Port Vila, 19-06-2025: 

Children's well-being is not just the family's job but it's a shared duty of the whole community and nation. A child's growth is influenced by their home, family, community, church, and country. Children aren't born as problems; they reflect the environment they grow up in.

This important message was shared by Mr. Wesley Borugu, Child Desk Compliance Officer for Shefa Province, during community awareness sessions and the recent Child Protection Bill meeting held in Port Vila.

Mr. Borugu emphasized that children are not burdens, not troublemakers, and not liabilities. They are products of the values, actions, and support systems around them. When these systems fail especially within families and communities it becomes evident in the lives and behaviors of our children.

The rights and needs of a child must be understood in balance with the responsibilities of parents, families, and communities, said Mr. Borugu. “Children are not to grow up without guidance, limits, or structure. Rights must walk hand-in-hand with responsibility that begins with adults.

He illustrated his point with a powerful analogy of a yam garden: the gardener must remove weeds, guide the vines, and nurture the crop daily to ensure a healthy harvest. A well-tended garden feeds the whole community. “Just like that garden,” he noted, “children need consistent care, love, discipline, and guidance. When we fail to provide that, we fail them and we fail our society.”

Borugu issued a direct call to parents across the country to reclaim their foundational role in the lives of their children. He urged them to correct behavior safely and effectively, to lead by example, and to support their children with unwavering love and discipline.

When children go astray, it is not our job to judge or abandon them. It is our duty to guide them back. A child raised with love and values becomes a strong individual. Strong children make strong communities and a stronger Vanuatu. Mr. Wesley Borugu concluded that let us take this as a challenge to act to restore what is broken, to fulfill what has been neglected, and to raise a generation that will shine in the future.

The continuous Child Protection Bill consultation aims to strengthen the country’s response to child welfare issues, reinforcing the need for a collective commitment to raising children who are protected, valued, and equipped to thrive.