The Convention on the Rights of the Child has now been ratified by 192 nations. Notwithstanding, securing the principles and necessary legal safeguards remains a difficult achievement. Laws and jurisprudence must be firmly linked to the national reality to avoid them being well-meant placebos....

On the basis of detailed statistical surveys conducted in five Latin American countries, this essay demonstrates that actual practice in the region contrasts strongly with legal norms for the minimum age at which children can be employed and the age of completion of compulsory education. As well...

The high primary school enrolment rates in Latin America and the Caribbean mask poor performance in terms of the quality, relevance and cost-effectiveness of formal schooling in the region. What happens to the millions of children who repeat school years, underperform in their first years of...

The Convention on the Rights of the Child has been variously hailed as ‘the cornerstone of a new moral ethos’ and a ‘milestone in the history of mankind’. But laws and treaties are as nothing without adequate practical follow-up. The real results will depend not upon the high-mindedness...

Una nación es democratica en la medida en que sus ciudadanos participan, especialmente a nivel comunitario. La confianza y la competencia para participare deben adquirirse gradualmente con la práctica. Por esta razón debe haber oportunidades crecientes para que los niños participen en...

A nation is democratic to the extent that its citizens are involved, particularly at the community level. The confidence and competence to be involved must be gradually acquired through practice. It is for this reason that there should be gradually increasing opportunities for children to...

To help deal with the particular needs of children at a time of rapid political and economic change in central and eastern Europe, in 1990 the UNICEF Executive Board approved a special three-year effort of "transitional support". In response to specific requests for cooperation, UNICEF was...