- Adolescents suggest addressing issues of violence prevention, adolescent pregnancy, access to education and child participation during the dialogue with civil society organizations and ECLAC.
- Girls, boys and adolescents demand that their opinions be taken into account in the planning and elaboration of public policies.
- Experts say that the construction of the regional plan seeks to guarantee the comprehensive protection of children, even after the pandemic.
As a result of the economic and social crisis facing the region, different political leaders, academics, spokespersons for human rights organizations and social organizations, through the Social Initiative for Latin America and the Caribbean ISALC, joined forces to convene a dialogue between sectors of civil society and ECLAC.
In this sense, as part of this process the initiative #Weaving NetworksChildhood In Latin America and the Caribbean, within the framework of the #NiñezPrimero strategy, it carried out the virtual dialogue: What is the urgent agenda of Latin American children in the face of the pandemic? Collective analysis of the working document.
In a session, the experts from Argentina, Ecuador and Mexico pointed out that this call for dialogue seeks to promote the construction of a regional plan that guarantees the comprehensive protection of girls and boys; hence the importance of reflecting on the problems that currently affect children and adolescents, such as violence, education, adolescent pregnancy, child labor, migrant children, health and participation, among others.
In this regard, Nicky Bravo, Representative of the Movement for Children and Youth of Ecuador, explained that as a result of the pandemic, several Latin American countries reallocated their economic resources, a situation that led to an increase in corruption, school dropouts and lack of access to other health services. “The current crisis is a sample of what awaits us in the future; for this reason, it is necessary to unite all the human rights agendas to face the effects of the pandemic in a better way ”.
Given this context, Andrés Camilo, a Colombian teenager, asked to include other issues on the agenda, such as the lack of participation spaces for girls and boys, the increase in adolescent pregnancy and inequality. “You have to talk about each of the issues that involve girls and boys (…) it is important to incorporate their voices into the plans. When their opinions are taken into account, it is clear which are the priority actions they need ”.
María Neyi, a teenager from the Dominican Republic, added that child labor and access to education are other problems that deserve attention. "Education is a global issue because there are low-income families, there are girls and boys who cannot continue with their studies (...) that is why we must focus on the issues that most affect Latin America and the Caribbean to advocate."
Similarly, Norberto Liwski, former member of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, UN, Argentina, recalled that the pandemic not only exacerbated poverty and inequality in the region, it also exposed the fragility of the health and education systems.
In this sense, he stressed the importance of allocating a larger budget on social issues to reduce the impact of the pandemic on the most vulnerable sectors. "If the states do not invest in these fields, the sectors affected by poverty are going to find themselves, in the coming months, in situations of profound violation of their rights."
Finally, Juan Martín Pérez García, Coordinator of the #TejiendoRedesInfancia initiative in Latin America and the Caribbean, pointed out that a regional dialogue with the participation of various actors constitutes an opportunity to make visible the problems that affect children and promote the search for solutions. "It is important to have an articulated homogeneous force, involve other actors to identify urgent issues and guarantee responses that benefit girls and boys."
Regarding this, Isabel Crowey, Director of JUCONI, stated: “The COVID-19 pandemic generated an increase in all kinds of violence (…) for this reason, it is important to have a well-organized common agenda focused on childhood; as a civil society we must not forget where the girls, boys and adolescents are and how we can influence ”.
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Press contact: Verónica Morales, Regional Communication Officer / [email protected]
About:
#ChildhoodFirst It is a strategy that provides guidance for the care of children and adolescents in emergency situations.
#Weaving NetsChildhood, is a project co-financed by the European Union that seeks to contribute to the strengthening and consolidation of a platform for the defense of children and adolescents in 19 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of Derechos Infancia México AC / #TejiendoRedesInfancia and in no case should it be considered that it reflects the views of the European Union.