From a ban on child marriage to blood deliveries by drone for women giving birth, here are 10 positive changes for children that happened in 2024:
1. Sierra Leone bans child marriage following campaign by girls and Save the Children
In a landmark moment this year, Sierra Leone passed a bill to ban child marriage and to criminalize the act of marrying or entering into a union with a child under the age of 18, including provisions for enforcing penalties on offenders.
Sierra Leone has one of the highest child marriage, early pregnancy and maternal mortality rates in the world, with about one-third of girls married before the age of 18, and another third giving birth before the age of 19. Girls who are married young are not only robbed of their childhood but they are also robbed of their futures.
Save the Children worked with First Lady Fatima Maada Bio, the Ministry of Gender and Children’s Affairs, and other organizations to end child marriage in Sierra Leone and set a pathway for other countries to follow suit. We also trained child marriage champions across the country.
2. The Gambia upholds ban of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)
The Gambia threw out a bill seeking to end a ban on the harmful practice of female genital mutilation (FGB) which has widespread health implications for girls and women, including in childbirth.
The bill, if passed, would have overturned a 2015 ban on the practice, which was one of the few legal protections for women and girls in the West African nation which has one of the highest rates of FGM in the world, faced by 73% of women and girls aged 15 to 49.
FGM refers to the removal of all, or part, of the female external genitalia. It's also known as 'female genital cutting' or 'female circumcision'.
3. Children participate in G20 for the first time in its 25-year history
Three adolescents from Brazil made history as the first child representatives at the G20 summit, representing over 50,000 children from 60 countries at the event in Brazil. It was the first time that child have been involved in the event’s 25-year history, making a historic moment for children’s participation in global governance.
The teenagers - aged 16 and 17 years old - delivered a letter to leaders during the G20 Social Summit in November, which included messages from children around the world. This included their recommendations to leaders on how to promote children’s participation in global decision-making, including in climate decisions, decisions to address hunger and poverty, and mechanisms to achieve economic equity and fair investments.
4. Cobalt mines and catch up clubs in the Democratic Republic of Congo
In an initiative to tackle child labour in mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Save the Children ran catch-up clubs to help children in mining stay in school or to successfully return to the classroom.
Every year tens of thousands of children work at mine sites daily to support families in making ends meet. Extracting minerals on a small scale is a vital income for people in the DRC but it also comes with major health and safety risks as well as significant levels of harmful child labour.
Save the Children is calling for greater investment in cobalt Artisanal and Small-scale mines (ASM) communities to help parents to support their children without the necessity of child labour.
5. Community health workers cycle to tackle malaria in Cote d’Ivoire
Equipped with bikes and medical kits, thousands of community health workers in Cote d'Ivoire have helped to reduce cases of malaria by up to 70% in some areas of the country by cycling between remote villages to treat children and educate families.
Malaria is endemic in Cote d'Ivoire which is listed among the top 10 countries with the most cases of the disease. In a bid to tackle the disease, a team of about 8,300 community health workers equipped with bikes have become key players in reducing malaria mortality among children under five by diagnosing and treating the disease earlier.
Save the Children has been working in Cote D'Ivoire since 1991. The malaria project is implemented in about 53 health districts in Cote D’Ivoire and in more than 1,270 health areas, in collaboration with six other organizations.
6. Laos becomes first country in Southeast Asia to ban corporal punishment
This year, Laos became the 66th country in the world to outlaw corporal punishment – a crucial milestone in child rights.
Corporal punishment takes many forms, including smacking or slapping, kicking, shaking, burning and forcing children to stay in uncomfortable positions. It also includes non-physical humiliating treatment which belittles the child.
However, there is still a lot of progress to make. An analysis by Save the Children this year suggests it will take another 60 years to meet the global target to eliminate of all forms of corporal punishment unless the current rate of progress is sped up.
7. Vanuatu teen activist at the International Court of Justice (ICJ)
Vepaia, a young climate activist from Vanuatu, headed to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) this year to advocate for the inclusion of children’s rights in a landmark case. She called for a strong advisory opinion at the world’s highest court that acknowledges countries’ obligations to tackle the climate crisis and protect future generations.
She was supported and trained by a team at Save the Children Vanuatu’s Next Generation Youth Ambassador programme which provides participants with negotiation and media training skills to communicate and engage in national, regional and global discussions on climate change from a child rights perspective. Vepaia travelled as part of the official Vanuatu delegation and was a keynote speaker at the ICJ Candlelight Vigil and the ICJ People's Climate Justice Museum Exhibition Opening.
The Advisory Opinion from the international court case is expected next year.
8. World record set at conference to end violence against children
The First Global Ministerial Conference to End Violence Against Children was held in Bogota, Colombia, this year with representatives from 119 countries pledging to work together to eradicate violence against children. This conference set an official Guinness World Record for hosting the most countries ever at a childhood violence event.
During the summit, agreements were reached in several key areas with 63% of attendees committed to strengthening response and support services, 59% to improving legal protection frameworks, and 46% to providing greater support to families and caregivers.
The conference also gave a platform to 22 children from various countries, who shared their challenges in the face of violence. Inger Ashing, CEO of Save the Children International, participated in several sessions highlighting the importance of educating children about their rights.
A global investment was also announced at the meeting aimed at strengthening child protection systems, developing safe environments, and promoting digital child protection.
In a symbolic act, children entered the auditorium with candles, reaffirming the commitment of all countries to take immediate action on behalf of children.
9. Children in southern Malawi better equipped against climate-aggravated health risks
One fifth of the population of southern Malawi will be better equipped to safeguard against climate-aggravated health risks due to a US$37 million initiative announced in October by the Green Climate Fund, the Government of Malawi, and Save the Children and its partners.
The project, Climate resilient health and well-being for rural communities in Southern Malawi, will focus on children and other vulnerable groups who are most affected by climate shocks such as cyclones, floods and droughts and aims to directly benefit about 22% of the country’s population across six districts in southern Malawi over the next five years.
Climate events are becoming more frequent and severe due to the climate crisis, leading to spiralling cases of water- and vector-borne diseases like malaria, cholera and diarrhoea.
10. Deliveries by drone make childbirth safer for refugees in Rwanda
In Rwanda a life-saving initiative is giving women in Rwanda’s largest refugee camp the chance to give birth under safer circumstances.
Women giving birth in the Mahama Refugee camp in eastern Rwanda no longer have to travel for hours to receive specialist care after Save the Children renovated a medical centre at the camp near the country’s border with Tanzania and partnered with US drone company Zipline to enable quick delivery of blood and other medical supplies.
The drones are used to replenish the health centre’s blood bank which means that patients needing blood transfusions, including women suffering from postpartum haemmorrhage, no longer have to travel two hours by road to a district hospital.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Save the Children.
