Home > UN Special Session on Children > The road to the Special Session

The road to the Special Session

To find more information on what your country has been doing since the World Summit for Children go to UNICEF's website. There you'll find the most recent data on children's rights including national end-decade reviews,reports to the Committee on the Rights of the Child, by governments as well as NGOs.
For more information see: www.unicef.org/specialsession/how_country/index.html

National activities and end-decade reviews

The World Summit for Children Plan of Action called on governments to prepare NPAs to implement the World Summit commitments in a coordinated and strategic manner. Over 155 countries carried out NPAs for children and social development. These plans have been implemented to certain degrees. Almost all of these plans were adapted to reflect country-specific challenges and goals.

Extensive end-decade review and reporting processes were established at national, regional and international levels. Participants in the reviews included intersectoral government bodies, parliamentarians, national and international NGOs and civil society organisations, religious groups, academic institutions, the media, United Nations agencies and donors. This helped ensure broad ownership of review findings and consensus on priorities for future action. Various efforts were also made to encourage participation by children, notably through children's and youth parliaments, forums and opinion polls. A number of countries extended the review to sub-national levels through local surveys and consultations.

By the end of April 2001, 130 reports were received from governments and 15 reports had been received from UN agencies and other groups. Many countries made specific reference to the close links between the end decade review process for the World Summit and reporting to the Committee on the Rights of the Child and other relevant UN human rights treaty monitoring bodies. One of the most encouraging aspects of many national
reviews has been the extent to which they have gone beyond a retrospective analysis to set priorities for future policies on children.

Regional meetings

The World Summit Plan of Action requested that all regional institutions (including regional political and economic organisations) include consideration of the Declaration and Plan of Action on their agendas, with a view to developing agreements for mutual collaboration on follow-up. At six regional meetings, governments presented reports on their progress in meeting their national commitments to their children. Meetings took place in Africa, the Arab States, East Asia and the Pacific, South Asia, Europe and Central Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

In addition to these government meetings consultations were held amongst NGOs and civil society, and specialised meetings were organised to ensure the effective participation by under-18-year-olds in the Special Session process. Hundreds of meetings took place around the world. A series of meetings (almost 20 in total) brought together youth in places that spanned the globe, including Pakistan, Panama, Lesotho, and Berlin. NGOs and other civil society groups organised many meetings in their respective regions. National reviews gained additional visibility through
linkages with high-level regional events. Some of the outcome reports of those meetings are also available. Meetings were held in Africa, Asia, Central America and Caribbean, Europe, Middle East,North America, Oceania, and South America. All these events have all helped to add to the impact of this Special Session.

An overview of the Prepcom process

The Special Session on Children has been the culmination of several years work by governments and NGOs alike. The formal process included three preparatory committee meetings (also called Prepcoms) where government officials met to discuss and negotiate the text of 'A World Fit For Children', the proposed outcome document of the Special Session.

Government delegates elected a small Bureau to manage the proceedings of the Prepcom. The Bureau has Ambassador Patricia Durrant (Jamaica) as Chairperson, and four Vice-Chairs: Ambassador Madina Ly Tall (Mali),Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury (Bangladesh), Ambassador Hanns Schumacher (Germany), and Deputy Minister Lidija Topic (Rapporteur - Bosnia and Herzegovina).

UNICEF served as the Substantive Secretariat of the Preparatory Committee, which means that it: prepared documents (such as the 'We the Children' report); prepared initial drafts of the outcome document according to the directions given by the governments and the Bureau; drafted
the agenda of the Prepcom for discussion; and proposed specific events for the Prepcoms - such as the panel sessions - and suggested
key speakers.

UNICEF had been working on a 'Global Agenda for Children' since 1998, and had shared this document with NGOs in mid-2000.

The first Prepcom was held from 29 May to 2 June 2000, the second from 28 January to 2 February 2001, and the third from 11-15 June 2001.

Key outcomes of the first Prepcom

UNICEF was asked to produce the first draft of the outcome document by November 2000 for consultation with governments.
it was agreed that the outcome document was to be concise, action-oriented, forward-looking,'do-able', and measurable.
it was agreed that children and young people's involvement in the Special Session should be 'substantial', but the exact nature of it was unclear.
The Child Rights Caucus addressed the Prepcom and prepared documentation.

Key outcomes of the second Prepcom

a majority of governments called for a restructured action-oriented outcome document with realistic, achievable goals.
many governments stressed the importance of the UNCRC and of a rights focused approach.
government statements emphasised: health, education, HIV/AIDS, poverty and debt reduction, children and conflict, violence against children, environment, gender and participation.
governments addressed the need to incorporate commitments made at world conferences held over the last decade.
a second draft of the outcome document to be made available by mid-March.
decisions on proposals for the participation of children in the Special Session were to be made at the third Prepcom.
a proposal to hold a Children's Forum prior to the Special Session was to be developed.

Key outcomes of the third Prepcom

The third version of 'A World Fit for Children' issued in May was a significant improvement upon earlier versions of the document, particularly in terms of strengthening the child rights approach of the document. This version included a number of amendments, for which the Child Rights Caucus and other NGOs had been lobbying.

These improvements included:

stronger language on child participation,
new references to sexual and reproductive health care, early childhood care and education, and universal access to education by 2015,
new strategies related to protection from armed conflict, child labour, and sexual exploitation,
additions to the mobilising resources section, and
a new commitment to national-level monitoring systems.

Not all these changes were subsequently agreed to, and the Prepcom failed to finalise the document. The contentious issues that halted the third Prepcom included:

the issues of resources (with developing countries pressing for a strong commitment to the provision of additional money),
the status of the UNCRC as a framework for action, and language on rights and the UNCRC in general,
reproductive health,
references to the Israel-Palestine dispute and to Iraq.

