UNICEF: The State of the World’s Children Report

Did you know that 45% of the world’s population are under 25 years.

This blog is dedicated to children who I always feel I work for. I have a deep love for all people, but children inspire me, they are very clown like in my experience.

As a clown the people I love the most clowning with would be children. They are equal to adults, they just don’t have the experience yet. I’ve heard wisdom out of the mouths of babes, so rather than talk down, I find myself in the position of equal friend and learner. Kids have actually befriended me, I was so flattered. Such is the life of a clown.

When I clown around adults, they are often uncomfortable and look to their children when a clown is around. They smile but don’t play like the kids do. Some do, but most adopt the role of parent. The kids eyes shine and they are quick to laugh. They always chase me, chat away and smile. What I see in their eyes is unconditional love, wonder and innocence. I’ve stared into the eyes of babies to see fascination and courage. Others do cry as there are higher fears in some children (personality), they could be born fearful, I have observed. Most however are curious and at first a little shy, but once they trust you they are all over you. Recently I clowned with children at a playcentre. I ended up jumping into the Jumping castle, crawled through the door, they joined me. I had them jumping on me, we jumped up and down and laughed, they were so excited as a clown was playing with them. I actually had a great time and felt sorry for the adults who had to be well err adults. They don’t and are not allowed in the jumping castle, one of the perks of being a clown I guess. When I hear of children suffering I feel sorrow for them, believe me, they suffer deeply as their emotions are so open, they really love you deeply and when they separate from parents they deeply suffer. When I learn of this I am dismayed at the adults who turn a blind eye or feel they can’t do anything. People care about their own children, but what of the children of the planet. They are indeed the world’s children.

UNICEF below gives a profile of what is happening for children and the statistics are staggering.

When you read below you will understand why children require rights and a voice, the following quote highlights the numbers of children affected by violence, sourced from UNICEF below ….

“…The problem of violence against children is particularly alarming, with between 500 million and 1.5 billion children estimated to experience violence annually. Its consequences are pernicious, with many child victims experiencing long-standing physical and mental health difficulties later in life…”

Full UNICEF Report visit http://www.unicef.org/rightsite/sowc/pdfs/SOWC_Spec%20Ed_CRC_Main%20Report_EN_090409.pdf

UNICEF. Important contributions for country panels were received from the following UNICEF field offices: China, Egypt, India, Mexico, Mozambique, Serbia, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Sweden. Input was also received from UNICEF regional offices and the Innocenti Research Centre.

To mark the 20th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, The State of the World’s Children invited contributors from a variety of stakeholder groups to give their perspective on what the Convention means to them and what they consider to be some of the critical issues it faces in the 21st century. Our gratitude is extended to those contributors presented in this report: Jacques Barrot, Ishmael Beah, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Om Prakash Gurjar, Yanghee Lee, Louis Michel, Awa N’Deye Ouedraogo, Hanna Polak, Marjorie Scardino, Timothy P. Shriver, Javier Solana, Tan Sri Dato Muhyiddin Mohd Yassin, Andrés Velasco. Their essays represent a selection of those available at the time of going to press in mid-2009. The full series of perspectives is available at.

Forward – A World Fit for Children

A historic decision was made on 20 November 1989, when world leaders adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child in the UN General Assembly. Since its inception 20 years ago, the Convention has become the most-ratified human rights treaty in history.

This is testament to the common understanding among countries and communities that children have the right to survive and develop to be protected from violence, abuse and exploitation; and for their
views to be respected and actions concerning them to be taken in their best interests. Meeting children’s rights is not only fundamental for their development and well-being, it is also pivotal to creating the world envisioned by the Millennium Declaration – a world of peace, equity, security, respect for the environment and shared responsibility – in short, a world fit for children.

Much has been achieved during the past 20 years. The annual number of under-five deaths has fallen from around 12.5 million in 1990 to less than 9 million in 2008. Between 1990 and 2006, 1.6 billion people worldwide gained access to improved water sources. Globally, around 84 per cent of primary-school-age children are attending school, and gender gaps in primary- school enrolment are shrinking across the developing world. The fight against the AIDS pandemic is intensifying and yielding results, with steady increases in the number of pregnant women with HIV receiving antiretroviral drugs to prevent mother-to-child transmission of the virus, and growing numbers of newborns and infants being tested and then also receiving the full course of medication to protect them from HIV.

