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The 20th of November is an annual commemoration focused

on acknowledging the various challenges that children face in

their lifetime and working actively towards improving children’s

welfare, as established by the UN General Assembly Resolution

of December 1954 - 836 (IX).  

 

The 20th of November marks the day on which the UN General

Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child

(1959) defining children’s rights to protection, education, health

care, shelter, and good nutrition and the Convention on the Rights

of the Child (1989), one of the most rapidly and widely ratified

international human rights treaty in history. The Convention

changed how children are perceived and treated, as the

Convention affirms that children should be considered as human

beings with a unique and distinct set of rights that recognize

their specific needs. 

 

Hence, the celebration of World Children's Day provides the opportunity for generations to come together to address the obstacles in fully realizing children’s rights and re-imagine a better and more sustainable future for every child. 

 

The Geneva Institute for Human Rights invites families,  communities, governments and non-governmental organisations to acknowledge their legal and ethical obligation in realizing children’s rights to protection and living a decent life. 

 

Within that context, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced many children into multidimensional poverty, obstructing their access to education, health, nutrition, sanitation, water and creating a child rights crisis.  Similarly, continuous armed conflict, fragile political and security contexts in the Middle East, North and East Africa have disproportionately affected children's physical health and development. Whether affected directly or indirectly, various political and socio-economic factors including inadequate living conditions and environmental hazards risk resulting in lasting effects on children. 

 

In that regard, the Institute urges states to actively fight against the exploitation of children, to adhere to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and ensure the reflection of its core principles in local or national government initiatives: non-discrimination. devotion to the best interests of the child. the right to life, survival and development. 

 

Every child has the right to health, education and protection. The global community

has the common obligation and role in supporting children to fulfill their potentials

and ensuring that they lead a healthy and happy life. 

 

The dangerous cycle of inequalities and violation of children rights not only

negatively affects the future of children but directly affects the stability and security

of States all around the world.