Enforcement Deficits in Zambia’s Children’s Code Act No. 12 of 2022: A Doctrinal Critique in the Age of Child Dependency

The Children’s Code Act No. 12 of 2022 represents a transformative consolidation of Zambia’s childprotection framework, aligning domestic law with international obligations and embedding the “bestinterests of the child” principle at the core of governance. However, its enforcement remains deeplycontested in the modern socio-economic context characterised by rising child dependency, digitalvulnerability, and institutional limitations. This article advances a doctrinal critique of theenforcement architecture of the Act, arguing that despite its normative sophistication, structural,institutional, and socio-legal constraints undermine its practical efficacy. Drawing on Zambianstatutes, case law, common law principles, and contemporary policy frameworks, the articledevelops a theory of “normative inflation versus enforcement deficit” and proposes a recalibrationof Zambia’s child justice system toward enforceable constitutionalism.