New Delhi Declaration On South-South Cooperation For Child Rights in Asia and The Pacific, October 2013

We, the delegations of the governments of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China, Cook Islands, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Kiribati, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Niue, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vietnam committed to the promotion of child rights in our South-South cooperation agenda; the development of networks for knowledge exchange, peer learning and coordination with specific attention to the topics of Adolescents, Early Childhood Development, and Urban Settings; and committed to assessing the progress and advances on South-South cooperation among countries of Asia and the Pacific to further fulfill child rights in the best interests of the child at the 2nd High Level Meeting on South- South Cooperation for Child Rights in Asia and the Pacific in New Delhi, India from 23 to 25 October 2013.

Source: http://www.unicef.org/media/media_70739.html
See full Declaration here: http://www.unicef.org/pacificislands/THE_NEW_DELHI_DECLARATION.pdf
 

African Charter On The Rights And Welfare Of The Child, 1999

Extract:
The African Member States of the Organization of African Unity, Parties to the present Charter entitled 'African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child',
CONSIDERING that the Charter of the Organization of African Unity recognizes the paramountcy of Human Rights and the African Charter on Human and People's Rights proclaimed and agreed that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms recognized and guaranteed therein, without distinction of any kind such as race, ethnic group, colour. sex, language, religion, political or any other opinion, national and social origin, fortune, birth or other status,
RECALLING the Declaration on the Rights and Welfare of the African Child (AHG/ST.4 Rev.l) adopted by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity, at its Sixteenth Ordinary Session in Monrovia, Liberia. from 17 to 20 July 1979, recognized the need to take appropriate measures to promote and protect the rights and welfare of the African Child.
Source: http://www.au.int/en/content/african-charter-rights-and-welfare-child
See PDF of the document at: http://www.au.int/en/sites/default/files/Charter_En_African_Charter_on_the_Rights_and_Wlefare_of_the_Child_AddisAbaba_July1990.pdf

Joint Declaration from Children's Environmental Health II: A Global Forum for Action, 2001

The Declaration is from the Children's Environmental Health II Conference, which was a major event on children's environmental health in September 2001, attracting advocacy and community-based organisations, practitioners, policy makers and researchers world-wide.
The main goals and objectives of the Forum were to:
• Promote a common framework and understanding of the unique susceptibilities and vulnerabilities of children and how the environment effects their health;
• Encourage collaborative efforts among different sectors of society (e.g. researchers, policy makers, advocacy and community based organistions) on a global scale to protect children's health;
• Improve communication and collaboration among these sectors world-wide to promote action and policy change;
• Highlight the latest science and best practices in policy and programmes;
• Facilitate participation from developing countries and specially vulnerable populations from the developed world; and
• Build momentum for sustained action from multi-stakeholders on children's environmental health issues at the global, regional, national and local level.
Source: http://www.cehn.org/
See PDF of the document at: http://www.cehn.org/files/Joint_Declaration_from_Children.pdf

‘A world fit for children’, Resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly at the 6th Plenary Meeting, 2002

This Resolution adopted by the General Assembly [on the report of the Ad Hoc Committee of the Whole (A/S-27/19/Rev.1 and Corr.1 and 2)]. The General Assembly Adopted the document entitled “A world fit for children” annexed to the present resolution, at the 6th plenary meeting on 10 May 2002.

Extract from the Declaration:
1. Eleven years ago, at the World Summit for Children, world leaders made a joint commitment and issued an urgent, universal appeal to give every child a better future.
2. Since then, much progress has been made, as documented in the report of the Secretary-General entitled “We the Children”. Millions of young lives have been saved, more children than ever are in school, more children are actively involved in decisions concerning their lives and important treaties have been concluded to protect children. However, these achievements and gains have been uneven, and many obstacles remain, particularly in developing countries. A brighter future for all children has proved elusive, and overall gains have fallen short of national obligations and international commitments.
3. We, the heads of State and Government and representatives of States participating in the special session of the General Assembly on children, reaffirming our commitment to the purposes and principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, are determined to seize this historic opportunity to change the world for and with children. Accordingly, we reaffirm our commitment to complete the unfinished agenda of the World Summit for Children and to address other emerging issues vital to the achievement of the longer-term goals and objectives endorsed at recent major United Nations summits and conferences, in particular the United Nations Millennium Declaration, through national action and international cooperation.
Source: http://www.unicef.org/worldfitforchildren/
See PDF of the document at: http://www.unicef.org/worldfitforchildren/files/A-RES-S27-2E.pdf

