Why all would-be MEPs should sign the Child Rights Manifesto

This weekend's elections are rightfully seen as a crossroad to define the future of the European Union. It is paramount to include children’s priorities in today’s decision-making, as they are one of the most impacted groups by the decisions that we will take in the upcoming years.

But, as future members of the European Parliament, are we listening to children? Are we putting their needs and rights at the centre of our political agendas? Are we committing to adopting a child-lens approach when shaping future European policies?

So far, over 150 candidates replied ‘yes’ to all these questions by signing the Child Rights Manifesto. Endorsed by a coalition of 23 child rights organisations, the manifesto is a pledge to us, EU election candidates, to ensure we will prioritise children’s rights throughout our mandates if elected.

However, we need to maintain the momentum and keep this number growing. We must hold ourselves even more accountable to children when making important decisions that affect their lives.

In the past five years as members of the European Parliament, we have seen some important progress being made – for example, the adoption of the EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child and the European Child Guarantee. Together, these initiatives help advance EU policies and funding opportunities that protect children's rights and provide essential services for vulnerable children.

The past European Parliament legislature also saw the emergence of the Youth Action Plan, aiming for the EU to collaborate with young people to shape its external action and towards achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Progress has been made but circumstances in which many children live, within and outside the European Union, continue to show how the EU, in the upcoming 2024-2029 legislature, must keep children’s needs on the front burner.

Poverty and social exclusion are on the rise, putting at risk one-in-four children in the EU

Climate change is affecting the lives of one billion children all over the world – this is one-in-seven children globally. The number of conflicts, including at Europe’s borders, keeps increasing, with a record number of children  – more than one-in-six – now living in a conflict zone worldwide.

The commitments listed in the manifesto are not vague promises, but concrete actions. Starting by re-establishing the Intergroup on Children's Rights, which is the first and only cross-party cross-national formal body in the European Parliament dedicated to protecting children’s rights. 

That is why all of us must ensure the Intergroup gets re-established.

Another practical step outlined in the manifesto is adopting a child-centred EU budget and investing in all children as part of current and future EU internal and external funding.

The before-mentioned EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child needs to be effectively implemented through EU and national action plans that are adequately resourced and monitored. While the European Child Guarantee needs adequate funding, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

Children’s consultations are taking place around Europe and beyond, such as the #EuropeKidsWant survey, collecting the voices of over 9,000 children in Europe. Children are asking the future European Parliament members not just to listen to their voices but to hear and act upon them.

This starts by committing to putting children’s rights at the heart of our mandates. This is why we are urging all of us as EU election candidates, no matter from which party or member state we come, to sign the Child Rights Manifesto and work with and for children to build the European Union that children want, where they can grow and thrive.