UN General Assembly
2014

evaluate the progress made in safeguarding the rights of women and children. All children have the right to live a life free from fear and violence. That is the essential prerequisite for the development of their full range of skills and talents. Earlier this year, Jamaica was pleased to host, alongside the Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Violence against Children, an interregional meeting that examined the impact of violence against children. I urge members, as we craft the post-2015 development agenda, to be seized of the importance of addressing the special needs of children and youth. We also call for special attention to be paid to achieving gender equality. Rooting out violence against women, enhancing women’s economic empowerment and promoting their equal participation at all levels of decision-making should be essential tasks in that regard. I now turn to the problem posed by the heinous activity of human trafficking, a crime of global proportions that exploits the most vulnerable among us, not the least of whom are women and children. Jamaica calls upon the United Nations Office on Drugs and