In 2006 the United Nations launched a Study on Violence against Children which explored the habitual harm children are facing in their homes, community, schools, workplace, and on the street. The report confirmed that an alarmingly large number of children are exposed to abuse, neglect, exploitation, and violence on a daily basis in every country of the world. It showed that 80 to 98 per cent of children worldwide suffer physical punishment in their homes and that 150 million girls and 73 million boys under 18 experienced some form of sexual violence during 2002.
The International Save the Children Alliance was a leading international actor driving forward the UN study and supporting children to participate meaningfully in the process. The study made several key recommendations for action by governments and other stakeholders. Many of these were reflected in commitments made by governments in the UN Omnibus Resolutions of the Rights of the Child in 2007.
Save the Children Sweden is the leader in the Middle East and North Africa region on advocating for the recommendations put forward by the study and we conduct several activities and events each year that are geared towards reiterating the implementation of the commitments made by governments and empowering children to have their voices included in the follow-up, most notably the yearly Save the Children Day of Action that included more than 7,000 child participants in 2008.