Westport, Conn. (November 20, 2009) — A recent Save the Children study in five countries suggests that children around the world remain highly vulnerable, despite the recognition by world leaders 20 years ago that children required a special set of rights for their protection.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which celebrates its 20th anniversary today, has become the most universally accepted and widely ratified human rights treaty. Yet at this time of celebration, the protection of children's rights has yet to be realized in many countries. More work must be done to ensure that children can survive, thrive and reach their full potential wherever they live.

A variety of threats to the safety and well-being of children remain, among them: a lack of adequate laws or lack of application of existing laws to protect children; budget limitations that prevent implementation of the Convention, particularly in the areas of health and education; and a lack of national independent rights institutions mandated to monitor, promote and protect children's rights.

"Save the Children's founder, Eglantyne Jebb, developed the concept of children's rights that formed the Convention on the Rights of the Child. For 90 years children's rights have influenced everything we do," said Charles MacCormack, president and CEO of Save the Children. "We know it is children who are often more vulnerable to abuse and harm, yet they cannot access remedies as easily as adults can. Save the Children's programs support children to help them achieve fundamental rights, including the right to survive to adulthood, be protected, receive an education and to face threats brought on by disasters, war and climate change. It is time we stopped seeing the Convention as a set of goals or a moral wish list and started implementing real solutions that adhere to this important treaty."

Save the Children, in keeping with Article 4 of the Convention, outlines the right to survive childhood. The agency has just launched a new campaign to draw attention to the nearly 9 million children needlessly dying each year from preventable or treatable causes. This is unacceptable. EVERY ONE of them has the right to survive.

The CRC grants every child the right to protection from numerous harms. Save the Children works to ensure children are not subject to abuse, neglect, exploitation, and violence. The agency strengthens the capacity of people and institutions in children's lives, including children themselves, to identify and address real or potential threats to children's well-being through law, policy guidance, service provision and social action.

Article 28 outlines the right to quality education. Save the Children works to ensure this right is realized, even in the most challenging contexts. Its Rewrite the Future campaign has provided 10 million children in conflict-affected countries a better education; however, another 62 million children (almost 30 million of them in conflict-affected countries) are still not in primary school.

Children are most vulnerable in emergencies. Save the Children works to ensure children's rights are protected and that they have the support and services they need when disaster and conflict strike. Save the Children also encourages children to play a key role in making themselves and their communities safer. Children's perspectives on issues that affect them, from staying healthy to the threats posed by climate change, are important in improving their lives and their involvement in planning for the future is crucial.

Save the Children, the world's leading independent child rights organization, urges governments to:

• Recommit to the Convention on the Rights of the Child
• Ensure that all legislation is in compliance with the Convention
• Determine government spending on children and ensure that resources are used effectively
• Establish an independent ombudsman for the protection and promotion of the rights of the child

Save the Children is the leading, independent organization that creates lasting change for children in need in the United States and around the world. Save the Children USA is a member of the International Save the Children Alliance, a global network of 29 independent Save the Children organizations working to ensure the well-being and protection of children in more than 120 countries. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.