2020:

Gendermatters

CHILDREN’S FOREWORDSC

hildren have nothing to do with the causesof armed conflicts, yet we are the ones mostaffected by it – exposed to hunger and disease,displaced, tortured, killed, sexually abused, deprivedof education, trafficked, separated from parents,
recruited as child soldiers. When will children’s
suffering end?
When I advocate for girls’ rights in conflict,
I am reminded of all the stories of sisters discriminated against because of their sex. As girls, ourvoices are silenced, our wings clipped. Here in
Nigeria, discrimination is worse for girls living inconflict-­affected areas. Some are forced into earlymarriage by their parents as a means of economic
survival and protection. I stand in sympathy andsolidarity with them – and with millions of girls
in similar situations around the world. Children
living in conflict areas like Northeast Nigeria canonly live for today, not knowing if there will be atomorrow. This has to change.
World leaders must focus on upholding children’s rights in conflict. We want a world wherechildren like me enjoy the right to life, free expression, education, health care, and other basic rights
and social services. A world where we have theopportunity to grow up, fulfil our dreams, help our
siblings, parents and community, and positively
influence the future of our country. Countries cannot harvest what they didn’t sow. The better therights of children are protected today, the morepeaceful and livable our communities will be in the
future. When children know their rights, they canspeak for themselves and others – and cannot be
intimidated. We can ask questions and demand a
response.
I hope that the evidence gathered in this reportwill result in governments and other stakeholders
carrying out specific actions to ensure children’s
rights are upheld and that children are includedin the decision-making processes that affect us.
The representatives of children in these processes
should come from all walks of life regardless ofsex, level of education, family resources, or origin.
Leaders should understand that if we are notheard today, we cannot speak tomorrow.
Purity, girls’ rights advocate,age 14, Nigeria

2 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

G

rowing up as a child in a country like Colombia
is really difficult. It is not easy to develop in
an environment where violence in all its facetsis seen and lived on a daily basis, and where children are not seen as actors in building a peacefulsociety. We hear all the time that children are thefuture. But those words are not accompanied by
the actions of adults.
Abandoned by families and schools, many children’s development, education and participation
are permeated with despair. In Colombia there arevery few ways for children to participate. It is notin the culture to think that the voices of children
count. If things were different, different stories
could be born.
My dream for the children of my country is that
we can grow up healthy and free to enjoy ourchildhood. That we can enter spaces where we feelsafe to speak and know that our voice counts. And
that we are taught and learn to live in peace froma young age. Parents must support their children
in this – as with education, children’s participationin decision-making begins at home.
My message to world leaders is to recognisethat children in Colombia live in different situations
and are affected by conflict in different ways. As
children, we need opportunities.
Everything you do for someone matters, that iswhere change begins.
José, children’s rights advocate,age 15, Colombia

Ghazal, age eight, lives in a small
village in Kabul province, Afghanistan.
She is walks to school by herself but
dreads it – she is afraid of being kidnapped, of stepping on a landmine andof a suicide attack. As a girl, she also
faces a higher risk of harassment.
P H OTO : S T E FA N I E G L I N S K I /S AV E T H E C H I L D R E N

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 3

Previous reports on
the war on children:

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This report was written by Alvhild Strømme,Ewa Sapiezynska, Gunvor Knag Fylkesnes, Keyan Salarkia
and Jess Edwards from Save the Children.
This team was supported in producing the report byJames Denselow, Annie Bodmer-Roy, Michou Gerits,
Leslie Archambeault, Shannon Orcutt and other colleagues
across the Save the Children movement who provided
expert comments and review.
We would like to thank the research team from the Peace
Research Institute in Oslo for their background reports andanalysis – especially, Siri Aas Rustad and Gudrun Østby.
We would also like to thank the research team fromProteknon, and particularly Nidhi Kapur and
Hannah Thompson, for their background reporton gender analysis of the grave violations.

STOP
THE WARON CHILDRENPROTECTING CHILDREN
IN 21ST CENTURY CONFLICT

Stop the war on children – protecting children in 21st century conflict,2019

Most important, we would like to thank the children
who shared their testimonies, their feelings and theirhopes in the report’s foreword and case studies.
Names of children portrayed in case studies havebeen changed to protect identities.
Save the Children © 2020
Design: Kristoffer Nilsen
Copy-editor: Ravi WickremasingheThis publication is copyrighted, but may be reproduced
by any method without fee or prior permission for teaching purposes, but not for resale. For copying in any othercircumstances, prior written permission must be obtained
from the publisher, and a fee may be payable.

4 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

THE WARON CHILDRENASLDASØØDL

Time to end grave
violations againstchildren in conflict.

The war on children – time to end
grave violations against children in
conflict, 2018

CONTENTS
Children’s forewords 

2

Executive summary 

61 Introduction: The war on children 

82 How many children are affected by conflict? 

10International legal provisions addressing children’s rightsin conflict settings 15

3 Girls, boys and war: a gender analysis of
the six grave violations against children in conflict 

16

1 Killing and maiming of children 
2 The recruitment and use of children by armed forces and groups 
After exit 
3 Abduction of children 
4 Rape and other forms of sexual violence against children 
Sexual violence as a weapon of war 
Sexual violence against boys 
5 Attacks on schools and hospitals 
6 Denial of humanitarian access to children 

20
21
24
26
28
29
33
36
38

Conclusion and recommendations 

40

Appendices 

43Appendix 1: Methodology 
Appendix 2: Data limitations 
Appendix 3: Definitions used in this report 
Appendix 4: List of abbreviations Endnotes 

43
43
44
45

46

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 5

EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY“When ISIS took over our town, the fighting got worse.
I feel so much older than I am because of the war.
I feel like an old woman even though I am 16.”
Safaa, 16, Syria

The war on children
This is the third report in Save the Children's 'Stop the
War on Children' series. It reveals shocking trends
in the threats to the safety and wellbeing of children
living in areas impacted by conﬂict. In 2018, verified
grave violations against children reached a record
high.
415 million children worldwide are living in a
conflict zone, including 149 million children living in
high-intensity conflict zones where more than 1,000
battle-related deaths occur in a year.
Overall, the number of children living in conflictzones is highest in Africa, with 170 million in total.
Proportionately, the Middle East has the highest sharewith almost 1 out of 3 children in the region living inconflict zones.
Conflict is becoming increasingly dangerous forchildren. Since 2010, the number of children living inconflict zones has increased by 34%. At the same time,
the number of verified incidents of grave violations
against children have risen by 170%.
While there is no doubt that children engage in avariety of activities in humanitarian response design
as well as in building and sustaining peace, their voices
are not sufficiently heard and their potential remains
both under-recognised and underfunded.

