Our History

Child Rights Connect was initially set up in 1983 as the Ad Hoc NGO Group for the drafting of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Its initial mandate was to influence the drafting of the CRC, the first and most comprehensive international human rights treaty for children. Since then, we have worked to connect UN human rights systems to the daily realities of children’s lives.

We continue to play a central role in key children’s rights developments at international level, including the drafting of all the UN treaties on children’s rights. Our Secretariat is considered a leading expert on the work of the Committee on the Rights of the Child.

To reflect our work, which now extends beyond the Convention on the Rights of the Child, we changed our name to Child Rights Connect in 2013. As a network, Child Rights Connect has members at national, regional, and international levels, including other networks and child-led organisations. We work closely with national NGOs and coalitions, UN agencies and experts, States, and children themselves, to advance children’s rights around the world.

Based in Geneva, Switzerland, we have a unique working relationship with the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. We also have special ECOSOC consultative status at the United Nations, meaning that we are fully recognised to take part in United Nations deliberations. Since 1983, we have influenced major child rights developments such as the drafting of the UN treaties on child rights.