Guided and inspired by what children have told us, Joining Forces agencies are mobilising around a Call to Action to demand greater financial investments and political will by governments and the wider international community for children’s systematic participation in decision-making processes.
Since the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) there has been a growing understanding of, and commitment among decision makers to the value of children’s civic participation. There are many documented examples, from across the world, of children’s active participation in campaigns, policy processes and decision making at all levels.
Many countries have developed legal, policy and programmatic frameworks, and mechanisms have been established to support children’s participation in decision making at local, national, regional and global levels. These efforts have not, however, guaranteed effective and systematic implementation of children’s participation. Even where child participation policies are in place, they are often not backed by sufficient and sustainable public investments in structures and systems. Advances are not translating into meaningful opportunities for all children to be heard. This policy brief seeks to address this barrier to the systematic, meaningful and equitable participation of children in public decision making.
Building on Joining Forces’ 2021 report We’re Talking, Are You Listening, this brief aims to shed light on public budgeting of children’s participation. Informed by consultations with children in seven countries, and a legal, policy and budgetary analysis of child participation in three of these countries, it presents insights and recommendations for governments on how children’s participation can be embedded in structures and systems, and how legal and policy commitments can be translated into public budgets in ways which promote meaningful and ethical child participation.
Specifically, we call on governments to:
- Strengthen legal and policy frameworks guaranteeing children’s right to be heard as well as their civil and political rights, as enshrined in the UNCRC.
Establish and institutionalise structures and mechanisms for equitable and inclusive child participation.
Invest in child participation mechanisms, across sectors and at all levels of government.
Strengthen children’s capacity, confidence and knowledge to participate in decision making.
Support the capacity and willingness of adults to facilitate and enable children’s meaningful and ethical participation.