Championing Children’s Rights at the Heart of Our Mission
Arigatou International – Geneva stands at the forefront of advocating for children’s rights and contributing to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
This year, we actively engaged in numerous networks and working groups to advance evidence, action and investment for the rights of children. Our efforts focused on ensuring the right to quality education, creating a world free of violence, and raising awareness about the mental health and psychosocial well-being of children on the move.
Learn more about these significant strides toward a better future for every child.
Written statement: A calling on social protection in early childhood
Arigatou International submitted a written statement to contribute to the Annual Day on the Rights of the Child held on 14 March 2024 during the 55th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, on the topic of Inclusive Social Protection.
The statement emphasized the importance of social protection in early childhood, calling Member States to increase the investment in this area by providing support to families, through comprehensive social protection programs. It also proposed expanding access to free pre-primary education and improving its quality, based on the evidence showing its benefits for children and society.
Finally, the statement recommends engaging faith communities as valuable partners in promoting inclusive social protection. In many cases, faith communities are best placed to reach the most marginalized and create trust with the community to enhance social protection services and access.
Child Rights Connect
Child Rights Connect is an independent network of non-profit organizations comprising over 85 national, regional and international organizations. Its mission is centered around the realization of children’s rights through the United Nations human rights system.
Arigatou International has been a part of Child Rights Connect since 2003. The Geneva office co-convenes the Working Group on Children and Violence alongside World Vision International. Arigatou International – Geneva Executive Director, Ms. Maria Lucia Uribe, represents Arigatou International in Child Rights Connect and is a member of its Executive Committee. She also serves as the Treasurer of the network and is part of a Task Force on Resource Mobilization.
Working Group on Children and Violence
The Working Group on Children and Violence brings together 14 international civil society organizations specializing in child rights and human rights to collaborate in advocating to end violence against children through the various human rights mechanisms in the United Nations.
Publication: Eliminating Violence Against Children
During this period, the Working Group focused on the development of a publication of good practices titled “Eliminating Violence Against Children: Promoting the Adoption of Effective Measures for EVAC through Human Rights Engagement.”
The publication highlights the importance of prioritizing and investing in different measures for effective violence prevention, such as political will, data disaggregation, appropriate legislation, public awareness, financial investments, capacity building, children’s participation, collaboration and international cooperation. Case studies from Colombia, Indonesia, Montenegro, Paraguay, Sierra Leone, Sweden, and Zambia illustrate successful strategies.
The publication will be launched in September 2024 ahead of the Global Ministerial Conference on Violence against Children that will take place in Bogota on 7-8 November 2024 and will contribute to mobilize key stakeholders in Geneva towards prioritizing strategies to end all forms of violence affecting children.
Oral Statement: Incorporating Faith-Sensitive Mental Health and Psychosocial Support
An oral statement was delivered on 13 March 2024 during the Interactive Dialogue with the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children on her latest report on Children on the Move.
The joint statement was co-signed by several members of the Working Group on Children and Violence. It called on the international community and Member States to strengthen child-sensitive social protection, expand investment in integrated child protection services, tackle gender inequality and embrace Faith Sensitive Mental Health and Psychosocial Support, recognizing the pivotal role of faith-based organizations in fostering resilience among children.
Working Group on Human Rights Education and Learning from the NGO Committee on Human Rights – UN Geneva
Arigatou International co-signed an oral statement submitted by the Working Group on Human Rights Education and Learning on the topic of ‘Empowering Youth: Advancing Human Rights Education to face contemporary challenges’ and delivered on 15 March 2024 during the General Debate on the promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development at the 55th session of the Human Rights Council.
The statement urges States to report on their implementation, successes, and lessons learned during the fourth phase of the World Programme for Human Rights Education, to ensure necessary actions are taken to address contemporary challenges such as climate change, gender equality, and digital rights.
The proposal also stressed the importance of addressing marginalized communities, including refugees, migrants, IDPs, LGBTIQ+ individuals, indigenous youth, youth with disabilities, those in extreme poverty, and youth from the Global South. The approach suggested an intergenerational, holistic, and context-appropriate method, integrating art and sport into education.
What was written in the Quarterly report was from Vedika’s report but then I realized that she never contacted Child Rights Connect to approve our signature and therefore we never co-signed, so there was only this statement.
International Partnership for Religion and Sustainable Development
Arigatou International is proud to be a founding member of PaRD since its inception in 2016 and to contribute to its growth and development. PaRD is a unique platform for collaboration, that recognizes the critical role of religious actors in achieving the 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development.
Arigatou International, together with PaRD members Queen Margaret University, United States Institute of Peace and World Vision developed a Policy Brief on “Strengthening Faith-Sensitive Mental Health and Psychosocial Support for Children on the Move.”
The policy brief draws from the reflections of 128 participants who took part in three online roundtables between December 2022 and January 2023. Participants include representatives from local and international non-governmental organizations, UN agencies, government departments and universities as well as independent psychologists and psychiatrists.
KAICIID Network for Dialogue
The KAICIID Network for Dialogue (N4D) is a European-wide platform that brings faith and civil society actors together to promote social inclusion policies for migrants and refugees in Europe. Arigatou International – Geneva is a member of the platform and participates in regular member meetings and activities.
This year, Ms. Eleonora Mura, Head of Partnerships and Organizational Development represented the KAICIID Network for Dialogue, on behalf of Arigatou International, at the prestigious KIDS 4 ALLL FINAL CONFERENCE held on 21 February 2024, at the Zweig Visitor Centre of the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium.
KIDS4ALLL, which stands for Key Inclusive Development Strategies for Life-Long Learning, is dedicated to addressing the integration challenges faced by migrant children in educational settings.
Collaborative on Children’s Rights
Our Executive Director, Ms. Maria Lucia Uribe, was invited by the Collaborative on Global Children’s Issues at Georgetown University to join a Working Group on Child Rights and Family Values. Over the 2023-2024 academic year, this working group of practitioners and scholars shaped and promoted a culture of encounter and productive interreligious dialogue around child rights.
This project is part of the Culture of Encounter Project at Georgetown University, which builds on a central idea Pope Francis set out in his 2020 encyclical Fratelli Tutti to advance the common good we have to find new ways to work together, acknowledging our deep differences while pursuing shared projects.
In this context, Ms. Uribe moderated the Webinar “Is Our Conscience Revolted?” held on 14 December. During the webinar, participants reflected on the impacts of war on children’s rights, with a particular focus on the conflict between Israel – Palestine, the present and future of children affected by armed conflict and our ethical responsibility to respond to their needs and well-being. Speakers highlighted the role of religious institutions and faith communities in upholding commitments to children’s rights, particularly in times of war.
Faith Action for Children on the Move Coalition
A pledge was developed by the members of the Faith Action for Children on the Move Coalition with a particular focus on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) for Children on the Move.
The pledge includes a commitment to support activities to promote and ensure faith-sensitive MHPSS programming for refugee and host community children, develop training and capacity-sharing resources, and revise the Faith Sensitive MHPSS guidance to ensure consultation of and a focus on children and their communities.
The pledge was submitted during the Global Refugee Forum celebrated in Geneva from 13-15 December 2023.
To read the pledge, insert the ID: 07729 in this link. (Multistakeholder Pledge: Fostering Mental Health and Psychosocial Wellbeing | The Global Compact on Refugees | UNHCR (globalcompactrefugees.org))