Stockholm Declaration on Children and Residential Care - 12-15 May, 2003

More than 600 individuals from governments, civil society and the research community from 71 countries participated at the second international conference on Children and Residential Care: New Strategies for a New Millennium, held in Stockholm 12 – 15 May 2003. The Stockholm Conference was preceded by national conferences in nearly 40 countries, during which country reports on the situation of children staying at institutions were prepared. The Declaration reaffirms State responsibilities to protect children’s rights by ensuring: prevention work (including fighting discrimination and supporting families); use of institutional care only as a last resort and as a temporary response; more effective monitoring of care systems in line with the UNCRC and agreed standards. Civil society organisations were encouraged to assist in the development of strategies to deinstitutionalise children and create alternatives; to promote non-discrimination; to mobilise communities to support families to prevent children from being deprived of family care; to push governments to fulfil their commitments under the UN CRC to children in public care; and to support children’s participation.
Source: http://resourcecentre.savethechildren.se/content/library/documents/stockholm-declaration-children-and-residential-care-12-15-may-2003

Innocenti Declaration (Innocenti +15), 2005

The Innocenti Declaration 2005 was adopted by participants at the event, “Celebrating Innocenti 1990-2005: Achievements, Challenges and Future Imperatives”, held on 22 November 2005, in Florence Italy, co-organised by the following organizations: The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (ABM), International Babyfood Action Network (IBFAN), International Lactation Consultants Association (ILCA), La Leche League International (LLLI), Regione Toscana, UNICEF, Wellstart International, World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA), and The World Health Organization (WHO).

Extract from the Declaration:
In the 15 years since the adoption of the original Innocenti Declaration in 1990, remarkable progress has been made in improving infant and young child feeding practices worldwide. Nevertheless, inappropriate feeding practices – sub-optimal or no breastfeeding and inadequate complementary feeding – remain the greatest threat to child health and survival globally. Improved breastfeeding alone could save the lives of more than 3,500 children every day, more than any other preventive intervention. Guided by accepted human rights principles, especially those embodied in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, our vision is of an environment that enables mothers, families and other caregivers to make informed decisions about optimal feeding, which is defined as exclusive breastfeeding1 for six months followed by the introduction of appropriate complementary feeding and continuation of breastfeeding for up to two years of age or beyond.
Achieving this vision requires skilled practical support to arrive at the highest attainable standard of health and development for infants and young children, which is the universally recognised right of every child. We who are assembled in Florence, Italy, on this Twenty-Second Day of November 2005 to celebrate the 15th Anniversary of the Innocenti Declaration on the Protection, Promotion and Support of Breastfeeding declare that these actions are urgent and necessary to ensure the best start in life for our children, for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, and for the realisation of the human rights of present and future generations. Challenges remain: poverty, the HIV pandemic, natural and human-made emergencies, globalisation, environmental contamination, health systems investing primarily in curative rather than preventive services, gender inequities and women’s increasing rates of employment outside the home, including in the non-formal sector. These challenges must be addressed to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and the aims of the Millennium Declaration and for the vision set out above to become reality for all children. The targets of the 1990 Innocenti Declaration and the 2002 Global Strategy for Infant and Young Child Feeding remain the foundation for action. While remarkable progress has been made, much more needs to be done.
Source: http://innocenti15.net/
See PDF of the document at: http://innocenti15.net/declaration.pdf.pdf

World Fit for Children +5 Declaration, 2007

At the close of the World Fit for Children + 5 special session in New York, more than 140 government delegations have adopted a new Declaration on Children. “I am delighted to see this high level meeting has broken new ground,” said UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Kul Gautam. “This short but powerful declaration calls for the pursuit of a common vision to ensure the well-being of all children with a collective sense of urgency." The General Assembly, adopted the Declaration of the commemorative high-level plenary meeting devoted to the follow up to the outcome of the special session on children.

Extract from the Declaration:
1. We, the representatives of States gathered at the commemorative high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly, are encouraged by the progress achieved since 2002 in creating a world fit for children. Fewer children under five are dying each year. More children are in school than ever before. More educational opportunities are being equally extended to girls and boys. More medicines are available for children, including those infected by HIV/AIDS. More laws, policies and plans are in place to protect children from violence, abuse and exploitation. Our present and future actions should build upon those important gains.
2. Yet many challenges persist. Eradicating poverty is the greatest global challenge, as poverty poses difficulties to meeting the needs, protecting and promoting the rights of all children in the world. Despite encouraging achievements, the number of children dying before their fifth birthday remains unacceptably high. Malnutrition, pandemics, including HIV/AIDS, as well as malaria, tuberculosis and other preventable diseases continue to be a hindrance to a healthy life for millions of children. Lack of access to education remains a significant obstacle to their development. A large number of children are still subject to violence, exploitation and abuse, as well as to inequity and discrimination, in particular against the girl child. We will work to break the cycle of poverty, achieve the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals, create an environment that is conducive to the well-being of children and realize all the rights of the child.
3. We reaffirm our commitment to the full implementation of the Declaration and Plan of Action contained in the outcome document of the twenty-seventh special session of the General Assembly on children, entitled “A world fit for children”, recognizing that their implementation and the fulfilment of obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Optional Protocols thereto and other relevant international instruments are mutually reinforcing in protecting the rights and promoting the well-being of all children. In all our actions, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration.
Source: http://www.unicef.org/worldfitforchildren/
See full text of the Declaration at: http://www.unicef.org/media/media_42201.html

