The cities of our dreams: A safe and child friendly New Urban Agenda

To promote safe and non-violent cities and urban spaces for and with children, and inform the discussions at the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Development – Habitat III – held in Quito, Ecuador, from 16 -20 October 2016, the SRSG on Violence against Children organized with key partners - the Global Movement for Children of Latin America and the Caribbean (MMI LAC), the Regional Network of Girls, Boys and Teenagers, REDNNYAS, Save the Children and World Vision - a series of national consultations and a regional consultation with children, young people and mayors from Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador and Peru. About 400 children and adolescents aged 6 to 16 participated in this process. The consultations led to the development of a child-friendly version of the New Urban Agenda, “The cities of our dreams”. The outcomes of the consultation with children and mayors were presented by young participants during a side event organized by the Special Representative on “Strengthening the role of mayors to safeguard children’s rights to freedom from violence in urban settings”. The event was supported by UNICEF, the Habitat Secretariat, the MMI LAC, the Regional Network of Children and Adolescents of Latin America and the Caribbean, the Know Violence Initiative, and the Igarape Institute. Children’s views and recommendations were also presented during the Children and Youth Forum convened by the Habitat Secretariat and during the Special Session on Safer Cities organized by UN-Habitat in cooperation with the Special Representative. The Special session focused on the means of implementation of the New Urban Agenda and helped to identify positive practices in building safer urban environments worldwide.