World Children’s Day 2025: “My Day, My Rights” Pushes Global Call to Listen to Children’s Voices
As the world prepares to mark World Children’s Day, the United Nations is calling for renewed commitment to children’s rights under the global theme “My Day, My Rights.” The day commemorates the anniversary of the UN’s adoption of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child in 1959 and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1989, widely regarded as the most universally accepted human rights treaty in history.
This year’s theme underscores an urgent global message: children must be heard, and their lived realities whether hopeful or difficult, must guide policy and action.
A Call to Prioritise Children’s Voices
Across the world, children continue to face challenges that threaten their dignity, development and survival. According to recent global data:
- 333 million children live in extreme poverty without reliable access to food, clean water, shelter or healthcare.
- Millions are impacted by conflict, displacement, climate disasters and economic instability.
- Barriers to education, mental health support, justice, birth registration and child protection persist in many regions.
The UNCRC outlines 54 articles guaranteeing children’s rights to survival, education, protection from violence and exploitation, and participation in decisions that affect them. Although 194 countries are signatories, implementation gaps remain significant.
World Children’s Day 2025 therefore emphasises meaningful participation, ensuring children are not only consulted but that their views influence decisions within families, schools, communities and government institutions.
2024 S.A.F.E.® Children’s Hangout Highlights What Children Want
In 2024 during a special World Children’s Day hangout organised by the S.A.F.E.® For Children Society in collaboration with the Taiwo AKINLAMI Academy. The event, themed “What Are Our Precious Children Saying About the World They Want?”, invited children to articulate their aspirations for the future.
The session moderated by the leading Child Safeguarding and Protection advocate Mr. Taiwo Akinlami, offered insights that align closely with this year’s global theme. Children shared clear priorities, including:
- An end to violence and conflict in communities and nations.
- Food security and economic stability for all families.
- Access to basic amenities, quality education and supportive learning environments.
- A cooperative world where nations work together for peace and progress.
- Urgent action on climate change, which children recognise as a direct threat to their future.
The conversation demonstrated what effective child participation looks like, which is a safe space where children speak openly and adults listen with the intent to act.
🎥 The full replay is available here
World Children’s Day 2025: A Call to Action
This year’s theme, “My Day, My Rights,” challenges all of us; governments, families, schools, communities, and institutions to:
1. Listen to Children
Children are experts in their own experiences. Their voices must shape policies, programs, and protections.
2. Respect and Protect Their Rights
Every child deserves safety, education, healthcare, dignity, and identity without discrimination or delay.
3. Take Children’s Priorities Seriously
Children are disproportionately impacted by global challenges. Their insights must inform sustainable solutions.
4. Create Platforms for Meaningful Participation
Children must be part of conversations about the world they want to inherit.
5. Build Systems That Leave No Child Behind
From child safeguarding to equitable education, the world must commit to placing children at the heart of development.
Children Are Not Just the Future, They Are the Present
As the world celebrates World Children’s Day 2025, we reaffirm a simple truth:
Children’s voices matter.
Their dreams matter.
Their rights matter every day.
Let this year be a turning point where adults move from hearing children to actively listening, from acknowledging their rights to fully upholding them, and from admiring their dreams to investing in their reality. Because when we protect children’s rights, we protect our shared future.
Source of Image: StockCake
