Transformative Corruption-Proof Child-Sensitive Social Protection in Africa: An Explorative study

Abstract

This paper undertakes an explorative investigation into the intersection of systemic corruption and child-sensitive social protection mechanisms in Africa, interrogating how entrenched patterns of malfeasance  function as structural violence against children on the continent. Drawing on interpretivist-constructivist research paradigms, the study critically examines the extent to which corruption erodes the efficacy, legitimacy, and rights-based foundations of social protection systems designed for children. Through a review of empirical evidence and case studies, the analysis demonstrates how corrupt practices extend beyond financial misappropriation to encompass psychological harms, the erosion of public trust, and the normalization of unethical behaviours within bureaucratic systems. The research foregrounds the inadequacies of prevailing anti-corruption frameworks, which are often hamstrung by state-centric, punitive approaches and a lack of sensitivity to colonial legacies and neoliberal policy architectures that perpetuate exclusion. By situating corruption as both a symptom and driver of broader sociopolitical dysfunction, the paper highlights the multiplicity of ways in which children’s rights are systematically undermined, resulting in intergenerational cycles of poverty and marginalization. The study underscores that material deprivation, misallocation of resources, and diminished access to critical services such as healthcare, nutrition, and education converge to entrench disadvantage among African children, particularly in low-resource contexts. Ultimately, the paper calls for a paradigmatic shift in both research and policy, one that privileges nuanced, contextually grounded inquiry and foregrounds the lived experiences of children over reductionist metrics. By advancing a rights-based, transformative, and corruption-proof approach to child-sensitive social protection, the study offers pathways for dismantling systemic barriers and advancing social justice for Africa’s children.