Children's Rights

The 1990s began with genuine optimism for the world's children. But what has happened since the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)? What has changed, and what still needs to be done if children are to have the opportunities governments promised when they signed up to the UNCRC? "Children's Rights: A Second Chance" looks at the impact that local, national and international policies and practices have had on children over the last decade. As the stories of Liberia, Jorge, Nancy and Mustajab show, the lives of millions of children across the world have barely been touched by the UNCRC. For many the situation has actually got worse. Yet, as this report demonstrates, the four key principles of the UNCRC - non-discrimination, acting in the best interests of the child, survival and development, and participation - remain key to progress.
Save the Children is calling on governments, international organizations, donors and businesses to form new partnerships to address the issues affecting children today, to ensure that all policies and decisions take children into account,to invest in children and, importantly, to involve children in decisions that affect them. The UN Special Session on Children in September 2001 has provided an opportunity to review what has happened for children over the last decade and to look forward to what needs to be done over the next ten years.
 
The 1990s began with genuine optimism for the world's children. But what has happened since the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)? What has changed, and what still needs to be done if children are to have the opportunities governments promised when they signed up to the UNCRC? "Children's Rights: A Second Chance" looks at the impact that local, national and international policies and practices have had on children over the last decade. As the stories of Liberia, Jorge, Nancy and Mustajab show, the lives of millions of children across the world have barely been touched by the UNCRC. For many the situation has actually got worse. Yet, as this report demonstrates, the four key principles of the UNCRC - non-discrimination, acting in the best interests of the child, survival and development, and participation - remain key to progress.
Save the Children is calling on governments, international organizations, donors and businesses to form new partnerships to address the issues affecting children today, to ensure that all policies and decisions take children into account,to invest in children and, importantly, to involve children in decisions that affect them. The UN Special Session on Children in September 2001 has provided an opportunity to review what has happened for children over the last decade and to look forward to what needs to be done over the next ten years.