Negotiations after the third Prepcom

Informal government negotiations were held in September 2001. Some 23 new paragraphs were agreed during this meeting. The negotiations on the outcome document were stopped following the events of September 11. A number of key issues still needed to be discussed before a final consensus text could be reached.

The key problem areas were:

paragraphs 4 and 29 of the outcome document concerning the status of the UNCRC.
paragraph 8 on resources and the manner in which these resources will be made available.
paragraph 15 on the definition of the family.
references to reproductive health throughout the document.
paragraphs on child labour.

In March 2002 the Chair of the Special Session Preparatory Committee, Ambassador Durrant circulated a new text, the "Draft Chairperson's Proposals" that she proposed as the basis for continued negotiations for the outcome document. Governments resumed negotiations on 22 April 2002.

Further reading

'Update on the Preparatory Process of the Special Session of the General Assembly for Follow-up to the World Summit for Children in 2001. Report of the Secretary-General (3 May 2000) (A/AC/256/5) [ word or pdf ]

'State of the Preparations for the Special Session of the General Assembly in 2001 for the Follow-up to the World Summit for Children, Report of the Secretary-General (A/55/429, 26 Septembre 2000) [ word or pdf ]

The Secretary General submitted to the First PrepCom an Update on the preparatory process for the Special Session of the General Assembly for follow-up to the World Summit for Children in 2001. This document highlights the roles of different groups and organisations within the review process. (A/AC/256/5, 3 May 2000) [ word or pdf format ]

'Report of the Preparatory Committee for the Special Session of the General Assembly in 2001 for the Follow-up to the World Summit for Children on its first substantive session' (A/AC.256/3-E/ICEF/2000/13, dated June 2000) [ word or pdf format ]

'Report of the Preparatory Committee for the Special Session of the General Assembly in 2001 for the Follow-up to the World Summit for Children on its Organisational Session' (February 2000) (A/55/43 (Part I), dated 25 February 2000) [word or pdf]

Report of the Preparatory Committee for the Special Session of the General Assembly on Children, General Assembly, Official records, Twenty-seventh Special Session, Supplement No 2 (A/S-27/2, dated 28 February 2001) [pdf]

'Report of the Preparatory Committee for the Special Session of the General Assembly on Children', General Assembly, Official records, Twenty-seventh Special Session, Supplement No 2 (A/S-27/2, dated 28 February 2001) [ pdf ]

'Report of the Preparatory Committee for the Special Session of the General Assembly on Children on its third session', (A/S-27/2/Add.1 (part1)), dated 18 June 2001) [pdf ], or summary [word ]

The drafting of the outcome document

The drafting of the outcome document. UNICEF had been working on a 'Global Agenda for Children' since 1998, and had shared this document with NGOs in mid-2000. At the first Prepcom, UNICEF was asked to produce the first draft of the outcome document by November 2000 for consultation with governments. Here are details of the drafting process of the outcome of the UN Special Session on Children, including a number of drafts of the outcome.

Draft Outcome Document (A/AC.256/CRP.6, dated 4 December 2000) [word or pdf format] This version was written by the Bureau following the First PrepCom. It was the basis for discussion at the Second PrepCom (New York, 29 January to 2 February 2001). Also available in French [word or pdf formats] and Spanish [word or pdf formats]
Revised Draft Outcome Document (A/AC.256/CRP.6/Rev.1, dated 19 March 2001) [word or pdf format] The Preparatory Committee authorized its Bureau to prepare this version, with support of the substantive secretariat (UNICEF) following the Second PrepCom. This version took into account the views expressed during its second substantive session. Also available in French [word or pdf formats] and Spanish [word or pdf formats].
Second Revised Draft Outcome Document (A/AC.256/CRP.6/rev.2, dated 17 May 2001) [word or pdf format] The Bureau to prepared this version, with support of the substantive secretariat (UNICEF) following the Second PrepCom. This version took into account the views expressed during informal negotiations with governments after the Second PrepCom. Also available in French [word or pdf formats] and Spanish [word or pdf formats]
Third Revised Draft Outcome Document (A/AC.256/CRP.6/Rev.3 dated 7 June 2001) [word part I , word part II , pdf part I, pdf part II ] This version was prepared days before the start of the Third PrepCom, during informal negotiations with governments. It formed the basis for discussions at the Third PrepCom (New York, 11-15 June 2001). Also available in French [word part I, word part II, pdf part I, pdf part II ] and Spanish [word part I, word part II, pdf part I, pdf part II ].
Informal compilation texts following the third Prepcom:
'A World Fit for Children - negotiations to date based on the third revised draft outcome document,' (dated 29 June 2001, 9 pm).
'A World Fit for Children' - compilation text: 7 September 2001 (A/AC.256/CRP.6/Rev.4) [ pdf format ].
'A World Fit for Children', showing agreed text as of 10 September 2001 and outstanding paragraphs marked "(pending)" from document A/AC.256/CRP.6/Rev.3.

Chairperson's text - 'A World Fit for Children' - As of 18 March 2002, the latest draft outcome document for the UN Special Session on Children becomes a version drafted by the Chair of Preparatory Committee, Ambassador Durrant. This is now proposed as the basis for continued negotiations on the outcome document. This is essentially a chair's compromise text for remaining paragraphs to be negotiated [word or pdf formats].

Final outcome (A/S-27/19/Rev.1 dated 10 May 2002) [pdf format in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Arabic].

^ top of page