Opinions on Children's Rights from Experts in China

The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is the most ratified human rights treaty in history and it has transformed the way in which children are viewed and treated across the world. This has translated into concrete and measurable successes in children's survival, development and protection.

Yet despite the gains, many challenges remain. In China, while significant gains have been made to reduce poverty on a national basis, the challenges of reaching the poorest and most vulnerable children with quality and equitable social services remains a top priority. On this special occasion, we invited five experts in China to share their perspectives on the Convention on the Rights of the Child and discuss the challenges and successes in China.

Dr.Wang Zhenyao, Director of Beijing Normal University's China Philanthropy Research Institute, pointed out in his article that one of the biggest challenges of rapid urbanization is how to meet the need of a large number of children who are left behind with their grandparents in rural villages and those who have moved away with their parents and are faced with various problems in urban surroundings. [Download PDF]

As of now, there are over 60 million left-behind children and 35.81 million migrant children in China, “Compared to those in ordinary families, these children are facing more challenges, more vulnerable to educational woes like inaccessible school attendance, repeated school transfer and immature dropout etc…” said Ms.Zhang Wenjuan, Associate professor and Assistant Dean for International Collaborations and Executive Director for the Center of India-China Studies at Jindal Global Law School. [Download PDF]

Prof.Huang Xiaoyan from Nankai University's School of Government and Management shares her insights the essay “On the Progress China has Made in Child Protection Policies and Practices”. [Download PDF]

Education is one of the key approaches to ensure children's right to development, and Dr.Yang Yinfu, Deputy Director-General of National Center for Education Development Research discusses the progresses and challenges in education in his essay “Afford Every Child an Opportunity to a Brighter Future”. [Download PDF]

Prof Bu Wei from The Research Center for Children and the Media at the the Institute of Journalism and Communication of Chinese Academy of Social Science elaborates on “Children's participation” in her essay and sheds light on how to listen to children and recognize their rights in participation. [Download PDF]

If you would like to read more essays on the topic of children's rights and equity, please visit our global website: http://www.unicef.org/crc/  we are also hosting live discussions on our CRC site and social media special page.