World Children’s Day

WATCH THE VIDEO
Click below to see clips from Charlotte’s interview with UN Secretary General António Guterres.

On November 20, UNICEF hosted World Children’s Day at the United Nations (UN) in New York City. UNICEF, which is short for United Nations Children’s Fund, aids vulnerable children in developing countries.

This year, the organization invited kids around the world to “take over” key roles in government, business, and the media. At the UN, young people addressed diplomats from several countries.

Charlotte interviews UN Secretary General António Guterres.

“I’m here to represent my fellow African brothers and sisters,” said Lathitha Beyile, 14, from Soweto, South Africa. “Childhood is stolen from them every day. It’s not fair for children to get the side effects of something they’ve never done. Children aren’t part of the wars or the economic problems, but they often feel the consequences.”

World Children’s Day was established in 1959. This year marks the 28th anniversary of the adoption of the UN’s Convention on the Rights of the Child. The document details the rights to which children around the world are entitled.

This was the first year that UNICEF hosted a gathering with kids at UN headquarters.

“The most important thing we need to do is invest in children,” said UN Secretary General António Guterres. “The world . . . needs to spend much more in education. It needs to stop the conflicts that are forcing children to flee, [and] it needs to offer children the opportunities to have a much better life.”

Charlotte with actor Jaden Michael, who hosted the World Children’s Day “takeover” at the UN

SPEAKING UP FOR KIDS

Kids from around the world journeyed to New York to discuss ways to improve life for vulnerable children. In a vast assembly hall, which was filled with both kids and world leaders, young activists shared their stories.

Eleven-year-old Nance, whose family fled Syria after a civil war broke out, now lives in the United States. She hopes to be an optometrist when she grows up.

“If I become an eye doctor,” Nance said, “I can travel back to Syria and other places to help people around the world.”

Charlotte with Lathitha Beyile, 14, a youth activist from Soweto, South Africa

Jaden Michael, a young American actor, co-hosted the event with Nickelodeon actress Isabela Moner. Jaden said that he hoped “to make adults listen up because we’re going to change the world.”

As for the adults, Guterres said that his goal was to inform global leaders that “only with development and human rights is it possible to guarantee all children a wonderful future.” He hopes that kids will realize that despite controversies and disagreements, “the UN is essentially an instrument for the good of . . .  humankind.”