May 2024 – The report from Watchlist’s January 2024 annual policy workshop on children and armed conflict (CAAC), hosted jointly with Columbia University’s School of International and Political Affairs (SIPA), was issued as an official UN Security Council document (S/2024/335) at the request of the Permanent Mission of Malta to the United Nations.
The workshop convened representatives of United Nations Member States, including members of the Security Council, the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict (OSRSG-CAAC), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the Department of Peace Operations (DPO), the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the International Committee of the Red Cross, civil society organizations, and academia to discuss priorities for the UN’s CAAC agenda in 2024. The aim of the workshop was to engage participants in identifying priorities and developing recommendations for concrete, targeted actions to be taken in the coming year within the framework of the CAAC agenda.
The workshop consisted of three closed working sessions dedicated to (1) supporting the implementation of the CAAC agenda through the Security Council Working Group on CAAC and the Group of Friends of CAAC; (2) examining the impacts of explosive weapons on children living in situations of armed conflict, ongoing efforts to mitigate harm to children from such weapons, and future areas for action and research; and (3) focusing on progress, lessons learned, and continuing barriers to holding perpetrators accountable for grave violations against children in armed conflict at the international and domestic levels.
Read the official report of the January 2024 Annual Policy Workshop.
Photo credit: © Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict
