PHILIPSBURG (DCOMM):--- Wednesday, November 20th is World Children’s Day.
World Children’s Day was first established in 1954 as Universal Children's Day and is celebrated on 20 November each year to promote international togetherness, awareness among children worldwide, and improving children's welfare.
November 20th is an important date as it is the date in 1959 when the United Nations (UN) General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. It is also the date in 1989 when the UN General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Since 1990, World Children's Day also marks the anniversary of the date that the UN General Assembly adopted both the Declaration and the Convention on children's rights.
Mothers and fathers, teachers, nurses and doctors, government leaders and civil society activists, religious and community elders, corporate moguls and media professionals, as well as young people and children themselves, can play an important part in making World Children's Day relevant for their societies, communities and nations.
World Children's Day offers each of us an inspirational entry-point to advocate, promote and celebrate children's rights, translating into dialogues and actions that will build a better world for children.
The Collective Prevention Services (CPS) says health is an area that every child has a right too, to survive and thrive.
According to UNICEF, tremendous progress in child and maternal health has been achieved over the past decades. “More children today live to celebrate their fifth birthday, while fewer women lose their lives during pregnancy and childbirth.
“But millions are still dying from causes that can be prevented with quality health care and strong health systems – like communicable and non-communicable diseases, mental health conditions, injuries, malnutrition and environmental hazards.
“Within and among countries, stark inequities persist when it comes to accessing live-saving care. Women and children living in poverty or with a disability are especially likely to be cut off from the services they need to survive and thrive. And for those suffering through violent conflicts, natural disasters and other humanitarian emergencies, the risk of disease and malnutrition soars.
“Through it all, demographic changes threaten to strain global health systems. As fertility rates drop and life expectancies rise, income growth is also shifting young people into wealthier – but not necessarily healthier – environments. The next generation of children will live in an older, more urban world, with more people dependent on those in the workforce as public health emergencies and climate crises accelerate.”
World Children’s Day is the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF’s) global day of action for children, by children, marking the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Child rights are human rights. They are non-negotiable and universal. Upholding children’s rights is the compass to a better world – today, tomorrow and into the future.
By listening to children, we can fulfil their right to self-expression, understand their ideas for a better world and include their priorities in our actions today.