6 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

Girls, boys and conflict
Alongside these overall numbers, this latest report
starts to delve into the differences between boys’ andgirls’ experiences of conflict through a gendered analy­
sis of verified grave violations. This highlights that:Girls are at far higher risk of sexual and otherforms of gender-based violence, including child, earlyand forced marriage. Boys are much more likely to
be exposed to killing and maiming, abductions andrecruitment.
Gendered understandings of conflict combinedwith persistent gender roles result in a focus on
public-sphere violations that are more often experienced by boys, and that are easier to identify andverify than private-sphere violations. By contrast,
violations in spaces that girls are more likely tooccupy are often unseen or ignored by others, rendering experiences of sexual violence and violations
against girls and children of diverse gender identities
under-reported and invisible.
Challenges in monitoring, reporting and verifying
violations – due to limited access to affected areas,
security concerns and sensitivity associated withviolations – mean that the true scale of violations
affecting children is under-reported. The influence ofgender on certain violations, such as sexual violenceagainst boys or the recruitment and use of girls, canresult in even lower rates of reporting.
There are particular challenges in understanding
and responding to rights violations experienced
by children of diverse gender identities. Reporting
mechanisms, when they are disaggregated at all,continue to rely on binary data representations ofgender. As a result, the experiences of children of all
genders and the full impact of violations against them
are unknown.

“I can still remember everything. That’s why I’m still
upset,” says eight-year-old Diana. When her family
home was bombed, her parents sold what was leftand escaped. The flight was long and dangerous.
At times the family was split up and living on thestreet. She is now in a camp in Dohuk in Iraq.
P H OTO : AY T U N C A K A D / PA N O S / S AV E T H E C H I L D R E N

ACT NOW
The facts and stories presented in this report paint anunacceptable reality. We urge the international community, states, armed groups and all other key stakeholders to step up their efforts to effectively protect
children in conflict. As set out in our previous ‘Stop
the War on Children’ reports, we believe states musttake action in three areas:• uphold international norms and standards• hold perpetrators of violations against children toaccount• enable children to recover from conflict and takepractical action to protect them from harm
Additionally, in order to recognise and respond to
the specific needs of boys, girls and children of diverse
gender identities and of different ages, states andhumanitarian actors must ensure their responses toprotect children in conflict are sensitive to differences
between ages and genders. We call on states andhumanitarian actors to:• Support the Office of the Special Representativeof the Secretary-General on Children and Armed
Conflict financially and diplomatically to ensure thatdata collection through the Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism is sex-disaggregated wheneverpossible, and support the office’s work with parties
to conflict so that action plans specifically address
the ways in which all the six grave violations affects
the genders. In addition, states and the humanitarian actors must develop, resource and implement
strategies that specifically identify and address thewider impact of conflict on girls, boys and children ofdiverse sexual orientation and gender identities. Thisshould go beyond the six grave violations to include
other violations of children’s rights in conflict, suchas those in the private sphere where girls are more
likely to be impacted.
• Increase multi-year investment in humanitarian childprotection with the aim of growing its proportionof total humanitarian funding from 0.5% to 4%,
including substantially increasing funding for bothmainstreamed and targeted interventions on genderequality, girls’ empowerment, and sexual and gender-based violence in humanitarian settings.
• Ensure meaningful participation for children in
responses and programmes, and when possible
always disaggregate target beneficiaries by age, sex,
and disability, and tailor responses accordingly.
For a full list of recommendations, see page 40.

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 7

1
INTRODUCTION:
THE WARON CHILDREN“When fighting breaks out, no place is safe in ourvillage, but home is still better than outside.
We hide in the corners of rooms.”— 14-year-old girl, AfghanistanChildren bear a disproportionate burden in conflict.
The latest number of UN-verified grave violations
against children in conflict shows yet again an
increase.
The six grave violations:• killing and maiming of children• recruitment and use of children by armed
forces or armed groups• abduction of children• attacks on schools or hospitals• denial of humanitarian access• rape and other forms of sexual violenceagainst children.
This report explores the different degrees to which
each of the six grave violations affects boys and girls.
And it also looks more broadly at how gender plays arole in the impact of conflict on children.
Alongside a year-on-year rise in the grave violations against children, there has been an overalland significant rise in the number of children living inconflict. Over the last three decades, the number ofchildren living in conflict zones has nearly doubled,
reaching 415 million in 2018. Since 2010, the numberof UN-verified grave violations against children has
almost tripled.
During this period, conflicts have also become
more protracted. The year 2019 marked 18 years ofconflict in Afghanistan between international forces
and the Taliban. Not a single child living in the country today was born into peace. In March 2020 the war

8 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

in Syria is set to enter its tenth year and in Yemen
it will be five years since the escalation of hostilities.
Successive generations of children in the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC), Somalia and what is now
South Sudan have grown up knowing no other circumstances than conflict.
The protraction of contemporary conflicts haschanged the nature of the risks children face – and asa consequence, the type of protection and assistancethey need. The effects of conflict on children are
multiple and wide-ranging. They include the physiological impact of explosive weapons; mental healthand psychosocial consequences of witnessing andexperiencing violence; and the socio-economic impact– and egregious consequences for children’s rights – oferoding infrastructure, displacing communities anddamaging basic services and support.
The exposure of large numbers of children to theseharmful effects is driven by three core deficiencies:• lack of compliance with international rules, laws andnorms• failure to hold perpetrators of violations to account• insufficient practical action to support children andenable their recovery.
While these challenges are significant and widespread, it is important to recognise that progress is
not only possible but already taking place. In 2019 wecelebrated that 101 states, representing more thanhalf of the UN member states, have signed the Safe
Schools Declaration and committed to keep schools
safe during armed conflict. 110 states have endorsed
the Paris Principles and commitments focused on
ending the recruitment and use of children in armed
forces or armed groups. The International Criminal
Court (ICC) has launched an investigation into crimes
against the Rohingya, while at the time of writing theInternational Court of Justice (IJC) is deliberatingover measures to prevent genocide and seek justiceDESPAIR, RESILIENCE,
AND HOPE
for previous offences. States have accepted an amendment to the Rome Statute to include starvation asa weapon of war in situations of non-internationalarmed conflicts. Peace talks in Yemen continue. Listed
perpetrators of grave violations against children havesigned three new UN Actions Plans to address harm
to children.
These examples are testament to what is possible
and should serve as a call to action to those with
influence at the national, regional and international
levels. It is only through concerted and deliberate
efforts that we can reverse current trends and stop
the war on children.
As part of this endeavour, it is essential to recognise that conflict affects children in different ways
depending on age, gender and disability. Boys andgirls face different risks, have different needs, arerepresented in the data differently, and require different types of support. Building on the two previous
reports in our ‘Stop the War on Children’ series, this2020 report will unpack, where available data allows,
some of the evidenced gendered drivers and impactsof the grave violations committed against children in
conflict-affected areas. 

