Children’s Day: a day people from across continents join hands to celebrate children’s welfare and promote international togetherness. It’s no surprise that it’s a day a lot of children look forward to – maybe even your toddler!

But have you ever wondered how Children’s Day came to be?

The Story Behind Closed Curtains

On the 14th of December, 1956, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly raised the necessity of creating an annual Universal Children’s Day. It’s main aim was to establish a day to encourage all member countries to promote mutual understanding and awareness among children, all the while promoting children’s welfare.

It had a noble cause, and so all member states took action. The day was unanimously coined on the 20th of November – which is a pretty significant date in itself. It is the same date that two very important motions were adopted: the Declaration of the Rights of the Child (in 1959) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (in 1989).

It started with a simple aim, but gradually, the list began getting longer. As the Millennium rolled by, all member states of the UN realised that there are a lot more problems children suffer from, that need immediate attention: spread of diseases as serious as HIV and Aids, lack of education, child labour, forced marriage, violence, neglect, and psychological repercussions caused by war or armed conflict are just to name a few.

A Brighter Future?

Although the prospects just mentioned paint the world in a dull light, we still have enough reasons to smile.

UNICEF (United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund) has worked hard to give children the rights they deserve – from preventing forced marriages to helping out malnourished populations, they constantly strive to give children what they deserve: a happy, healthy life.

Their efforts have helped open special institutions, agendas and measures all across the globe to promote child rights. Both governmental and non-governmental organisations have proved to bring a positive shift to the tide built against children.

UNICEF has also valued global distribution of immunisation to children – so much so, that their efforts resulted in the complete eradication of polio in India in 2012. Moreover, Africa celebrated August 2015 as the first year without any reported polio cases. Their fight against such diseases still continues as we speak!

Considering mental health as important as physical health, UNICEF has actively deployed counsellors in war-torn areas like Gaza (in October 2016), to protect children affected by war and violence at a young, impressionable age. UNICEF does not plan to stop, and aims to expand their resources to other children in need.


We can’t say all the world’s problems have been solved – but we can agree that we’re on our way. Though it may seem like a long journey, it’s not impossible if we inspire our children to help one another and improve the world.

Nurseries in JLT also hold this positive light – especially Oakfield Early Learning Centre. In fact, they see the hope of a better future in their children, and so teach a curriculum based on a mission written in stone: to create responsible learners from children, capable of making the world a better place.

They say that every drop adds to the ocean – and we could not agree more. As parents, always contribute to the betterment of children’s welfare, no matter how small: whether you teach your child valuable lessons, donate to other children in need, or even if you spread laughter – it all counts in the grand scheme of things.

 

Image source: UNICEF in Myanmar.