War plunging children worldwide into 'polycrisis': Rights group

Children's rights are being increasingly eroded by the rise in armed conflict around the world, including the wars in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine, aid group KidsRights said on Wednesday, calling for better protections.

The group, which organises the International Children's Peace Prize won previously by Greta Thunberg and Malala Yousafzai, said there had been "a 21 percent rise of serious children's rights violations in armed conflicts around the world" since last year.

Violations include the killing and maiming of children, as well as the recruitment and use of child soldiers, abduction, and the denial of humanitarian assistance.

As well as conflict, young people are still reeling from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, with rates of child immunisation declining in the Global South and in almost a third of countries in Western Europe, KidsRights said in its annual report.

"Climate change induced disasters and the related displacement" also continue to threaten children's rights around the world, as countries struggle to mitigate risks, it added.

However, the report praised "positive and consistent efforts" from nations such as Denmark and the United Kingdom to phase out fossil fuels.

Marc Dullaert, founder and chair at KidsRights, said the report "highlights the devastating impact that the deepening polycrisis has had on children and their rights by undermining decades of progress".

The result has been a "prolonged mental health crisis among children and young people globally," said the group, with the rise in armed conflicts heightening the risk of post-traumatic stress.

Dullaert called on governments to "face up to the stark reality" that the UN's Sustainable Development Goals relating to children's rights, including ending poverty and hunger, and access to education, are unlikely to be met.

The KidsRights Index Report 2024 ranked Luxembourg as the top country for protecting children's rights, with Afghanistan coming in last.