When Kalonji’s village in the Democratic
Republic of Congo was attacked by an armed
group, his father was killed and his hometorched. “Now I’m an orphan,” he says. “Nofather, no mother.”
Kalonji fled with his brothers and sisters.
Alone, they walked 70 km to reach safety.
But in their new surroundings, day-to-day
survival is a struggle.
“There are days I don’t eat,” he says.
“I brought nothing [from my old home].
No books. I need clothes, a school uniform,books and food.”
Kalonji is determined to get an education
and build a better future for himself and his
community. At school his favourite subject ismaths. “When I finish my studies here, I will
go to Lubumbashi to start university,” he says.
His dream is one day to become the headof his school. “I’m studying to be the directorof the school,” he says. “I want to study so
I can train the children.”
PHOTO: JOAN MARIE DEL MUNDO / SAVE THE CHILDRENSTOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 9

2
HOW MANY CHILDREN
ARE AFFECTED BY
CONFLICT?
I

n 2018, 415 million children worldwide were living
in a conflict zone.1 That’s almost 18% – or one in six– of all the world’s children. That includes 149 million children living in high-intensity conflict zones – ie,zones that experienced more than 1,000 battle-related
deaths within the year.2
The number of children living in conflict zones has
more than doubled since 1995 – far outstripping population growth. From 2017 to 2018 there was a slightdecline of 3% in the overall number of children living
in conflict, while the number of children living in high-­
intensity conflict zones dropped by 12%.3
The four countries with the highest number of chil-dren living in high-intensity conflict zones are Nigeria,
Mexico, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) andAfghanistan. In regional terms, Africa has the largest
absolute number of children – 170 million – living in conflict zones.
One in four African children is living in conflict. The
region with the highest proportion of children living inconflict zones is the Middle East, with 32% – one in threechildren – living in conflict.
Since 2010, there has been a 34% rise in the total
number of children living in conflict zones, but a 170%
rise in the number of UN-verified incidents of grave
violations against children in conflict.

Millions

Low-intensity

Medium-intensity

High-intensity

500

400

300

200

FIGURE 1
Number of children living in high-, medium- and low-intensity conflicts, by year.
SOURCE: SEE NOTE PAGE 11

10 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

1997

1996

1995

1994

1993

1992

1991

1990

100

2010

2018

Since 2010, there has been a 170% risein the number of verified incidents of grave
violations against children in conflict.

Low-intensity

Medium-intensity

High-intensity

Middle East

Americas

EuropeFIGURE 2

AfricaNumber of children
living in high-, mediumand low-intensity
conflicts, by region.

Asia
0

50

100

150

200

2017

SOURCE: SEE NOTE BELOW

2018
Nigeria

MexicoCongo, DRC
Afghanistan
Yemen
Iraq
Syria

FIGURE 3

Somalia

Number of children
living in high-intensity
conflict zones in 2017 and2018, by country.

Mali
South Sudan
0

10

20

30

40

millions

50

SOURCE: SEE NOTE BELOWSOURCES FIGURE 1–3
These numbers are prepared for Save the Children by the Peace Research Institute in Oslo (PRIO).
Low-intensity conflict is defined as less than 25 battle-related deaths in a country-year, medium-intensity
conflict as 25–999 battle-related deaths, and high-intensity conflict as 1,000 or more battle-related deaths.
DATA SOURCES: UPPSAL A CONFLICT DATA PROGR AM (UCDP) GEOREFERENCED EVENT DATASET (GED) (SUNDBERG AND MEL ANDER , 2013;
HÖGBL ADH, 2019); GRIDDED POPUL ATION OF THE WORLD (GPW ) V4 (CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL E ARTH SCIENCE INFORMATION
NET WORK, 2016); AND WORLD POPUL ATION PROSPECTS (UN, 2019).

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 11

The ten worst conflict-affected countries
to be a child
Using research from the Peace Research Institute
Oslo (PRIO)4 and Save the Children's own analysis of
the UN’s data on grave violations in 20185, we haveidentified the ten worst conflict-affected countries forchildren.6 The assessment is based on:• prevalence of the six grave violations againstchildren in conflict (see page 16)• conflict intensity measured by the number ofrecorded casualties• total child population living in conflict zones• proportion of children living in conflict zones relative
to the population of the country.

Afghanistan

Syria

Born outside a state of war
Children born and raised
in a state of war

KNOWINGONLY WAR
In Afghanistan, October 2019
marked 18 years since thestart of the conflict between
coalition forces and the Taliban. Every child in the country– 20 million children in total– was born and is being raised
in a state of war.8 In Syria,
in December 2018, the UN
reported that after eight yearsof fighting, 4 million children –half of the country’s children –have only ever known war.9

12 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

Using this approach, in alphabetical order, the current
ten worst conflict-affected countries to be a child are:• Afghanistan• Central African Republic• Democratic Republic of the Congo• Iraq• Mali• Nigeria• Somalia• South Sudan• Syria• YemenIn our analysis, Syria comes out as particularly dangerous and damaging for children in 2018, with highnumbers of grave violations against children and 99%
of children living in areas affected by conflict. Afghanistan has the most children who have been killed andmaimed. The highest number of children in conflict
suffering sexual violence is in Somalia. Nigeria has
the highest number of children recruited into armed
groups. The ten worst countries for children living inconflict remain the same as 2017.7 SyriaAfghanistan
Iraq

Mali

Yemen
Central African RepublicSouth Sudan

Nigeria

Somalia

Democratic Republic of the Congo

FIGURE 5
The ten worst
conflict-affected
countries to be a child
THE ASSESSMENT IS BASED ON
THE FOLLOWING NINE INDICATORS:CONFLICT INTENSIT Y, NUMBER AND
PROPORTION OF CHILDREN LIVING IN
CONFLICT ZONES, AND PREVALENCE
OF THE SIX GR AVE VIOL ATIONSAGAINST CHILDREN.

