How to make prevention of abuse and violence against children a global priority

Prevention of abuse and violence against children is the responsibility of all and sundry. Prevention is always better than cure hence the need to prioritize it. We all have a role to play to safeguard the rights of children.

A Guide for national NGOs and citizen action which focuses on combating child sexual exploitation and abuse have been developed for all to follow.
The objective of the guide is to inspire and mobilize NGOs and trigger citizen action to:
• Create a global culture of prevention.
• Increase prevention measures.
• Help implement the framework provided by the Convention on the rights of the Child- a global obligation for governments.
• Follow-up on the recommendations of the UN Secretary General’s Study on Violence against children.
• Empower, inform and facilitate the participation of young people in preventing abuse and violence against them
• Lobby government.
The guidelines are targeting all citizens-men, women and children-worldwide. This embraces all civil society organizations particularly NGOs, educational settings, grassroots groups, faith based organizations, the media and various networks dealing with child abuse, child rights and development issues.

Meaningful participation of children and young people is essential all matters that affect their rights and well-being. It is of paramount importance that their views are taken into consideration when formulating abuse and violence prevention and elimination laws and policies. In most cases, children who face violence tend to suffer in silence hence the need to make special efforts to make it possible for them to feel safe enough to speak out about violent incidents against them.