Florence Declaration, Mental wellbeing of children in Europe, Plans and perspectives, XIII ESCAP Congress, 2007

Preamble: This Declaration was adopted during the XIII European Society for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (ESCAP) congress, held in Florence, Italy, 25-29 August 2007, attended by the leading experts in the field. The conference discussed the current state of European child psychiatry and put forward recommendations as how to improve children' mental health; strengthen the effectiveness and the efficiency of treatments; ameliorate the accessibility and the quality of services; and finally, overcome stigma and protect children human rights. It is consistent with the UN Declaration of the Rights of the Child, the Geneva Declaration of the Rights of the Child, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the WHO Mental Health Declaration For Europe and Mental Health Action Plan for Europe, and the EC Green Paper on Mental Health. By adopting these documents, Member States have committed themselves to promote the mental health of all children and adolescents and ensure that mental health policies include as priorities the mental health and wellbeing of children and adolescents. Member States have committed themselves to develop and make available and accessible mental health services that are sensitive to the particular needs and human rights of children and adolescents, operated in close collaboration with families, schools, day-care centres, neighbours, extended families and friends. They recognise the right of children with disabilities and/or mental health problems to enjoy a full and decent life, in conditions which ensure dignity, promote self-reliance and facilitate the child's active participation in the community, as well as grant effective protection from abuse and neglect.
Source: http://www.escap-net.org/
See full text of the Declaration at: http://www.escap-net.org/declarations/

The Rio de Janeiro Declaration and Call for Action to Prevent and Stop Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents, World Congress III, 2008

Participants at the World Congress III against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents, representing governments, inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations, human rights institutions, ombudspersons, the private sector, law enforcement and legal community, religious leaders, parliamentarians, researchers and academics, civil society and children and adolescents1, gathered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, (25-28 November 2008) to review developments and action taken in follow-up to the Stockholm Declaration and Agenda for Action 1996 and the Yokohama Global Commitment 2001, to identify lessons learned and key challenges, and to commit ourselves to the implementation of goals and targets of a Call for Action to prevent, prohibit and stop sexual exploitation2 of children and adolescents and to provide the necessary support to children who have fallen victim to it.
Source: http://www.ecpat.net/WorldCongressIII/index.php
See PDF of the Declaration and Action Plan at: http://www.ecpat.net/WorldCongressIII/PDF/Publications/Child-friendly/RioDeclarationENG.pdf

Colombo Declaration on Infant and Young Child Feeding, 2009

The One Asia Breastfeeding Partners Forum 6, held in Colombo, Sri Lanka from November 18 to 21, 2009, significantly on the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, brought together 83 participants from 17 countries, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Canada, Peoples Republic of China, India, Indonesia, Republic of Korea, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, United States of America and Vietnam, representing governments, civil society, professionals, and international organizations. This Forum was organized with the theme “Breastfeeding in Emergencies – Challenges and Solutions”. The Forum focused on the status of breastfeeding during emergencies and disaster situations, and strategies to improve infant and young child feeding practices, especially during emergencies. An analysis of programs and policies related to infant and young child feeding in the countries revealed that there have been achievements and successes, especially in capacity building for this practice in some countries; however, almost none of the countries had any policy for promoting infant and young child feeding as part of the emergency or disaster response including often in conditions of HIV/AIDS.
Source: http://www.ibfan.org
See PDF of the Document at: http://www.ibfan.org/art/colombo.pdf

European Declaration on the Health of Children and Young People with Intellectual Disabilities and their Families, 2010

The WHO initiative ‘Better health better lives: children and young people with intellectual disabilities and their families’ aims to ensure that all children and young people with intellectual disabilities are fully participating members of society, living with their families, integrated in the community and receiving health care and support proportional to their needs. The initiative was launched at a conference in Bucharest, Romania 26 – 27 November 2010 in partnership with UNICEF and resulted in the European Declaration on the Health of Children and Young People with Intellectual Disabilities and their Families.
Source: http://www.euro.who.int/en/what-we-do/health-topics/noncommunicable-diseases/mental-health/publications/2010/european-declaration-on-the-health-of-children-and-young-people-with-intellectual-disabilities-and-their-families2
See PDF of the Document at: http://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0015/121263/e94506.pdf