UN Secretary-General (SG) Guidance Note on Child Rights Mainstreaming

Date: 6th September 2023
Category: Awareness-raising, General measures of implementation, General principles

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The UN Secretary-General (SG) Guidance Note on Child Rights Mainstreaming has been published. This is a historic first step in addressing the need for a systematic application of a child rights approach across the UN System.

The Secretary General has developed a Guidance Note on Child Rights Mainstreaming in response to civil society calls for it to ensure the systematic application of a child rights approach by all UN bodies and agencies.

The Note provides practical guidance to all levels of the United Nations, across all three pillars (development, human rights and peace and security), to Headquarters, regional and field contexts, on how to integrate children’s rights within management, programmes and operations. 
Child Rights Connect has suggested some ways for civil society to use the Guidance Note in all possible ways to push for change at all levels. Here are some of the suggestions:

• Ask the Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General to develop a child-friendly version of the Guidance Note as soon as possible.
• Widely promote and publicise the publication of the Guidance Noteamong your networks and encourage the UN entities you are in contact or work with to implement it with concrete actions, such as for example by making a formal assessment of how they integrate child rights into their work.
• Use the Guidance Note to advocate with member States and UN leaders for more resources to be allocated to child rights within the UN system, including to OHCHR’s children’s rights unit.
• The Guidance Note includes new progressive language on child rightsand stresses the need for a more holistic implementation of the UN Convention on the Right of the Child. Use it to support your advocacy work and communication with the UN but also at regional and national levels.
• The Guidance Note includes a strong element on child participation: use it to push for the UN to be more inclusive and equipped to interact with children in a safe, empowering and sustained way, and for meaningful child participationto make children’s voices heard at the UN level.
• Start asking who, how and when the UN-wide policy framework on child participation and safeguardingwill be developed in the follow-up to the Guidance Note.
• Strengthen the capacity of civil society organisations to mainstream children’s rights into their own work!
• Advocate for child rights mainstreaming with your government.
• Engage and promote other opportunities for child rights mainstreaming at the UN level, such as the Summit of the Future 2024, and the Human Rights 75 Initiative.

These are only a few examples and if you want to learn more on how to use the Guidance Note as Civil Society, you can brainstorm with Child Rights Connect by contacting the Programme Team through Fanny Chappuis  chappuis@childrightsconnect.org.

• Read the Guidance Note here.