PLEASE CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

Statement by Dr Najat Maalla M’jid, Acting SRSG-CAAC, Third Committee of the General Assembly, Discussion of the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Children

Mr. Chair, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates,

I address you today as ad interim SRSG CAAC since 1st August, to present the report A/80/266 regarding children and armed conflict mandate and agenda implementation.

The work Third Committee is about to do will be pivotal for children affected by armed conflict. As you all know, since its creation, the mandate has contributed consistently to the maintenance of international peace and security, through its ongoing engagement with various key stakeholders.

The centrepiece of the mandate is its unique monitoring and reporting mechanism, which has enabled Member States and the international community to bear witness to the steep price children have paid, and to act to end their suffering.

For almost thirty consecutive years, we have been stating that each year was worse for children than the previous one as numbers of grave violations yet again increased. The year 2024 was the worst year for children affected by armed conflict, with a 25 per cent surge in verified violations from 2023.

There is a disregard of international humanitarian and human rights law, including through the deployment of increasingly destructive weapons and use of explosive weapons in populated areas. At the same time, there are deepening humanitarian crises that could be prevented.

Let me be clear: in 2024 alone, 11,967 children were killed or maimed, most often by explosive ordnance and anti-personnel landmines and in crossfires, in various conflict settings , as reflected in the report. Meanwhile, with more attacks on humanitarian workers including UN personnel in 2024 than ever before, and attacks on hospitals and schools, unprecedented numbers of children were prevented from accessing basic and humanitarian services, including life-saving services.

Despite the changing nature, complexity, expansion, and intensification of armed conflict that led to an increase in the number of grave violations, we have progressed in some contexts.

Over 200, 000 children have been released from armed forces and groups because of UN’s dialogue with parties to conflict and the implementation of over 40 action plans and numerous other commitments. Sustainable reintegration of children contributed to interrupting and ending cycles of conflict by offering sustainable alternatives and ending children’s instrumentalization for military use in conflict. Child protection paved the way for confidence-building between parties in mediation and peace processes. For children, the announcement of a ceasefire and humanitarian access in Gaza is a long-awaited and hopeful development we welcome.

Mr. Chair, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates,

Considering the current context in which violations are increasing, it is imperative to maintain the space and the capacities of the Office of the Special Representative on Children and Armed Conflict and entities supporting sustained engagement with parties to conflict to end and prevent grave violations against children in the framework of the children and armed conflict agenda.

Critically, States must ensure accountability for the perpetration of grave violations against children and end impunity, to stop the cycle of violence.

We must all commit to peaceful resolution of conflict instead of military solutions, and to the prevention of violations in the first place.

As you deliberate the rights and the protection of children in armed conflict in your negotiations this session, I plead that we collectively strive to put children at the center of your negotiations. Sustaining peace is the only sure way to protect children. This should be done through the lens of their lived experiences in mind by listening to them.

Let us follow the words of Graça Machel whose groundbreaking report on Children and Armed Conflict was presented almost 30 years ago to the General Assembly and highlighted the disproportionate impact of war on children: “The impact of conflict on children is everyone’s responsibility, and it must be everyone’s concern.”

I thank you.