Children call on EU for action

Children in Sudan took part in Plan's consultation

More than 250 children from 10 developing countries have told the EU what they think its child rights strategy should look like, in a consultation exercise organised by Plan’ s EU liaison office.

The main issues that concerned them were poverty, violence (such as child labour and abuse), exclusion (especially of orphans and girls) and, to a slightly lesser degree, health. 

Listen to us!

The children also said that they believe children are not being heard, especially by their parents. 

They believe the lack of awareness about child rights is a huge obstacle to them realising their rights, and they expressed a strong desire to see awareness-raising as a key part of the European Commission’s child rights strategy.

Stronger laws

The children also said that laws must be strengthened to protect children from the worst child rights abuses.

Plan presented the consultation to the European Parliament and many of the children’s points have been included in the parliament’s resolution on ‘Towards a Strategy on the Rights of the Child’.

Both the parliament and the commission said they were extremely impressed by the consultation. 

Plan's report on the consultation (104kb | 15 pages)

Plan's child-friendly report to the participants of the consultation (76kb | 5 pages)