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Statement by Ms. Virginia Gamba, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict at the 58th Session of the Human Rights Council

Mister/Madam President,

Excellencies,

Dear Colleagues,

It is an honour to return to the Human Rights Council to present my annual report covering 2024. As we reflect on this year’s 25th anniversary of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, I call on States to fulfil their obligations under those instruments.

In 2024, more than one in six children globally lived in conflict situations, forced to suffer abhorrent abuses and violations of their rights. Children were severely affected by multiplying and escalating conflicts that were marked by a complete disregard for their rights.

While I cannot speak to the exact numbers from the upcoming Secretary-General annual report on children and armed conflict, I can say that, in many countries, the situation for children has worsened yet again. Preliminary data shows that the highest numbers of violations were the killing and maiming of children, followed by the denial of humanitarian access. For sexual violence against children and attacks on schools and hospitals we will likely see an increase. While cases of recruitment and use remained high, they are expected to have decreased.

I am deeply concerned about the surge over the last years in incidents of denial of humanitarian access to children. In this regard, my Office, together with UNICEF, the Department of Peace Operations and the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, and in consultation with the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, will publish in April a guidance note on the denial of humanitarian access.

Continued attacks on schools and hospitals, as well as their use for military purposes, are restricting children’s access to education and health and thus jeopardizing their future opportunities. Girls’ education is a frequent target, including through attacks on girls’ schools and the abduction of girls at school or on the way to school.

The protection of conflict-affected children and the fulfillment of their rights also continued to be undermined by barriers to the registration of children at birth. Unregistered children are more likely to suffer grave violations, as they are unable to demonstrate that they are below 18 years old and entitled to special protection.

Mister/Madam President,

Continued engagement with parties to conflict by myself and United Nations partners on the ground has led to some positive developments for conflict-affected children including the release of thousands of children from armed forces and armed groups. In the Syrian Arab Republic, the United Nations signed, in June 2024, an action plan with the opposition Syrian National Army and its aligned legions and factions, to end and prevent the recruitment and use and killing and maiming of children. In Ukraine, the Government extended by one year the joint prevention plan it signed in August 2023 with the United Nations to end and prevent grave violations against children in Ukraine. Governments in the Central African Republic and in Haiti signed with the United Nations handover protocols for the transfer of children associated with armed actors to civilian authorities.

This engagement, in situations of great hardship for United Nations personnel and for aid workers, took place against the backdrop of drawdowns of peace operations and special political missions and diminishing child protection capacities. At a time where the gap between needs and funding is exponentially increasing, we must ensure that budget cuts are not at the expense of the most vulnerable. Failure to invest in children and especially those in conflict situations comes at the risk of further fueling instability, undermining social cohesion, and prolonging conflicts, thus impacting regional and international stability.

Mister/Madam President,

As regards the Human Rights Council and its mechanisms, my Office has provided background information on children and armed conflict for 17 thematic and country resolutions of the Council, and I have engaged with nine country and thematic Special Procedures mandate-holders. In collaboration with the Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, I published last year a study on child trafficking and armed conflict. My Office submitted contributions to the universal periodic reviews of three countries on the children and armed conflict agenda.

In September 2024, I formalized my cooperation with the Committee on the Rights of the Child through a memorandum of understanding. My Office provided input to six country-specific concluding observations of the Committee and contributed to its draft general comment No. 27 on children’s rights to access to justice and effective remedies. I also exchanged with the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Cooperation with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights increased and my Office contributed to four of its reports, including the upcoming report of the High Commissioner on the rights of the child and violations of the human rights of children in armed conflicts, requested in Human Rights Council resolution 55/29.

Furthermore, I maintained close engagement with regional organizations. I addressed the League of Arab States Committee on combating violence against children. In collaboration with the Special Envoy of the African Union on Youth, I launched a social media campaign aimed at raising awareness among conflict-affected children and young people in Africa about potential risks pertaining to the six grave violations. Through my Europe Liaison Office, I provided expertise for the revision of the EU’s guidelines on Children and Armed Conflict, and, in November 2024, I was the first Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict to brief the OSCE Permanent Council.

Finally, my Office continued to provide guidance, build capacities and raise awareness on the children and armed conflict agenda. Last January, my Doha Hub launched, together with UNESCO, a Guidance for teachers and educators working with children and young people formerly associated with armed forces and armed groups. The so-called “Children and Armed Conflict Primer”, launched in February last year by my Office, is being translated into French and Arabic and is accessible free of charge on the platform of the United Nations System Staff College. Two months ago, my Office concluded an Advanced Training course on children and armed conflict, which aimed at complementing the knowledge acquired through the Primer. And just yesterday my Office launched, here in Geneva, a new advocacy campaign entitled “Prove it matters”. It aims for children to become advocates of their own rights and for Member States to commit to concrete actions to comply with their obligations under the Convention on the Rights of Child. I call on you to prove child rights matter.

Mister/Madam President,

In line with this campaign, I urge the international community to redouble efforts to integrate children’s rights into all aspects of our collective response to the multifaceted crises facing us today. As a global community, we have a shared responsibility and interest to forge a world in which every child is nurtured by love, shielded from harm, and allowed to grow in peace.

Thank you.