It has been said that Geneva is the child rights and humanitarian capital of the world. It is a global crossroads where key international organizations carry forward the global agenda and major decisions are made in areas critical to the well-being of children, such as health, education, peace and protection.
Sheenu (12 yrs) and Akleem (14yrs) are part of the Adolescents Group in Tonk, Rajasthan. They have joined a meeting of the women’s group based at the Anganwadi (community health centre). They explain how they got the ‘Collector’ (a senior politician) to take positive action on an electricity network problem and a failure to the water supply. Michael French / Save the Children
There are a huge range of influential organizations based here, which means that by maintaining a credible presence in Geneva a global NGO such as Save the Children can secure real change for children which can have an impact in the daily lives of millions.
Every child has the right to an education, to be healthy, to grow up safe and to be heard. Children’s rights are enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Adopted in 1989, the Convention is the legally-binding international agreement setting out the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of every child, regardless of their race, religion or abilities. It is the most widely ratified international human rights instrument: 194 countries have ratified the convention, meaning they have agreed to do everything they can to make the rights a reality for children around the world.
The Convention provides the basis for our work to secure children’s rights through the many states, mechanisms, bodies, processes, institutions and organizations which gather in Geneva. These include the formal UN human rights mechanisms such as the Human Rights Council and the Committee on the Rights of the Child.
We also engage directly with States, represented by their missions, raising issues of specific concern in those countries. Key international health organizations such as the WHO, humanitarian bodies such as OCHA, IASC and SCHR, major child rights actors such as UNICEF, and partner NGOs (represented by the NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child) are here. Geneva is also a key business and financial centre, and we engage with that sector, which is increasingly important in shaping the lives of the world’s children.
Achieving change is invariably done through working in partnership, alliances and coalitions. It is a process of identifying key changes and building consensus. Save the Children aims to be a leading constructive partner in those collaborations, in order to secure change for children.
Such change may require patience. It is a continuation of the inspiring work of those early pioneers of children’s rights: gradually changing attitudes and expectations, redefining standards, and strengthening the frameworks which will deliver for children. For more information on the rights of children, please visit the Child Rights Information Network (CRIN).
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