Children living in conflict zones (millions)

Grave violations

500

25000

400

20000

300

15000

FIGURE 4
200

10000

100

5000

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

Number of children living inconflict zones (bars) andUN-verified incidents of grave
violations against children,
2010–2018 (line)
SOURCE: SAVE THE CHILDREN’S ANALYSISOF THE UN SECRETARY GENER AL’S
CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICTREPORTS / PRIO’S CALCUL ATION BASEDON UCDP GED DATASET, GRIDDED
POPUL ATION OF THE WORLD V4 ,(CIESIN, 2016) AND WORLD
POPUL ATION PROSPECTS (UN, 2019)

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 13

Amal left the besieged city of Homs in
Syria at the age of seven and sought refugein Lebanon. She is a very quiet girl and cries
very often as she is very close to her grandmother who had to remain in Homs. Whenthe photographer Dominic Nahr is taking a
portrait of Amal, something rather unusual
happens: for just a short moment, the sadchild turns into a confident girl.
P H OTO : D O M I N I C N A H R / S AV E T H E C H I L D R E N

14 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERSINTERNATIONAL LEGAL PROVISIONS ADDRESSING
CHILDREN’S RIGHTS IN CONFLICT SETTINGSThe Geneva Conventions and their Additional
Protocols are at the core of international humanitarian law (IHL), which regulates the conduct of armed
conflict and seeks to limit its effects. The principlesof ‘distinction’ and ‘proportionality’ are the basis for
specific rules, such as the prohibition of direct attacks
on civilian populations or civilian objects, the prohibition of indiscriminate attacks, and the obligation to
adopt precautionary measures to avoid or limit to
the greatest possible extent casualties among civilians and damage to civilian objects. IHL also includes
special protection for children, including provisions forthe protection of education. Under IHL, states bear
the primary responsibility for ensuring that the basic
needs of civilians and civilian populations under theircontrol are met; but if they are unable or unwillingto meet this obligation, relief action can be taken byothers, such as humanitarian organisations, who must
be granted rapid and unimpeded access to the affected
population.
The UN Convention of the Rights of the Child(UNCRC) is the most widely ratified treaty in theworld. It defines children as people under the age of 18
and recognises and protects their equal and indivisible
social, civil, political, economic, and cultural rights. By
setting the minimum standards and overarching principles by which every society should treat every child,the UNCRC has played a critical role in catalysing
progress for children over the last 30 years. It establishes the principles that the best interest of the child;the right to life, survival and development; and respect
for the views of the child, shall be a primary consideration. Article 38 specifically addresses the rights ofchildren in armed conflict, requiring states to take “allfeasible measures” to protect and care for children
affected by armed conflict. The Optional Protocol to
the UNCRC on the Involvement of Children in Armed
Conflict was adopted in 2000; it establishes the principle of non-recruitment and non-participation in armed
conflict of children under the age of 18 years. Significantly, unlike many other major treaties the UNCRC
does not have a derogation clause which would allow
a suspension of law under particular circumstances.
The African Charter on the Rights and Welfareof the Child of 1990 is notable as the only intergovernmental treaty other than the UNCRC to recognise
and protect the full spectrum of social, civil, political,
economic, health and cultural rights of children. It has
been ratified by almost all states of the African Union.
Article 22 directly addresses the use of children inarmed conflict, prohibiting their recruitment as soldi­
ers and direct participation in fighting wars.

The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action
is a human rights framework particularly of relevanceto girls affected by armed conflict. Unanimously
adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1995, following the Fourth World Conference on Women hosted in
Beijing, China, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for
Action is the first human rights framework to explicitly
reference girls’ distinct experiences and needs. The
Beijing Platform for Action contains a subsection andset of strategic objectives on girls’ rights to ensurethat girls everywhere are able to grow up protected,
educated and healthy. The declaration and platform
for action is endorsed by all UN Member States andsets out strategic objectives and the actions thatstakeholders including governments, international andnon-­government organisations, the media and private
sector must take to achieve them. The commitments
made in the Beijing Platform for Action are applicableto girls living in all contexts, including commitments
to ensure that girls are safe from sexual and gender-­based violence, able to receive an education, and able
to exercise their rights to be agents of change in theirown lives. 2020 is the 25th anniversary of the Beijing
Platform for Action and the commitments made togirls; a year-long review process to gauge progress
and next steps is under way.
The Rome Statute is the principal instrument ofinternational criminal law with respect to the protection of civilians, granting the ICC jurisdiction over genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes whencommitted by any individual in the territory of a signatory state or by nationals of that state, or in a situation referred to the ICC by the UN Security Council.10
In addition to these, there is also an importantbody of international criminal law that has arisen
from ad hoc tribunals and courts, including the Extra­
ordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, theinternational criminal tribunals for Rwanda and theformer Yugoslavia, and the Special Court for Sierra
Leone. The latter was the first international court
to try perpetrators for violations of IHL relating to
the recruitment of children. These tribunals have also
broken new ground in defining gender-based crimes.
In addition, the UN Security Council and UN General
Assembly have passed resolutions that carry the force
of international law both on specific conflict situations
and on relevant thematic areas. These include children
and armed conflict; women, peace and security; theprotec­tion of civilians; and youth, peace and security.
The UN Security Council is the only UN body withauthority under the UN Charter to issue a binding
resolution on all UN members.

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 15

3
GIRLS, BOYS AND WAR:
A GENDER ANALYSIS OF
THE SIX GRAVE VIOLATIONSAGAINST CHILDRENIN CONFLICT“In Mali, the situation is really critical and it’s verysad. Many children have been killed, others are raped,
others saw their brothers killed in front of them. People
have been burned, fields have been destroyed. We need
our government to hold perpetrators to account and toprotect us from the horrors of war.”
Maryam, youth ambassador, Mali11As the previous chapter shows, the number ofchildren living in conflict and of violations againstthem are escalating. But looking beneath theheadline numbers, what is children’s experience of
conflict? How are different groups affected? In particular, how is children’s experience of conflict and violations against them different for girls and for boys?
This chapter explores gender differences in the six
grave violations against children in conflict. Gathering robust evidence to help us understand girls’ andboys’ experiences of conflict – and to develop effective
responses – is hugely challenging. We therefore begin
this chapter by looking at the strengths and weakness
in the available data.

16 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

Every child counts, but not every child iscounted: opportunities and limitations in
the available data
The UN Secretary-General’s annual report on children and armed conflict and the reports of the UN’s
Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism (MRM)12 on
grave violations committed against children provide
some of the best indicators of the situation of children
in armed conflict. Our analysis of differences and similarities between girls’ and boys’ experiences of conflict
therefore draws mainly on these sources.
However, it is important to acknowledge that thedata presented in the report has significant limitations. There are a number of challenges with the exist­
ing data.
1 Limited mandate
The MRM methodology informing the UN Secretary-­
General’s reports on children and armed conflict isdesigned to report on six specified grave violations. It
is not within the mandate to measure broader cate­gories of rights violations against children duringconflict, so the data does not accurately and comprehensively reflect how all children, and of all genders, experience conflict. In addition, the MRM is notdesigned to measure the prevalence of grave viola-

1

2

3

4

5

6

Killing andmaimingof children

Recruitment anduse of children byarmed forces orarmed groups

Abductionof children

Rape and otherforms of sexual
violence againstchildren

Attacks onschools or
hospitals

Denial ofhumanitarianaccess

P. 20

P. 21

P. 26

P. 28

P. 36

P. 38

tions within affected populations. The MRM therefore
offers a valuable yet distorted reflection. In order toinform a comprehensive response, its data must becomplemented with other monitoring and reporting
systems, as well as contextualised analysis.
2 Under-reporting
It is widely acknowledged that all the grave violations
against children in conflict, and sexual violence inparticular, are significantly under-reported. Verified
cases of violations against children – 25,451 violations in 2018 – are the tip of the iceberg. Undertaking
accurate documentation of grave violations againstchildren is challenging in times of peace, and evenmore so in times of conflict. The MRM, for example,
is limited by access restrictions, security threats andinadequate child protection resources within UN
peacekeeping and humanitarian operations.
3 Incomplete data disaggregation
Incomplete data disaggregation by sex, age, andalso disability, limits our understanding of the impactof grave violations on different groups of children.
Although the MRM guidelines state that data onchildren and armed conflict should be disaggregatedbetween boys and girls, this is not always recorded.
And when it comes to children who do not identify
with binary definitions of gender, data is non-existent.
The data also does not include a record of age.
Nevertheless, while recognising these deficiencies,
it is important to acknowledge the progress thathas been made in disaggregating data by sex. In the
UN Secretary-General’s 2019 report on children andarmed conflict, more than three-quarters of verified
individual violations13 – 17,500 out of 22,764 – aredisaggregated between girls and boys.14 The extent
of disaggregation varies considerably from country
to country. In Somalia, all data related to individual
grave violations is sex-disaggregated; in Libya noneof it is.
The sex-disaggregated data provides us with anopportunity to identify some of the patterns, differences and gendered dynamics within the grave violations. Overall, 4,190 violations were against girls,

13,310 against boys. While boys make up the largest
overall share of verified violations, the vast majorityof verified incidents of rape and other forms of sexual
violence relate to girls (see page 28).
Individual violations document how many children
are victims of the specified violations. There are further challenges with sex-disaggregation when it comesto what could be described as “collective violations”15– for example, attacks on schools and hospitals or
denying humanitarian access.
4 Invisibility of violations against girls
As noted in the Gender Analysis: The six grave violations of children’s rights in conflict,16 “the grave violations are linked primarily to the public sphere where
men and boys are frequently more present” while violations against girls are constrained to more private
spaces where “violations of their rights are less likely
to be documented”.17 In many contexts, an individual’smobility and ease of movement and presence in the
public sphere is dictated by underlying gender norms.
Most commonly, women and girls are relegated tothe private sphere and expected to perform genderedroles as mothers, wives and caretakers. As conflict
increases, girls and women are more likely to havetheir mobility severely limited, resulting in more timespent within the home than men and boys.18 This canat times reduce the incidence and prevalence rates ofgirls to grave violations such as abduction, recruitment, and killing and maiming. By contrast, men
and boys are more often targeted for active combat
roles by armed groups because of the association of
masculinity with defending homes and communities.
It is important to recognise that gender roles vary in
different conflict settings. In some cases, gender roles
and power relations may shift – creating an opportunity for change. However, it is more common forexisting gender biases to become more entrenched inconflict, with girls facing greater restrictions on their
movements, for example.
The limitations on girls’ freedom of movement inconflict contexts impacts their access to information and services, including humanitarian response
efforts, and also drives other private-sphere rights

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 17

violations that are exacerbated in conflict contexts,
including intimate partner and domestic violence
and child, early and forced marriage.19 However, as
these private-­sphere violations are not perpetrated
by armed actors, they fall outside the mandate of the
MRM and are not considered or accounted for in theagenda of the UN Secretary-General’s annual reports
on children and armed conflict.
Gendered roles and expectations, combined withthe focus in the UN data on violations committed byarmed groups and forces likely to be committed in the
public sphere, result in greater attention and weightafforded to rights violations experienced by boys inconflict, often rendering violations experienced bygirls invisible and under-reported. The sex-disag­gregated data of the 2019 report confirms this –namely that more boys than girls are directly affectedby the verified grave violations. The exception hereis the data on the grave violation of sexual violence,
which shows the opposite (see page 28). While evidence demonstrates that girls are significantly more
vulnerable to sexual violence, the stigma of sexual violence against boys and the lack of services to respondto the needs of male survivors make it even less likelythat such incidents will be reported.

Addressing the data gaps: what’s needed
To better understand the effects of conflict on children and to prioritise and deliver effective responses,
more in-depth age, gender and disability-sensitive
prevalence analysis is required. By comparing such
prevalence analysis with MRM findings, it will be possible to understand the extent to which the MRM is
effective in reaching (and counting) all children who
have experienced grave violations.
Outside the MRM methodology, there is a needfor more gendered studies of secondary violations –in other words, other ways girls, boys and childrenof diverse sexual orientation, gender identity andexpression (SOGIE) are affected by living in conflict.
There is also a need to better understand how girls
and boys with disabilities are impacted by conflict,
how conflict causes the number of children living withdisabilities to rise, and how to better design programmes that are accessible and inclusive for persons withdisabilities. 

CHILDREN AND DISABILITY IN CONFLICT
According to the World Health Organization,
about 15% of the world’s population lives withsome form of disability. 20 Worldwide, one child inten has a disability – and the proportion is evenhigher in areas with armed conflict or disasters. 21
Research among Syrian refugees in Jordan andLebanon suggests that as many as one child in fivehas a disability, and that more than 60% of Syrian
refugee households includes a person with disability. 22
Article 11 of The Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) says that States Parties shall take “all necessary measures toensure the protection and safety of persons withdisabilities in situations of risk, including situationsof armed conflict.” 23Children with disabilities are impacted by all six
grave violations, and the violations may also cause
disability. They might acquire disabilities for the
first time, experience the exacerbation of existingdisabilities, or develop secondary disabilities. 24 As

18 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

our data shows, the number of children killed andmaimed in conflict reached a record high in 2018,
leaving thousands of children disabled.
In humanitarian contexts, children with disabilities are more likely to experience psychologicaldistress due to separation from caregivers, breakdown of routine, or high risk of abuse. 25
Women and girls with disabilities are at increased risk of sexual and gender-based violence(SGBV), including through the use of SGBV as a
strategy, tactic or policy in war. 26 A recent reportby the Geneva Academy points out that eventhough there are reports of women and girls withdisabilities being subjected to conflict-related violence, there has still not been gathered systematic
data on the issue. 27
A positive development, although not addressing
children or gender specifically, is that in 2019 the
UN Security Council adopted its first-ever resolution on protection of persons with disabilities inconflict. 28

COPING WITH
ANGER, REGAINING
HOPE
José grew up in a region in Colombia
where coca cultivation and drug trafficking are widespread. When he was eight,
he was caught in crossfire between
the FARC rebel army and government
troops. José was shot in both legs andone arm.
For a long time afterwards, José was
unable to cope with his fear and anger.
He was helped by a Save the Children
youth programme, which enabled him todevelop new viewpoints, discover a newrole for himself – and regain hope.
Now 17, José says: “I’ve learned to be
more critical of what’s happening aroundme and get involved in decisions that
affect me or the people I work with.”
PHOTO: DOMINIC NAHR / SAVE THE CHILDRENSTOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 19

