Primary school authorities in Mulanje have been asked to stop sending back students who fail to pay school fund as it is contributing to high school dropout rate in the district.

Mulanje district council chair, Councilor Isaac Blazio made the remarks during the commemoration of the Day of the African Child in the district.

He said sending back students violates their right to education as most of them are underprivileged and cannot afford to pay the requested school funds.

“Apart from the fact that the students’ rights to education are violated, they are also exposed to different kinds of behaviors at home as they wait for parents to pay for the requested school fund,” said Blazio.

It was also observed during the commemorations whose theme was ‘Humanitarian Action in Africa, Children’s Rights First’, that defilement, forced early marriages and child trafficking remain the biggest threats to children in the country, Mulanje in particular.

Further to this, natural disasters are also emerging to be another threat to children, especially in the country’s disaster affected areas.

According to Mulanje Social Welfare Officer, Robert Sawiche, about 276 children were affected by the recent disasters in the district.

He said his office has since embarked on providing psychosocial support to the victims to make sure they recover from the shock they went through.

“Our office regards issues affecting children in high esteem hence we provide all the necessary support especially to those that were heavily affected by the recent disasters,” said Sawiche.

Speaking on behalf of all children in Mulanje, 11 year old Cecilia Maononga asked government to scale up efforts that are aimed at bringing to an end all challenges that children face in the country.