NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / November 15, 2024 / The ChildFund Alliance announced its release of the 2024 Global Index on Women's and Children's Rights Report, a report highlighting critical issues women and children across the globe face. This year's ChildFund Alliance World Index, formerly known as the WeWorld Index, brings attention to young voices, with the ChildFund Alliance exploring the concept of the "right to the future," which puts the spotlight on children's perspectives on the futures they see and the obstacles they face. The unveiling of the 2024 Global Index took place at the United Nations Headquarters.
The ChildFund Alliance World Index is a comprehensive tool that evaluates the status of women's and children's rights across 157 countries, using a refined methodology of 30 key indicators. This year's Index includes a consultation with 10,000 children and adolescents from 41 countries, taking a new approach by introducing the concept of the "right to the future." The 2024 Index provides a forward-looking perspective on children's rights while also opening a doorway into these young minds' concerns, dreams, and hopes for the future.
Currently, 1 in 3 children and over 1 in 4 women live in countries with minimal rights implementation, and with the current rate of progress, it will take 113 years for full implementation of women's and children's rights across the world. With the "right to the future" as the major theme of the ChildFund Alliance World Index, this year's Index highlights the value and need for children's participation in intergenerational justice and sustainable development to secure a better future.
Top concerns from children consulted for this year's Index include education, health, violence prevention, climate change, and economic security. Yet, of more concern is children's weak perception of their rights, with more than 1 in 5 children reported to have a weak perception of their basic human rights. Children whose social identities further marginalize them often face more difficulties in seeing their rights respected.
Themes of safety, educational support, and genuine engagement from adults are all reflected in the testimonials of children who were consulted. One young adult male from Sri Lanka emphasized the need for educational support, sharing, "Children should be given an opportunity to bring out their talents. The desires of adults should not be imposed on children. The safety of children must be ensured." Advocating for the right to be heard by adults, a 17-year-old girl from Ecuador stated, "I think that adults should not forget their youthful thinking. It is important that they listen to us because we are also capable of having an opinion in front of the world, and our thoughts are just as important for the development of today's society."
But their perspectives also highlight hope for a better future for themselves, their families, and the world. One boy, 14, from Mali, shared, "When the war ends in my country, I think our lives will be better, but the war has had a lot to do with our lives," while another 12-year-old boy from Cambodia said, "In the future I want to become a musician."
The ChildFund Alliance encourages a more structured and meaningful approach to child and youth participation in decision-making processes. This requires establishing friendly and safe spaces within chambers of power and involving children in the decision-making discussion as opposed to simply seeking their views before or after decisions are made.
All children have rights. Rights to healthcare, education, equality, and safety. Rights for a future. Children's rights are important for the future of children, as well as the world, and these rights need to be protected to ensure a brighter future for all. The ChildFund Alliance's mission is to see a world where children's voices help shape policies that impact their future, and this year's Index highlights the need to address issues within current systems to end the harmful impacts on children and create lasting change.
About ChildFund Alliance
As a network consisting of 11 child-focused development and humanitarian organizations working in countries around the world, the ChildFund Alliance is an organization that places children at the center of its mission, amplifying children's voices and working toward protecting and promoting children's rights globally. By conducting research, social engagement activities, and advocacy actions, this organization reaches nearly 36 million children and their families in 70 countries.
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SOURCE: ChildFund Alliance