A child is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. It may also refer to an unborn human being. The legal definition of child generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger than the age of majority. Children generally have fewer rights and responsibilities than adults. They are generally classed as unable to make serious decisions.
Child marriage is a marriage or domestic partnership, formal or informal, between a child and an adult, or between a child and another child.
Rania Al Abdullah is Queen of Jordan, as the wife of King Abdullah II.
Children's rights or the rights of children are a subset of human rights with particular attention to the rights of special protection and care afforded to minors. The 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) defines a child as "any human being below the age of eighteen years, unless under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier." Children's rights includes their right to association with both parents, human identity as well as the basic needs for physical protection, food, universal state-paid education, health care, and criminal laws appropriate for the age and development of the child, equal protection of the child's civil rights, and freedom from discrimination on the basis of the child's race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, religion, disability, color, ethnicity, or other characteristics.
Graça Machel is a Mozambican politician and humanitarian. She is the widow of former President of Mozambique Samora Machel (1975–1986) and former President of South Africa Nelson Mandela (1998–2013). Machel is an international advocate for women's and children's rights and was made an honorary Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 1997 for her humanitarian work. She is the only woman in modern history to have served as First Lady of two countries, South Africa and Mozambique.
A. K. Shiva Kumar, is a development economist, policy advisor, and evaluator, who has over the past 40 years, taught economics, undertaken evaluations, conducted research and policy analysis, worked closely with governments, international agencies, and civil society organisations to advocate for changes in public policy and legislation. He teaches various courses at Harvard University, Indian School of Business, BITS School of Management, Young India Fellowship, S. P. Jain Institute of Management and Research and Ashoka University. He is a board member of the Global Partnership to End Violence against Children, co-chair of Know in Violence in Childhood, and a member of the leadership councils of both the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) and Global Women's Institute, The George Washington University, Washington DC. In addition to serving as a senior policy adviser UNICEF – India (1992-2017), he was a member of India's National Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India, constituted by the Chairperson Sonia Gandhi. The council was set up in June 2004 to oversee the implementation of India's National Common Minimum Programme.
Child abuse is physical, sexual, emotional and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to act by a parent or a caregiver that results in actual or potential wrongful harm to a child and can occur in a child's home, or in organizations, schools, or communities the child interacts with.
Contributing to the establishment of human rights system in Africa are the United Nations, international law and the African Union which have positively influenced the betterment the human rights situation in the continent. However, extensive human rights abuses still occur in many sections of the continent. Most of the violations can be attributed to political instability, racial discrimination, corruption, post-colonialism, economic scarcity, ignorance, illness, religious bigotry, debt and bad financial management, monopoly of power, lack/absence of judicial and press autonomy, and border conflicts. Many of the provisions contained in regional, national, continental, and global agreements remained unaccomplished.
Countess Albina du Boisrouvray is a former journalist and film producer who has become a global philanthropist and social entrepreneur working with AIDS victims and impoverished communities around the world. She is the founder of FXB International, a non-governmental organization established in memory of her son, François-Xavier Bagnoud.
FXB International, also known as Association François-Xavier Bagnoud, is an international development organization aimed at providing support for communities affected by AIDS and poverty. The organization was founded in 1989 by Albina du Boisrouvray.
Henrietta Holsman Fore is an American public health and international development executive who served as the 7th Executive Director of UNICEF till January 2022. Fore currently serves as Chairman and CEO of Holsman International, a management, investment, and advisory services company. She served in three presidential appointments under President George W. Bush: Fore was the first woman Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance, the 11th Under Secretary of Management in the Department of State, and the 37th Director of the United States Mint in the U.S. Department of Treasury. She was the presidential appointee for President George H. W. Bush at the United States Agency for International Development.
Kul Chandra Gautam is a distinguished diplomat, development professional, and a former senior official of the United Nations. Currently, he serves on the boards of several international and national organizations, charitable foundations and public-private partnerships. Previously, he served in senior managerial and leadership positions with the United Nations in several countries, in a career spanning over three decades. As a former deputy executive director of UNICEF and Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations, he holds extensive experience in international diplomacy, development cooperation, and humanitarian assistance.
UNICEF, originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to children worldwide. The organization is one of the most widely known and visible social welfare entities globally, operating in 192 countries and territories. UNICEF's activities include providing immunizations and disease prevention, administering treatment for children and mothers with HIV, enhancing childhood and maternal nutrition, improving sanitation, promoting education, and providing emergency relief in response to disasters.
Marta Santos Pais a Portuguese lawyer who has served as Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General on Violence against Children from September 2009 until May 2019.
UNICEF Philippines is one of over 190 country offices of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) one of the first UNICEF offices established in Asia, it works to uphold the rights of children in the Philippines, including their right to education, healthcare and protection from abuse and exploitation. Additionally, it advocates for political change in support of children, and works with partners from the public and private sectors to create change through sustainable programs.
Armenia was admitted into the United Nations on 2 March 1992, following its independence from the Soviet Union. In December 1992, the UN opened its first office in Yerevan. Since then, Armenia has signed and ratified several international treaties. There are 20 specialized agencies, programs, and funds operating in the country under the supervision of the UN Resident Coordinator. Armenia strengthened its relations with the UN by cooperating with various UN agencies and bodies such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the World Food Programme, and with the financial institutions of the UN. Armenia is a candidate to preside as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council in 2031.
Rima Salah is currently the chair of the Early Childhood Peace Consortium (ECPC) and is an assistant clinical professor at the Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine.
Jennifer Leaning is an American health scholar currently the François-Xavier Bagnoud Professor of the Practice of Health and Human Rights at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and former Editor-in-Chief of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War's Medicine & Global Survival. She is also Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and a faculty member in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Human rights in Namibia are currently recognised and protected by the Namibian constitution formed in 1990 by a 72-seat assembly. The assembly consisted of differing political parties. After a draft, the constitution was agreed upon by all members of the seven political parties involved. 21 March 1990 marks the first day Namibia operated under the Constitution and also marks the recognition of Namibia as an independent nation. Chapter 3 of the constitution entitled Fundamental Human Rights and Freedoms, also referred to as the Bill of Rights, outlines the human rights of all Namibian citizens.
Natalia Linos is an American social epidemiologist and politician who was a candidate for Massachusetts's 4th congressional district in the 2020 election.
