EU Statement – UN General Assembly 3rd Committee: Rights of Children

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Chair, 

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries North Macedonia*, Montenegro*, Serbia*, Albania*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Bosnia and Herzegovina*, the potential candidate country Georgia, as well as, Andorra, Monaco and San Marino align themselves with this statement.

Mr Chair

The fundamental international norm for protecting and advancing children's rights is the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and its Optional Protocols. Despite our differences elsewhere, the EU still sees protecting, respecting, and fulfilling children's rights as a shared goal around which the entire UN membership can unite. We reaffirm our steadfast support for the Convention and invite all partners, which have not yet done so, to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child and encourage and support ratification and implementation of its optional protocols

During this year's session of the Third Committee, the EU will put particular focus on the Rights of the Child and the Digital Environment. Through the resolution we will be presenting together with GRULAC, we aim at building a growing global consensus around the need to ensure that the digital environment empowers children, while minimising related risks. International human rights law, including the CRC, applies in full in the digital environment. It is the primary duty of states to respect, protect and fulfil all human rights, including rights of the child offline and online. At the same time, duties and responsibilities extend to private actors and businesses especially with regards to the design and operation of the digital environment, and the safeguarding of safety, privacy and protection of the child when using their online services and products. In practice, online this includes but is not limited to products and services specifically designed for children or directed towards them, as well as those that are not targeted at children, but which may still be used by them.

Risks and harms to children in the digital environment, including the risk of children to falling victim to sexual abuse and exploitation, gender-based violence, trafficking in persons, as well as grooming, cyberbullying, narratives that promote self-harm and suicide, risks and harms  resulting from their exposure to illegal and harmful content, and those resulting from their exploitation as consumers (content, conduct, contact, consumer risks) are crucial to consider in our global discussions.  We need to have global understanding of these harms and reaffirm our collective willingness to take effective measures against them. In this regard, it is essential to implement the Convention on the rights of the child in the digital environment and to promote its principles nationally, regionally and internationally. The digital divide between children around the world in their ability to access the opportunities the digital environment offers, be protected from its potential harms, and have access to remedies and support will be central to this endeavour. Children in the most vulnerable situations deserve to be at the centre of discussions. To this end, together with our GRULAC partners, we are putting forward a resolution on this theme.

We remain concerned regarding the regression towards meeting the Sustainable Development Goals - SDG4 (Education), SDG 5 (gender) and SDG 10 (Inequalities). 222 million children and young persons around the world are in urgent need of educational support. They are exposed to violence, physical and psychological suffering, poverty, and social injustice. We need to continue working together to ensure that this trend is reversed and we do not lose a generation. Through intensified engagement as Team Europe with partners, the Global Gateway strategy and its dedicated regional investment packages the EU supports inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all. We also promote learning mobility and the digital transition in and through education, as well as quality, equity, inclusion and gender equality in education. Providing safe and quality education to children in vulnerable situations and those affected by emergencies is a priority of EU humanitarian action; 10% of its initial humanitarian aid budget is allocated to Education in Emergencies, providing emergency funding to over 355 million children in 66 countries.

Climate change is resulting in immense impact on millions of children, especially girls, disproportionately affecting those already vulnerable to harmful practices, such as child marriages, to all forms of gender-based violence, as well as to poverty, and child labour. It is crucial that we take this into account in our action aiming to address climate change and displacement, designing disaster risk reduction programmes. The EU is also taking strong action to promote decent work worldwide and eliminate forced and child labour, in line with our commitment to the SDGs. Between 2020 and 2024, the EU is investing EUR 8 billion for food security worldwide.

The link between climate change and conflicts is becoming more evident – e.g increasing levels of water stress can push communities to conflicts and instability. War and conflicts affect the most vulnerable, including children. Conflicts and wars make the attainment of the SDGs increasingly difficult, especially in the directly affected areas. As the leading humanitarian assistance provider and the world’s biggest donor of development assistance, the EU has stepped up its efforts to address this issue and children are central to this work in all respects. We welcome the new Guidance Note of the Secretary-General on Child Rights Mainstreaming which we hope will mobilise all parts of the UN system to collectively strengthen and elevate a shared inclusive approach to child rights fully empowered to deliver on its mandate across all pillars. We encourage all UN agencies to make use of child rights impact assessments and evaluations, as part of efforts to ensure the full consideration of child rights in their work.

Conflict and war directly affect children’s rights in massive ways. The EU remains deeply concerned about high levels of grave violations against children in armed conflicts around the world. The continued denial of humanitarian assistance, killing and maiming of children, their continued recruitment by armed forces and groups, and increasing sexual and gender-based violence, abductions, unlawful deportations and forcible transfer, and attacks on schools and hospitals are particularly concerning. The work on Children and Armed Conflict will remain very high on our agenda and the EU will continue to play a very active role in promoting the CAAC mandate, including the reintegration of, and the prevention of violations and abuses against conflict-affected children. We also encourage all states to further their commitments by considering endorsement of global initiatives, such as Paris Principles and Commitments, Vancouver Principles, and Safe Schools Declaration.

Ensuring stability, security, and prosperity of our societies requires that we prioritise respect, protection and fulfilment of children's rights and work with all stakeholders to this end.

 I thank you.

* North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.