CHILDREN’S WEEK
First organised
during the
International Year
for Children
in 1979,
it was
meant to
publicise children’s
issues and
sensitise the general public towards solving them.
Right after
the end
of that
first Week,
the District
Committees decided
to hold
the event
every year
as a
means to
promote burning
children’s
issues and
to make
suggestions to
the government
and authorities.
After
signing and
ratifying the
UN Convention
on the
Rights of
the Child
in 1989,
the Children’s
Week became
an institution and
it is held every November, always including the 20th November
- the anniversary of the signing of the Convention by the United
Nations.
The
Annual
Conference on
Child Protection
and Welfare
is organised
during the
Week.
The Conference brings into the open, and discusses in depth, serious
issues concerning people under the age of 18. The
resolutions and
discussion outcomes
contribute to
sensitising the
authorities and
the general
public on
the issue
and help
both children
and adults
to take steps
forward.
Moreover,
different events
are organised
mostly in
cooperation with
local authorities
and children themselves. They
are an
instrument to
promoting children’s
participation and
to getting
adults recognising
children’s
ability to
express opinions
and make
suggestions for
measures towards
solving issues that affect them. They
empower children
as citizens
and help
them realise
their
responsibility within
a democratic
state.
Finally, different events aiming at involving vulnerable groups
of children are organised throughout the country, both in cities and in
rural areas, and they strongly promote the UN Convention on the Rights
of the Child and the need for its full implementation.
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