Queen Noor closes Arab Children's Congress and launches UNICEF Progress of Nations

"CHILD WELFARE" PRESS RELEASES

Queen Noor closes the Arab Children’s Congress and launches UNICEF’s 1998 Progress of Nations report.

Wednesday 8 July 1998

For Immediate Release:

At the closing ceremony of the 18th Arab Children’s Congress (ACC) at the Royal Cultural Center, Her Majesty Queen Noor Wednesday distributed certificates and gifts to 95 children from Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tunis, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. The children presented the outcome of their creative art workshops, which had been held at the Noor Al Hussein Foundation’s Performing Arts Center, on the theme of Arab Children’s Rights using drama, painting and music. They performed a song and dance as well as a short dramatic skit before Queen Noor toured their exhibition of art and literary works.

The children also presented their recommendations to the Queen, which they hoped would be recognized by UNICEF, the United Nations and the Arab League. The recommendations included lifting the Iraqi sanctions; imposing penalties on signatory countries that have violated the Convention on the Rights of the Child; appointing the artist Duraid Laham as the ambassador of children’s rights for the Arab region; providing obligatory and free education in all Arab countries; introducing Arab children’s rights in the educational curriculum; passing laws prohibiting child labor, child abuse and raising the age of marriage to 18; respecting children’s freedom of speech; and establishing children’s parliaments in each country. The proceedings of this year’s conference will by published in the ACC’s magazine that will be distributed throughout the Arab world.

Later at the RCC, Queen Noor launched UNICEF’s 1998 Progress of Nations Report.

Statement by Her Majesty Queen Noor for the launching of UNICEF’s 1998 Progress of Nations Report. 8 July 1998

We launch today 1998 Progress of Nations report, which records and assesses the status of children and women worldwide and highlights their rights to survival, development, protection and participation – the four cornerstones of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This year, which marks the 50th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the report focuses on civil rights, including birth registration and nationality, health immunization, challenges facing adolescents in developing countries and increasing homelessness even in some of the world's wealthiest countries.

This annual publication outlines notable achievements in child health and development since the 1990 World Summit for Children, but it also records many shortcomings. By doing so, it reminds the international community that the needs and rights of children must remain a development priority.

Every year, around 40 million babies, one third of all births, are unregistered. In many countries, without proof of birth, a child cannot be vaccinated, treated at a health center or enrolled in school. Every day, the right to nationality is jeopardized for millions of children born in countries undergoing political turmoil. While child immunization in developing countries has increased from 5% in 1980 to almost 80% today, almost 2 million children are still dying each year from vaccine-preventable diseases, and the sustainability of immunization is now threatened by the rising cost of a new generation of vaccines.

The wellbeing of adolescents worldwide is of particular concern as they currently number 1 billion people between the ages of 10 to 19, or a sixth of the world’s population, and are the largest generation of young people in history. They face enormous challenges that include HIV infections, with teenage girls having twice the infection rate of boys, teen births, child labor and lack of educational opportunities. Disadvantaged populations, particularly youth and women, in industrialized countries are also facing increased marginalization and homelessness, making them susceptible to chronic diseases, social isolation and very often violence and abuse.

The commitment and support of the Jordanian community, the government, non-governmental organizations and international agencies, has enabled our country to make significant achievements for our children. The national birth registration rate is over 90 percent, net primary school enrollment rates is 92 percent, immunization coverage rates for polio and measles are both over 90 percent, only 5 percent of children under five are underweight and iodized salt consumption has reached over 75%. This year, the Ministry of Health is covering the cost of Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS), which are now being produced locally in Jordan.

However, in spite of these achievement, there are many threats still facing our young population that range from smoking to adverse effects of early marriage. Tobacco use is a global health risk for adults and children, causing the death of 3.5 million people. In Jordan, where 44 percent of men and 5 percent of women are habitual smokers, children under 15 are exposed regularly to second-hand smoke in almost 67 percent of all households. There is a need for a tighter application of our anti-smoking laws and stronger legislation to restrict the sale and promotion of tobacco use to children and youth.

Early marriage is another factor adversely affecting our children’s development. Young people, predominantly girls, who usually drop out of school to get married, do not have the necessary education or awareness to make informed decisions about their family’s wellbeing. By raising the minimum age at marriage, which is currently 15 for girls and 16 for boys, to 18, this will enable young girls and boys to complete their education. This will also limit adolescent births, which in Jordan currently stand at 44 per 1,000 girls ages 15 to 19, and the associated risk of pregnancy-related deaths – the leading cause of mortality for girls age 15 to 19 worldwide. Such laws aimed to protect youth will be incorporated in a comprehensive draft Child Act, which the National Task Force for Children (NTFC), in cooperation with the government, is revising and will be submitting to Parliament for approval.

The National Task Force for Children (NTFC) was established in 1995 as a coordinating agency to monitor the condition and status of children in accordance with the Arab and International Conventions on the Rights of the Child and the National Plan of Action for Children. Through a grassroots forum of 162 voluntary representatives from governmental, non-governmental and international agencies, the NTFC initiates and supports the development of programs and activities to enhance children’s rights and wellbeing.

On behalf of the government and people of Jordan, I would like to thank UNICEF for their commitment and diligent efforts to promote a global ethic that places women and children foremost among international development priorities. We are looking forward to our continued cooperation with UNICEF here in Jordan, to sustain our past achievements, and more importantly, to identify future challenges in implementing child rights and moving beyond child survival to address children’s rights to protection and development.