1
KILLING AND MAIMING OF CHILDREN
14000

BOYS AND GIRLS

12000
Boys
44%

10000

Unknown
39%

Girls
17%

8000
6000
4000
2000

2005/6 2006/7 2007/8 2009 2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

■ Since 2005, almost 100,000 children have been
killed or maimed in conflict. Since 2010, the numbers
have tripled. In 2018, across 19 of the 20 conflict situations covered, there were 12,125 verified cases of children being killed or maimed. 44% of these cases arerecorded as boys, 17% girls, and for the rest, the sex
has not been documented.29 These figures are likely tobe an underestimation of true levels of harm.30
In Afghanistan in 2018, a total of 3,062 children arerecorded as having been killed or maimed, including
831 girls. Children represented 28% of all confirmed
civilian casualties. The number of children killed andmaimed saw a slight drop from 2017, but the numberof children killed was the highest-ever recorded. 31
More than half of these children were killed andmaimed by ground engagements and improvised
explosive devices. 32 A study of nearly 700 parents andchildren across Afghanistan found that armed clashes
remain the most significant threat to children’s safety. 33 The number of children in the occupied Palestinian territories killed or maimed more than doubled
between 2017 and 2018, with 59 children killed and2,756 injured. 34
In all the countries where data is disaggregated in
the UN Secretary-General’s 2019 report on children
and armed conflict, the number of boys killed andmaimed by direct warfare is overwhelmingly higher
than that of girls. The specific vulnerability of boys,
particularly adolescents, reflects the ways in which
cultural gender norms influence when and where girls
and boys spend the majority of their time. Boys areoften expected, and permitted, to be outside in thecommunity more than girls, who may spend more

20 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

2016

2017

2018

2018

FIGURE 6
The number of children killed and maimed in conflict,by year, and breakdown by sex in 2018.
SOURCE: VERIFIED CASES FROM THE UN SECRETARY-GENER AL’S
ANNUAL REPORTS ON CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICT.
THE ACTUAL NUMBERS ARE LIKELY TO BE HIGHER .

time at home. This affects boys’ exposure to crossfire, unexploded ordnance and explosive remnants ofwar.35 Boys, particularly adolescents, are more likely
to be targeted by armed actors because they are perceived as a threat.
In Syria, in 2013, more than twice as many boys
were killed than girls.36 This gender disparity was evenmore remarkable when analysed together with age:among children aged 13 to 17, four times more boys
have were killed in conflict than girls; between boys
and girls under eight, the ratio was 1:1.37 Explosive
weapons accounted for 74% of girls’ deaths; adolescent boys were more likely to have been killed bysmall arms.38 Moreover, adolescent boys may be perceived as threats and/or enemy combatants.
By contrast, in Nigeria in recent years more girls
have been used in suicide attacks than boys. UNICEF
reported that in Nigeria in 2018, 38 girls and 10 boys
were used in suicide attacks, and in 2017, 101 girls and45 boys.39 Researchers have pointed out that the useof girls and women in this way offers certain tacticaland strategic advantages that derive from gendered norms and expectations, with girls and women
more likely to be perceived as non-threatening, or as
victims rather than perpetrators.40 

2
THE RECRUITMENT AND USE OF CHILDREN
BY ARMED FORCES AND ARMED GROUPS
10000

BOYS AND GIRLS

8000

Boys
84%

Unknown
5%

Girls
11%

6000

4000

2000

2005/6 2006/7 2007/8 2009 2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

■ Between 2005 and 2018, a total of 65,081 children
are verified to have been recruited and used by armed
forces and groups.41 In 2018 alone, more than 7,000
children were recruited; most of the verified cases
were from Somalia (2,300) and Nigeria (1,947). Manyof these children were abducted, used as combatants,
forced to act as human shields, sexually abused andexploited, used to transport explosives or deployed as
suicide bombers.42
The recruitment or use of children in armed forcesand groups is reported in 15 out of the 20 conflictsituations covered in the report.43 For 12 of thesecountries, data is fully disaggregated by sex, in two it
is partly so, and in the remaining country, Colombia,
there is no sex-disaggregated data. Out of the 7,206
cases of recruitment documented in 2018, boys account for 84%, girls for 11%, and the remaining 5% are
not specified by sex.
A 2015 report from South Sudan shows that only
one-third of the boys associated with armed groups
were recruited forcibly and violently. Some boys, forexample, joined armed groups as they felt a responsibility to defend their communities from attack, whichis in itself an internalised gender norm.44
In every conflict covered by the MRM, boys appear
to have been targeted and recruited on a much larger scale than girls. In 2018, in Mali, 96% of children
recruited were boys, in Somalia, 97%, and in Afghanistan, 98%. Children may be recruited because they
are chea­per to recruit and train; for strategic reasons– as in the example of the use of young girls used in

2016

2017

2018

2018

FIGURE 7
The number of children recruited and used by armed
forces and armed groups, by year, and sex breakdown
in 2018.
SOURCE: VERIFIED CASES FROM THE UN SECRETARY-GENER AL’S
ANNUAL REPORTS ON CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICT.
THE ACTUAL NUMBERS ARE LIKELY TO BE HIGHER .

suicide attacks in Nigeria, or because they are more
vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. Armed groups
often use gendered recruitment tactics, including a
hyper-masculine ideology and imagery that equate
power with violence, promises of sexual rewards and‘wives’ for soldiers.45
The original formulation of this violation was ‘therecruitment and use of child soldiers’;46 it was changed
to ‘the recruitment and use of children by armed forces and armed groups’ to better reflect the different
roles boys and girls are forced to undertake in anarmed group. These roles include working as guards,
spies, combatants and suicide bombers, carrying out
support functions such as cooking, and being subjected to sexual abuse and exploitation. Boys and girls
may have multiple roles at any one time and theirroles are likely to change during the period of theirassociation.
Although the wording for this violation was broadened to reflect boys’ and girls’ multiple roles inarmed groups, the data may still fail to appropriatelyreflect the many girls recruited to armed forces. The

