Lazada Philippines

Unicef Celebrate CRC@25

UN children’s agency UNICEF, in partnership with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC) held a celebration to mark 25 years of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in the Philippines – with participation by children and a wide group of partners.




Speakers at the event in Manila highlighted key successes and challenges in realizing children’s rights in the country. While the situation of Filipino children has generally improved, many challenges, such as child poverty and the effects of disasters on children, still persist.  

In 1990, the Philippines became the 31st State to ratify the CRC, the most widely endorsed international human rights treaty in history. The Convention establishes legally and morally binding obligations on every State Party which ratifies it to “undertake all appropriate legislative, administrative and other measures for the implementation of the rights recognized” in the CRC.

DSWD Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Juliano-Soliman delivered the keynote speech highlighting the Philippine Government’s successes in CRC implementation and its role in protecting children affected by disasters.

“For 25 years, we have endeavored to create a safe and nurturing environment for our country’s children. Needless to say, we must continue and even intensify all our efforts so that we can create a caring and protective society for, by and with the children. All that we envision in the next 25 years will depend on how we move forward from today. These will depend on how assiduously we work together – the public and the private sector - to create the synergies necessary so that we engender a nation that knows how to care for, raise, and protect its children,” Soliman said.





UNICEF Philippines Representative Lotta Sylwander said in her remarks, “The Philippines made a set of promises to children when it adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child. While many Filipino children are growing up happy and healthy, looking back on 25 years of progress reminds us of the promises that remain unfulfilled. The rights and wellbeing of children must be at the heart of sustainable development planning that the government agrees to for the coming years and decades. We envision a Philippines where ALL children’s rights are realized equitably – including those who are disadvantaged. We call on duty bearers to ensure that sufficient resources are invested and child-friendly laws are enforced down to the barangay level.”

According to UNICEF, good progress has been achieved in the fulfillment of children’s rights in the country, such as in reducing preventable child deaths and immunization coverage. In the Philippines we now know more about the situation of children, have mobilized financial resources and enacted laws for their survival, development, protection and participation.

On challenges, UNICEF said that inequity is a challenge that must be further addressed in the Philippines. The plight of children living in hard-to-reach areas need to be addressed by increased resource allocation and sustained political commitment. Urgent action is also needed to ensure that critical laws for children are consistently enacted and enforced, children are protected from the effects of poverty, urbanisation and disasters, undocumented children are registered and all children have access to day care centers.

CWC Executive Director Patricia Luna delivered the welcome remarks. Two youth panelists Kiana Gualberto from Visayas and Norisa Sabirin from Mindanao spoke about challenges facing children today, and how their lives were shaped by the Convention.

The commemorative event was also the launch-pad for the “Know More, No More” public advocacy campaign, which urges Filipinos to become aware of problems plaguing children, and how each individual can help. UNICEF Philippines National Goodwill Ambassador Gary Valenciano also unveiled the CRC@25 theme song entitled Bawa’t Isa sa Atin - Minsan Ay Tulad Nila (Each one of us - We were once like them) – which enjoins everyone to care for, love and protect all Filipino children.

UNICEF also highlighted the role of innovation in reaching every child through its flagship publication, the State of the World’s Children 2015 Report, unveiled at the CRC commemoration. The report calls on governments, development professionals, businesses, activists and communities to work together to drive new ideas for tackling some of the most pressing problems facing children — and to find ways of scaling up the best and most promising local innovations.





About UNICEF
UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do. Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all children, everywhere. For more information about UNICEF and its work please visit www.unicef.org.
Please visit UNICEF Philippines website, Facebook and Twitter.
For further information, please contact:
Zafrin Chowdhury, Chief of Communication, UNICEF Philippines, Tel: +632 901 01 77, Mobile: +63 917 867 8366, zchowdhury@unicef.org
Marge Francia, Communication Officer, UNICEF Philippines, Tel: +632 901 01 73, Mobile: +63 917 858 9447, mfrancia@unicef.org


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