Skip to main content

UN staff, including eight OHCHR colleagues, detained in Yemen

OHCHR calls for their immediate release.

Learn more
Close

About

All children everywhere are entitled to human rights, fundamental freedoms, dignity and equality under international human rights law. Children have the same general human rights as adults and also specific rights that recognize their special needs.

Meanwhile, youth is a period of transition from dependence to independence and autonomy. Young people experience discrimination and obstacles to the enjoyment of their rights by virtue of their age, limiting their potential. Promoting the human rights of youth entails addressing the specific challenges and barriers they face.

Our work

UN Human Rights has a mandate to support work on children's and youth’s rights in the United Nations system.

We work with rights holders and duty bearers via our country presences to improve the level of respect for the rights of children and youth.

We focus on reporting and activities for the Human Rights Council annual meeting on the rights of the child, as well as developing and advancing policy, and facilitating the participation of children with UN processes.

Youth represents a growing agenda within the Office. We strive to make human rights more relevant and more useful to young people. We systematically engage with youth throughout our work and endeavour to include them in UN work and meetings.

We also support the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children. In addition, we collaborate with the UN Youth Envoy and UNICEF.

Learn more about our work on children

Learn more about our work on youth

Who else is involved

Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children

The Special Rapporteur analyses the root causes of sale and sexual exploitation of children, identifies new patterns of the phenomena, exchanges good practices to combat it, promotes preventative measures, and makes recommendations for the rehabilitation of child victims.

Learn more

Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

The CRC is a body of 18 independent experts that monitors implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child by its State parties as well as the implementation of its two Optional Protocols.

Learn more