Global action to end violence against children is lagging behind risks: UN expert

The UN Special Representative on Violence Against Children has called for stronger global action to protect boys and girls caught up in a growing number of crises, as current efforts fall short. “Almost 45 million children are displaced because of conflict, but also because of natural disasters, because of the climate crisis,” said Najat Maalla M’jid, briefing journalists at UN Headquarters in New York on Monday. Food insecurity and the rapid spread of technology are also hampering efforts to reduce violence against children, Ms. M’jid noted, after delivering her final report to the General Assembly, which she described as “a wake-up call” for greater mobilization. Her presentation to Member States coincided with the 20th anniversary of the first-ever UN global study on violence against children. Although the world has changed since then, she highlighted “ongoing complex multiple crises” facing the international community in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.Young lives caught in crisesToday, one in five children lives in extreme poverty “and not only in the poor countries but also in the wealthy countries despite all the money put in cash transfers, cash benefits, and so on”, she ...