The United Nations’ (UN) Universal Children’s Day or World Children’s Day is annually observed across the globe on 20 November to promote international togetherness, and awareness among children worldwide, and improve children’s welfare.
- It is a global initiative promoting children’s rights, safety, education, health, and happiness.
The 2023 campaign Theme of World Children’s Day is, “For every child, every right.”
- World Children’s Day is the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)’s annual day of action for children, by children.
Background:
i.On 14 December 1954, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution A/RES/836(IX) and recommended that with effect from 1956, all countries institute a Universal Children’s Day, fostering global fraternity among children.
ii.It also recommended to observe “Universal Children’s Day” as a day of activity dedicated to promoting the ideals of the UN Charter and the well-being of children worldwide.
Why 20 November?
i.The date 20 November marks the day on which the UNGA adopted the:
- Declaration of the Rights of the Child (A/RES/1386%20(XIV)), in 1959; and
- Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) (A/RES/44/25), in 1989.
ii.Since 1990, World Children’s Day also marks the anniversary of the date that the UNGA adopted both the Declaration and the Convention on Children’s Rights.
2023 Events:
On November 20th, the UNGA, the UNICEF, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and several specialized agencies hosted events to mark World Children’s Day 2023 at the UN Headquarters in New York, the United States of America (USA).
UNICEF’s State of the World’s Children (SoWC) 2023:
i.SoWC report, a flagship report that has been published by UNICEF since 1980, aims to raise awareness about the key issues affecting children, and advocates for solutions that improve children’s lives.
ii.The State of the World’s Children (SoWC) 2023: For every child, vaccination was published in April 2023. This is the 1st UNICEF report with a sole focus on immunisation.
- It was developed in collaboration with the Vaccine Confidence Project (VCP) and uses Vaccine Confidence Index data from 2015, 2018, 2019 and 2022.
iii.It reveals that public perception of the importance of vaccines for children declined during the COVID-19 pandemic in 52 out of 55 countries studied.
Key Facts:
i.According to the SoWC 2023, 1 in 5 children worldwide are now zero-dose or under-vaccinated.
- Zero-dose children are those who have not received their first Diphtheria-Pertussis-Tetanus vaccine (DTP1).
ii.According to UNICEF:
- Currently, 400 million children, or about 1 child in every 5, are living in or fleeing from conflict zones.
- Globally, more than 1 billion children currently live in countries that are at ‘extremely high risk’ from the impacts of climate change.
About United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF):Executive Director– Catherine Russell
Headquarters– New York, USA
Established on– 11 December 1946.
In 1953, UNICEF became a permanent part of the UN.