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 21

22 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

ESCAPED FROM CAPTORSAs a young boy, Peter lived in South Sudan with his
aunt and sister. But when fighting broke out in theirneighbourhood, Peter fled alone. Separated from his
aunt and sister, he lived in the bush with otherdisplaced people. He was ten.
An armed group recruited Peter into their ranks.
He was taught to load and shoot a gun and made him
cook, wash clothes and carry equipment.
“They gave us weapons for shooting,” he says. “Theytrained you how to load a gun, how to put in the bullet
and release the trigger for the gun to shoot.”
After more than two years, Peter managed toescape his captors. He eventually made his way to
Uganda, via the Democratic Republic of Congo. Now
14, he lives in a refugee camp with another family.
“My heart was happy when I arrived in Uganda,” hesays. “I saw schools and hospitals. I was excited andsaid, ‘This is the place where you can at least study andget medication whenever you are sick.’”
Peter is now going to school and is keen tocontinue his education. Save the Children is providing
psychosocial support to him and other young people
at the camp.
PHOTO: LOUIS LEESON / SAVE THE CHILDRENSTOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 23

risks girls face within armed groups – such as forced
and/or early marriage, sexual abuse and exploitation,or being forced to carry out domestic work – are different from and less recognised than those faced byboys. As a result, in the data on children’s recruitment
and use in armed groups, girls are often overlooked.
Gender stereotypes are often evident when boys
and girls are recruited and used by armed groups. In
Syria, in 2016, 98% of boys recruited by armed actors
were deployed in military functions, ranging fromfrontline fighting to conducting executions to perpetrating suicide attacks.47 In Yemen, before the escalation of conflict in 2015, there were already reportsof boys having adopted combat functions as well as
security and logistical roles.48 In South Sudan, boys
living in pastoralist, cattle-raising communities are atparticular risk of recruitment due to common expec­
tations that boys – but not girls – will join a militia
once they reach puberty.49
Girls often fill support functions, such as foodpreparation and other domestic tasks, in addition
to being sexual abused and exploited, sometimes aschild brides of fighters. 50 Research in Syria has shownthat girls forcibly married in this way were frequently
abandoned, divorced or left widowed. 51 Girls were
often obliged to accompany their ‘husbands’ – placing
themselves at physical risk due to their proximity toongoing hostilities. 52
In some situations, girls are as likely to be used incombat roles as boys. For example, in DRC, research
conducted by MONUSCO (the UN mission in theDRC) found that 89% of girls recruited by one armed
group were directly involved in hostilities. In the Kasaï
region, girls believed to have special powers havebeen sent to the frontlines as human shields to protect
other fighters.
After exit
Children formerly associated with armed forces orarmed groups face a multitude of immediate and lifelong challenges. Both girls and boys can suffer fromphysical, developmental and mental health conditions,and the conditions and recovery will be informed bygender. It is likely that they must overcome age andgender-based barriers in terms of access to healthservices, including mental health services, and educational or employment opportunities. For example,
traditional norms around masculinity will likely affectwhether boys access mental health services. The

24 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

World Health Organization reports that women andgirls constitute the largest single group of individuals
suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder globally,
while also recognising that this analysis is skewed byharmful gender norms that often serve to keep men
and boys from seeking mental health and psychosocial
support services. 53
Social reintegration might be difficult as thesechildren have lost their ties to family and community.
Stateless children or those originating from othercountries face additional challenges, including exclusion from formal release and reintegration processes
due to their foreign nationality.
In contrast to boys, girls associated with armed
forces or armed groups, who may have been forced
into sexual relationships, forced marriage or support
roles, run the risk of never being officially released
and reintegrated. Young women and girls formerly
associated with armed forces or groups who attempt
to reintegrate into their communities may facestigma, regardless of whether their role was as acombatant, ‘sex slave’ or forced bride. A girl’s association with an armed group is likely to be perceived byfamily and community as impure, unnatural – because
outside of gender norms – and dishonourable. This is
likely to be compounded if the woman or girl has hada child as a result of her association with the armed
force or group.
Girls who were formerly associated with armed
forces or groups and who have survived this kind ofgender-based violence urgently need adolescent-­
friendly sexual and reproductive health services, andgender-responsive psychosocial support to address
traumatic experiences. Babies born as a result of wartime rape are rarely accepted by families and communities, and instead seen as ‘children of the enemy’. 54 In
Iraq, for example, children born by mothers associated with the Islamic State, including women abducted
and raped, have been categorised and labelled ’terrorist’ on their birth certificates by local authorities. 55
Boys returning from conflict also risk rejection by
their communities of origin. Save the Children assessments in Somalia and Nigeria show that boys fear
being killed on returning home. This reflects a stereotypical view of all boys as a threat – a perception thathas led to boys’ arbitrary detention, especially when
there is a real or perceived link to violent extremism(see box page 25). 56 

CHILDREN IN DETENTION
The detention of children and deprivation of theirliberty57 is an escalating trend in most of the countries affected by conflict mentioned in the report.
Although not considered one of the grave violations, the MRM mechanism has reported on detentions since 2012.58 During that time, there has beena threefold increase in verified cases. 59
In the UN Secretary-General’s 2019 reporton children and armed conflict, there are 2,574
verified cases of children deprived of liberty – 476
girls, 1,592 were boys and 283 not specified. The
highest numbers are reported in Iraq, Nigeria andSomalia.60
These verified cases of detention are the tip of
the iceberg. A recent UN study on the detentionof children estimates that at least 35, 000 children
are deprived of liberty in the context of conflict,including those detained in child facilities, prisons or
camps.61 Detention significantly increases vulner­
ability to sexual violence – with boys often thevictims, since boys are more frequently detained
than girls.62
During detention, many children face torture
and/or ill treatment. In several countries in conflict,children have died in custody owing to poor conditions or ill treatment.63
Among the main reasons for detention is theactual or alleged association of children or theirfamilies with armed groups such as Islamic State in
Syria or Iraq, Boko Haram in Nigeria or Al-Shabab

in Somalia. Armed groups also detain children as
punishment, for recruitment purposes, to extract
ransom, for sexual abuse and exploitation, or as
bargaining chips for prisoner swaps.
As in the case of abduction and recruitment,
boys make up the majority of children detained,
usually as a result of actual or alleged association
with armed groups or national security-related
charges. Such detentions are driven by harmful
gender norms that portray boys, and adolescentboys in particular, as potentially violent security
risks. The UN study on detention of children points
out that, while an overwhelming majority of theoverall cases relates to boys, girls are more likely
to be arrested because of their behaviour (such as
sexual activity, truancy and running away fromhome) rather than criminal activity. In detention,
the study notes, girls are particularly vulnerable tosexual and other forms of violence. Children belonging to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender andintersex (LGBTI) community are more likely to bearrested and detained as a result of their gender
identity and are at particular risk of sexual violencein detention.64
In north-east Syria alone, at least 1,248 children,
mainly under the age of five, are deprived of liberty
in IDP sites.65 These children are exposed to highdegrees of violence and exploitation, and have
limited or no parental care, and often their basic
needs, such as food and health care, are not met.

