In October, the UN are discussing children's rights. Many people and institutions who work with child rights gather at the United Nations headquarters in New York. In addition to Norway’s mission at the UN representing views on children’s rights, the Norwegian Children's Ombudsman is also in New York to help inspire other countries to create their own Ombudsman to protect and help children.
On 9 October, there was a seminar on this topic hosted by the Norwegian UN delegation, the Norwegian Children's Ombudsman, UNICEF and the Chile’s Mission to the UN. The aim was to disseminate knowledge about how an Ombudsman can work, and to inspire more countries to create child reunification. The goal was to start a fruitful discussion about why a Ombudsman for Children is important to ensure that children’s voices are included in decision-making. It was also important to have a debate on how to strengthen efforts in key areas such as ending violence, abuse and bullying.
The UN Children's Committee, the expert group that follows how all countries in the world meet the Convention on Children, recommends that all countries have Ombudsmen for Children. By 2015, the UN's sustainable development goals were adopted. These global goals apply to all countries in the world and aim to ensure sustainable development until 2030. These goals include creating strong institutions working on behalf of children, to help ensure that their human rights are being implemented and protected. It makes it more relevant than ever to inform other countries about the concept of an Ombudsman, which can help reach these goals.
The Norwegian Children's Ombudsman was founded in 1981 as the first of its kind in the world. For many years, there has been great international interest to learn from our experiences. Therefore, the Norwegian Children’s Ombudsman has helped to set up similar institutions in many other countries. In total, there are now more than 70 countries with child ombudsmen or similar institutions.
For more information read about the event or the Norwegian Ombudsman for Children.