CLC-Conference-Proceeding-2018

The social situation of Cuban children and adolescent
Sofía Magdalena Porro Mendoza
This paper describes some of the
indicators of the social development of Cuban
children and adolescents, which give an
integral picture of the current situation of these
population groups. Very relevant has been the
political will to design and develop policies,
projects and social programs for the benefit of
children and adolescents, as well as the
articulation of entities in order to improve their
quality of life.
Children and adolescents in situations
of social disadvantage have been addressed
from social prevention in schools and
communities by teachers and community
agents. There are several challenges for the
Cuban State and Government to maintain, on
the one hand, and improve, the quality of life
of Cuban children and adolescents with equity
and social justice, as it has been during the last
six decades. Childhood, adolescence, quality of
life, development, social equity During these
almost six decades, the Cuban State and
Government have prioritized adequate
attention to children, adolescents and youth, to
ensure their development and well-being,
especially in relation to educational coverage
and attention to maternal and child health.
At present Cuba has 11.2 million
inhabitants, of whom 2.3 million correspond to
the population with ages under 18; Which
constitutes 21% of the total. (UNICEF/Cuba
2015/Castillo)
“There are more than 855,000 children
under six years of age in Cuba, of whom 99.5
per cent attend an early childhood education
programme or institution”. (CEPDE-ONEI,
Diciembre de 2013).
“Cuba has adopted a holistic approach
to early childhood development (ECD),
providing children under six and their families
with a system of integrated services that aims
to promote the best start in life for all children
and the maximum development of each child’s
potential. These services have been scaled
across the country, and today have universal
reach with an equity focus, meaning that they
are accessible to all children, with specific
attention to ensuring access for the most
vulnerable.
Early childhood development has been
a priority in Cuba for the past 50 years, with
ECD services, programmes and institutions put
in place and strengthened over the years to
achieve a common objective: the maximum
possible integral development for each child,
always applying an inter-sectoral approach and
guaranteeing universal access with an equity
focus (UNICEF/Cuba2015/Piedras).
There have been numerous programs
and projects aimed at increasing the quality of
life of children in Cuba. More and more people
are being favored and the achievements are
evidence of the work done. The well-being of
children is an inherent purpose of the Cuban
social project. Respect and attention to their
rights constitute a strategy that, in a conscious
and planned way, allows the projection of
programs in favor of children.
Compliance with the Rights of Children in
Cuba.
The State protects the rights of children
through its Magna Carta "The Constitution of
the Republic "of 1976, as amended in 1992.