Provide support to the local and regional authorities with Information – Education – Communication (IEC) activities, and with advocacy and resource mobilisation.
• Accompanying the local and regional authorities in the preparation and implementation of Municipal Action Plans for fighting child trade and labour (MAP/CTL) and of thematic studies.
• Accompanying the local and regional authorities in the implementation of social services and municipal accounts.
• Capacity building measures to ensure that the local and regional authorities respect cross-cutting issues (gender, HIV/AIDS, environment) when managing social projects in the community.
• Introduction of an Award for Excellence in the project zone, for the best community project to help vulnerable children.

Component 3 aimed to directly improve the target group’s knowledge of child rights, and of social and economic conditions in the priority project zone. Activities:

• Assistance with awareness campaigns (IEC, theatre groups, cine-debates etc.)
• Support for schooling and professional training (scholarships, supplies, tuition fees, school canteens, assistance to Teaching Mother associations).
• Support to the construction / equipment of social infrastructure (reception centres, hostels/shelters, classrooms etc.)