A renewed
commitment to
children's rights

A l’heure où les crises se succèdent, comme les impacts de la pandémie, l’augmentation des inégalités, les dérèglements climatiques, les guerres, il est plus que jamais nécessaire de considérer les enfants comme de véritables actrices et acteurs engagé.e.s, d’écouter leurs propositions et leurs révoltes pour avancer en faveur de la justice et de la paix, pour un monde ouvert et solidaire.

While we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Geneva Declaration, we are determined to strengthen our commitment to the promotion and protection of children’s rights around the globe, and to bring the UN Convention on the rights of the Child and its optional protocols to the fore front of the world attention.

Our 2024 Geneva Declaration on the Rights of the Child is an aspirational call to mobilize and to truly put children at the centre of our collective human concern. But vision without action is a daydream, we must now bend political will into concrete steps fulfilling the rights of all children.

The work of Eglantyne Jebb and Janusz Korczak, along with other champions of children’s rights 100 years ago, has not lost its relevance. It’s incredible how accurately they identified the most important issues that have only recently been associated with many others. Today, we cannot be satisfied with the results we have achieved so far, despite the progress made. That is why we must continue what they started and emphasize that we are still far from complete accomplishment.

One Hundred Years of Working for Children’s Rights. As we commemorate the first 100 years since the Geneva Declaration, it is good to remember we are part of a long chain of advocates; our work to defend children’s rights is never completely done but every effort counts, there will be new leaders who will continue to work with children to face new challenges worldwide.

It is very important at this moment in time to recommit to the realisation of child rights. Not only because we commemorate the global commitment made 100 years ago, but because child rights realisation is still an ideal for many children across the world. Times have changed, requiring us all to reflect on how we evolve our thinking on child rights. But at the same time, the fundamentals have not shifted significantly – we still require child rights champions to promote and protect child rights.

100 years after the adoption of the Declaration on the Rights of the Child, we celebrate significant advances for many children around the world. We also recommit to addressing the threats and obstacles that continue to rob children of their rights. As we move into a new century of advocacy, our child rights community is more important than ever.

In the early 1920s in Geneva, Eglantyne Jebb, the founder of Save the Children, was coordinating relief aid reaching vulnerable children across Europe in the aftermath of the First World War. However, she was of the opinion that children should not only be considered as recipients of charitable aid, but that children have their own agency and rights. That’s the reason why she developed the Geneva Declaration on Children’s Rights. 100 years later, Save the Children continues every day to work alongside children and promote their rights, inspired by Eglantyne Jebb’s vision.

There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children.” – so proclaimed Madiba Nelson Mandela. The 1924 Geneva Declaration asserted that humanity “owes to the Child the best that it has to give.” As the world celebrates its 100th anniversary, I am inspired to sign the Renewed Geneva Declaration and take the vow to uphold and ensure the inherent rights of the child in the best interest of humanity.

As we commemorate the centennial of the Geneva Declaration and affirm the universality of children’s rights, it is our duty to overcome the challenges that we face in translating these ideals into action. We must draw deeply from our collective wisdom and resolve as only through the respect, protection and fulfilment of child rights can we ensure that all children get the best that humanity has to offer.

Les droits de l’enfant sont plus que jamais menacés et bafoués, à la vue de tous. Je suis sidérée et indignée. Cette nouvelle déclaration nous rappelle à l’essentiel et renouvelle notre engagement pour protéger les enfants qui sont les graines d’espoir d’un futur plus solidaire.  Il y a urgence : signons vite la Déclaration 2024 de Genève et agissons.

Today, we celebrate the inspiring vision of the Geneva Declaration, adopted a century ago, and renew our unwavering commitment to the safeguard of the human rights of every child. Investing in children’s rights will bring peace and human progress to the world at large.

The Geneva Declaration put a foundation of not protecting children but recognising them as human. As we celebrate the 100 years of the Declaration we need to think on how we can build the next floor of the building from the UNCRC, in a world where children are faced with climate change and digital expansion. Thank you Jebb. 

Il y a cent ans, Eglantyne Jebb a déclenché un mouvement universel : celui des droits de l’enfant ! Sa Déclaration, officialisée par la Société des Nations, symbolise la révolution du statut de l’enfant, devenu personne, qui ne doit pas seulement être protégé et éduqué, mais qui détient ses propres droits ! Saura-t-on assez la remercier ?

After 100 years of progress, we are observing a breaking point of children’s rights. An increasing number of children suffer in the crossfire of wars, lose their living environments, and fall out of school. Right now, we must defend children’s rights together, and I am engaged to join this movement.

The 2024 Declaration on the Rights of the Child is a testament to our shared responsibilities, values and commitments to protect children’s rights and to ensure that they are given the space to enjoy their childhood and to develop and thrive in safety and free from fear everywhere they are – offline and online.

Rewriting the Geneva Declaration is an important step in reaffirming that children everywhere are the actors of tomorrow. This Declaration should be a tool to enable them to amplify their voice, to give them a voice, to offer them the means to build a fairer and more united future.

En ces temps incertains, il faut rappeler que, en plus du droit humanitaire, Genève est aussi le berceau des droits de l’enfant. Alors que tous deux sont bafoués à travers le monde, un nouveau souffle provenant de Genève ne sera jamais de trop!

This renewed declaration is a reminder of our duty to ensure that children are always regarded as equal rights holders and active citizens participating in society, having their voices heard and views considered. (…) We should not allow ourselves to forget that the realization of the rights and wellbeing of children is not altruism or charity, but justice and obligation.

By celebrating and ‘updating’ the Geneva Declaration, we pay tribute to the early child rights champions, and we recommit to respect, protect and fulfil the rights of all children enshrined in the UNCRC and its Optional Protocols. We remind ourselves there is still an enormous amount of work to be done.