National Report - Canada Ten-Year Review of the World Summit for Children

Youth-Friendly Summary

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What is this report? Why is it important to you?

This report is the youth version of Canada's National Report-Ten Year Review of the World Summit for Children, which was sent to the UN in preparation for the the Special Session on Children of the UN General Assembly September 19-21, 2001 in New York City. It describes the progress made by Canada in achieving the goals set out at the World Summit for Children (WSC) in 1990 - its purpose is to report on government responsibilities and achievements.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child outlines many rights of children, including the right of children to participate in decisions that concern their lives, and the right to have their opinions heard. In this spirit, Canada realizes that the participation of well-informed young people is important to the success of initiatives meant to benefit the well-being and development of all children - essentially, implementing the goals of the WSC is a way of realising those rights in your lives. Producing this youth-friendly report is a priority for the Government of Canada because it gives you the means to fully understand the progress Canada has made in the last ten years as well as highlighting areas for improvement.

The government has worked in partnership with two Canadian organizations, the Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children (CCRC) and Save the Children Canada (SCC), in order to involve voluntary organizations and children and youth in this Ten Year Review. Children and youth will participate via the internet, through direct involvement in preparatory meetings, in focus groups, as well as in the Special Session itself. For more information on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, on the World Summit for Children, and on Canada's commitments to children, you can read the "adult" version of this report - you can get it at http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/dca-dea/.

Also, use your local library or school internet access to visit the websites mentioned throughout this report for more information.