Children will meet with National and Provincial leaders of Viet Nam on World Children’s Day to voice their concerns to decision makers

“It’s a fun day with a serious point, a day of action for children, by children when children meet with political leaders it gives them an opportunity to shine a light on the most pressing challenges faced by their generation. It’s relevant to Viet Nam, given the newly effective Law on Children provides greater alignment with the Convention on the Rights of Child, including children’s rights to participation,” said Youssouf Abdel-Jelil, Representative of UNICEF in Viet Nam.

The day, set for November 20, marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989 and the mobilization of the first World Children’s Day. Children from around the world will ‘take over’ key roles in media, politics, business, sport and entertainment to help bringing children’s issue to the public agenda.

Below is a calendar of key events in Viet Nam:

Saturday, 18 November 2017:

Dialogue between Children in Ho Chi Minh City and Vice Chair of Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee and leaders of different city’s departments. Children will talk about issues that children in the City are facing with, their recommendations to address these issues, their view about a city that they would want to live in as well as what they themselves can do to contribute to build such a city. They also introduce the newly established City Children’s Council and how this council can help to realize their rights of participation.

Monday, 20 November 2017:

Meeting with Madame Tong Thi Phong, Vice Chair of National Assembly. Children will learn about the role that National Assembly plays to ensure the realization of children’s rights. They will also share with the Vice Chair the outcomes of the National Children’s Forum and request due attention of the National Assembly to address these issues.

Meeting with Minister of Labour, Invalid and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung. Children will learn about the work that have been carrying out in realize children’s rights by the ministry responsible for child care and protection. They will also share with the Minister children’s concerns, especially those related to violence against children and request the Ministry to put greater efforts in addressing these concerns.

17-23 November 2017 

Children taking over UNICEF Viet Nam’s Social Media. For a week, UNICEF’s Social Media Platform will be managed by a group of children from Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh City and Lao Cai, a northern mountainous province of Viet Nam to amplify their voice and reach a broad audience. They will develop a plan and produce materials which reflects children’s voice from different parts of the country and representative of different contexts.

Children from across the world have a chance to be a part of the global event. Children can watch the remake of P!NK’s song ‘What about us’ by Kids United and PS22. Kids are invited to film themselves doing the signature #WorldChildrensDay move, and to share it using the #WorldChildrensDay hashtag. The moves of the selected children will be part of the ‘world version’ of this video to be released in December.

Around the world, leaders across levels of government will support World Children’s Day, including Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Ireland Leo Varadkar, President of France Emmanuel Macron, Prime Minister of Jordan Hani Al-Mulki, President of Chile Michelle Bachelet and with support from the United States Conference of Mayors, mayors from across the U.S. will participate.

UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador David Beckham, singer, songwriter and actress P!nk, actress Millie Bobby Brown, singers, songwriters and musicians Chloe x Halle, legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar are among the many stars, lending their voices to children for World Children’s Day

More than 50 organizations globally will turn over roles to children including LEGO, Qantas and H&M Foundation. For example, to celebrate children’s right to play, children will take over the roles of Chairman of the LEGO Foundation Thomas Kirk Kristiansen, and Chief Marketing Officer of the LEGO Group Julia Goldin. The children will spend the day directing a team of advertising creatives at LEGO® House and LEGO offices in the making of a LEGO stop-motion advert on the power of play to be released early January 2018.

In schools around the world, children will also take over classrooms and assemblies to raise their voices and fundraise in solidarity with the world’s most disadvantaged and vulnerable children.

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Note to editors:

Once available, videos and photos of the events can be downloaded here 

 

For further information please visit: http://www.worldchildrensday.org/

For more information about UNICEF and its work for children visit www.unicef.org/vietnam.

For the latest available data on children visit data.unicef.org.

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