Concept Note

The participation of children in schools, local action, organizations, media, and policy advocacy has gained growing support over the past years. The interest in children’s active involvement in discussions about issues that affect them is being inspired by an increased awareness and understanding of children’s development, abilities, contributions and their rights to expression, decision making, information and association. Many individuals and organizations realize the importance of child rights and participation but struggle when it comes to implementation.
Child rights in Action is a model that bridges this gap and demonstrates how to
create the right conditions for meaningful participation. This allows organizations to reproduce these conditions in their own contexts. CRIA (Child Rights in Action) in collaboration with organizations and campaigns such as UNICEF, Nineis Mine, HAQ – centre for child rights etc. promotes children –adults collaboration by nurturing the idea of child participation. Participation (the right of a child to express views in all matters affecting them) is a general principle of fundamental importance for children as reflected in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is the mandate of CRIA with our focus being on Articles 12– 17. And by  promoting participation can children fully exercise their rights to provisions and protection.
CRIA started 8 years ago as an approach to create an example of child
participation in the form of a week long event designed and delivered in equal partnership by children and adults, dealing with the critical issues that children around the world are facing: poverty, child abuse, child labor, child marriage, child trafficking and so on. Our programs provide a platform for children and adults to participate in the different aspects of child rights and advocacy.
Since then, CRIA has evolved from a forum to conducting webinars and trainings
on varied subjects such as child participation, children as advocates, facilitation etc. to enhance the participants’ skills, their confidence, to widen their network and find the motivation to carry their own project throughout the year. The program Child Rights in Action provides a practical solution to children and the stakeholders by showing them simultaneously, the importance of an inclusive approach and the conditions for its implementation via 4 main pillars: