Financing for Development requires move in resources from billions to trillions - savings from ending violence against children will be a crucial contribution

Addis Ababa, 13 July 2015 - SRSG Santos Pais co-hosted with Unicef an event at the Financing for Development Conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where a Global Partnership and associated Fund to end violence against children was announced. This new initiative seeks to mobilize the resources needed to deliver on Target 16.2 of the Sustainable Development Agenda (SDG) to “End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children.”

The Global Partnership is expected to mobilize wide cross regional support for the implementation of the SDGs related to violence against children, and a vehicle to galvanize greater investment in solutions to reduce violence in the lives of children, as well as to generate new and greater funding.

“The proposed new Partnership and Fund to End Violence against Children will be an essential component of the global partnership for implementation of the SDGs. It will harness an ever growing support and generate greater funding for the protection of children. I strongly support the important efforts being promoted to establish the Partnership and Fund, and I am committed to joining forces to help bring it about.” said SRSG Santos Pais.

The announcement of the new Global Partnership and Fund at the Financing for Development Conference underscores the importance of greater investment in tackling violence against children. Research shows that violence against children leads to substantial economic losses (estimated at 2-8% of GDP), while also decreasing the effectiveness of investments in child survival and development, education and protection.

The “Sustaining Investments in Childhood” event was part of the programme of the Third Conference on Financing for Development held in Addis Ababa. It included participation of a panel of high-level representatives from the governments of Canada, Tanzania and the UK, civil society representatives, Save the Children, and private sector, Becton, Dickinson Company. The panelists’ organizations are members of a core group of partners who are engaged in the development of the Global Partnership and Fund. 

The Global Partnership to End Violence against Children offers an opportunity to bring together and strengthen the efforts of governments, international organizations, civil society, faith-based organizations, the private sector, philanthropists and foundations, researchers and academics to confront violence against children based on the principle that “No violence against children is justifiable. All violence against children is preventable”.

More information on the Global Partnership