Advances in child protection and participation, although often less measurable due to gaps in data, have been no less significant. In the past two decades, around 70 countries have incorporated children’s codes into national legislation based on the Convention’s provisions. Expanded international household surveys have, since the mid-1990s, begun to provide regular estimates of several important protection issues, such as child marriage, female genital mutilation/cutting, and, more recently, attitudes towards domestic violence and child discipline. Paradigms such as the protective environment are providing a firm basis for national child-protection systems. Awareness of and advocacy on child protection issues have increased markedly. On two key issues – children in armed conflict and violence against children – the naming of UN special representatives have underscored that increased attention and determined effort.

The agenda for children’s rights is far from complete. Millions of children remain without the essential services to help ensure their survival, reduce their vulnerability to disease and undernutrition, provide access to improved water and sanitation, and enable them to obtain quality education. Many children lack the protective environment required to safeguard them from violence, abuse, exploitation, discrimination and neglect. The problem of violence against children is particularly alarming, with between 500 million and 1.5 billion children estimated to experience violence annually. Its consequences are pernicious, with many child victims experiencing long-standing physical and mental health difficulties later in life.

The continents of Africa and Asia, and especially the regions of sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, have the greatest concentrations of absolute deprivations of child rights and will demand particular attention in the coming years. All countries and regions face the task of tackling the increasingly apparent disparities among economic and social groups in access to and outcomes for children’s health, education and protection.

As it enters its 21st year as a UN treaty, the Convention on the Rights of the Child faces the challenge of consolidating the undoubted gains in child rights of the past, while addressing the risks and grasping the opportunities of the present and future. The recent global economic downturn exposes many to greater hunger, undernutrition, lack of opportunity and hardship. Children and young people are most at risk from this poverty penalty, with almost 45 per cent of the world’s population currently under the age of 25.

There is mounting disquiet about climate change and its impact on health, water security and food production; at least 18 violent conflicts since 1990 have involved a struggle for resources. Increased competition for resources will take place in a world with a burgeoning population, potentially exacerbating equities in income and access to vital services. Meeting these challenges will require us to unite for children through judicious investment and broad collaboration, with children and women as key partners. Evidence has shown that investing in child rights is both a responsibility and an opportunity. It is a responsibility because poverty, undernutrition and other deprivations undermine children’s abilities to develop to their full potentials. It is an opportunity because the gains achieved through better nutrition, primary health care, education and protection for children are likely to be far greater and long-lasting than in almost any other area of development.

Broad collaboration is vital to the implementation of the Convention’s principles and the rights it prescribes. Collaboration in health, education, protection and participation at international and national levels have expanded in recent years, offering the promise of accelerated progress on child rights and towards internationally agreed development goals.

Children’s participation empowers them in their own development and protection. Initiatives such as the 2002 UN Special Session on Children, the annual Junior 8 meetings that run concurrently with the G-8 summits, and numerous child friendly cities programmes are showing the benefits of respecting and encouraging the views and participation of children in decision-making forums.

Empowering women and eliminating gender discrimination produces a double dividend – fulfilling the rights of women and also helping to save and improve the lives of children. Evidence shows that when women are educated and empowered to participate in decision-making in the household, workplace and political sphere – secure from violence, exploitation and discrimination – children and families benefit. Both boys and girls are more likely to have access to adequate nutrition, quality health care and education; girls are also more likely to delay marriage and enjoy greater opportunities for development and growth.

Educating girls and ensuring their protection and participation is therefore of pivotal importance to the child rights agenda. The challenge for the next 20 years is to build on the progress achieved, working together to reach those children who are still being denied their rights to survival, development, protection and participation. The Convention on the Rights of the Child stands as a universal standard for building a better world – a world in which the best interests of children are a primary concern of all.

Read the full report for more detailed information.