Al Hol Camp, North
East Syria.
P H OTO :S AV E T H E C H I L D R E N

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 25

3
ABDUCTION OF CHILDREN

4000

BOYS AND GIRLS
Boys
80%

3000

Unknown
1%

Girls
19%

2000

1000

2005/6 2006/7 2007/8 2009 2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

■ The abduction66, enslavement and recruitment ofchildren into armed forces and sexual exploitation isreported across the conflicts covered in the UN Secretary-General’s 2019 report, affecting at least 2,500
children. Of these, 1,999 (80%) were boys, 484 (19%)
were girls, while the sex was unknown in 17 cases.
In Somalia alone, 1,609 children, some as young
as eight, were abducted, mainly for the purpose ofrecruitment.
While the number of abductions slightly decreasedin the DRC (367) from the peak of 420 in 2017, many
children abducted in previous years remain in captivity and are subjected to sexual exploitation and forced labour.67 Similar cases are verified in South Sudan,
Afghanistan and Mali.
The abduction of girls continues to increase. In
February 2018, Boko Haram abducted at least 110
girls from a girls’ school in Yobe state, Nigeria. The
high-profile abduction of 276 girls from their schoolin Chibok, northern Nigeria in April 2014 reveals theunderlying rationale for these abductions – to curtailgirls’ access to ‘western’ schooling.68 112 girls are still
missing or in captivity.69 Videos subsequently released
by Boko Haram demonstrated the group’s intention to punish children for their attendance at such
schools,70 and particularly to punish girls for not adhering to strictly interpreted gender norms.
In this case, abduction represents an attack on
education. Since mid-2013, the number of girls abducted in Nigeria has escalated dramatically. Although

26 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

2016

2017

2018

2018

FIGURE 8
The number of children abducted by armed forces andarmed groups, by year, and sex breakdown in 2018.
SOURCE: VERIFIED CASES FROM THE UN SECRETARY-GENER AL’S
ANNUAL REPORTS ON CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICT.
THE ACTUAL NUMBERS ARE LIKELY TO BE HIGHER .

exact figures are difficult to establish, estimates range
anywhere from 2,000 to 8,000 women and girls abducted.71 Once in captivity, female abductees have been
subjected to other violations, such as sexual violence– including rape, forced marriage and recruitment into
armed groups.72 This appears to be part of an overarching strategy to use women and girls, which includes
the tactical use of female suicide bombers, which has
rise significantly since the Chibok incident in 2014.73
The fear alone of abduction can lead families
to limit educational opportunities for girls. This isparticularly true in contexts where a girl’s value ispredominantly seen in terms of her reproductive andmarital prospects, and/or where family honour is closely tied to girls’ sexual purity. As mentioned earlier,adolescent girls, in particular, are often kept isolated
or immobile in conflict settings, due to the increased
risks they face of gender-based violence. They are
90% more likely to be out of school than their counterparts in stable contexts.74 In Libya, for example,

“On my way to school, I fearsuicide attacks, kidnappingand [I’m afraid] that someone
might kill me. There is war
in my country. People are
killing children; we are notprotected. And we don’t haveproper schools. Lots of people
got killed and there is no safe
place for people.”—Hemat, 10, Afghanistan77

the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights reported that in areas under Ansar al-Sharia
control, parents were “afraid to send their daughters to school for fear they would be abducted.”75
These same fears have been echoed across various
other contexts. In Afghanistan, the vast majority of
respondents to a recent Save the Children survey saidchildren feel least safe on their way to school, in amarketplace or when close to government buildings

or checkpoints. They fear explosions, being kidnappedor facing other forms of extreme violence.76
While abduction is recognised as a primary formof forced recruitment of children by armed forces
and armed groups, it also serves as an entry point
for exposure to further grave violations. The drivers
behind abduction are often predicated on gendered
expectations of what purpose child abductees will
later serve. 

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 27

4
RAPE AND OTHER FORMS OF SEXUAL VIOLENCEAGAINST CHILDREN

6000

BOYS AND GIRLS
Boys
11%

Unknown
1%

Girls
87%

4000

2000

2005/6 2006/7 2007/8 2009 2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2018

FIGURE 9
Number of children victims of rape and other forms of sexual violence.
SOURCE: VERIFIED CASES FROM THE UN SECRETARY-GENER AL’S ANNUAL REPORTS ON CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICT.
THE ACTUAL NUMBERS ARE LIKELY TO BE HIGHER .

■ Sexual violence occurs everywhere in society. In
the private sphere and the public sphere, in the home,in communities, in schools, workplaces, and otherinstitutions. Sexual and gender-based violence has
always been common in conflicts, as well as in natural
disasters and their aftermath. Children are often thevictims, with particularly high risks faced by girls.
Rape and other forms of sexual violence78 is the
only grave violation where the total number of verified cases for girls is higher than that of boys. This
reflects global trends, where an overwhelming percentage of survivors of sexual violence are womenand girls,79 but also raises the broader issue of
under-reporting, linked to stigma and social barriers –especially, but by no means exclusively, among boys.
For the UN Secretary-General’s 2019 report onchildren and armed conflict, the MRM verified 933
cases of sexual violence. Of these, 87% are violations
against girls, while only 1.5% of the verified cases
were violations committed against boys. Sexual violence is verified in 12 out of the 20 countries covered,with most cases occurring in Somalia (331 cases, of

28 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

which 328 were committed against girls and three
against boys) and in DRC (277, all girls). The numbers
are also high in South Sudan, Sudan and in Central
African Republic.
For the first time since 2016, the UN report onchildren and armed conflict included verified cases ofthe perpetration of sexual violence against children
in Yemen. Unlike other countries in the report, themajority of verified sexual violence incidents werecommitted against boys, who made up seven out of a
total of nine cases.
Rape and other forms of sexual violence canoccur in a number of ways – as a weapon of war,
for instance, in Myanmar, where the widespread andsystematic sexual violence committed by the Tatmadaw was part of a campaign of violence and forced
displacement against the Rohingya. It can also overlap
with abduction and the recruitment and use of children, where girls and boys may be sexually exploitedand abused by armed forces. For example, in Central
African Republic in 2018 alone, 14 girls were victimsof sexual violence during their association with armed

A VERY DIFFICULTJOURNEY

groups.80 In Libya, migrant children were reportedly
subjected to trafficking and sexual exploitation, although the UN was unable to verify any cases.
Sexual violence as a weapon of war
In addition to the increased likelihood of sexual violence in times of instability, sexual violence continues
to be used as part of the broader strategy of conflict,with women and girls predominantly targeted andaffected.81 Armed forces and armed groups may target women and girls for sexual violence as a ‘reward’
for fighters; as a deliberate strategy to dishonour
and thus demoralise males by violating their wives
and daughters, or in some contexts as a form of ethnic cleansing. Each of these aims plays on gendered
norms – for example, the objectification of womenand girls as sexual objects and bounties of war – andharmful traditions that tie the honour of the family
and community to women and girls’ purity.
Conflict-related sexual violence also continues tofunction as both a driver and a result of forced displacement, often for the same gendered reasons. SexualSara, 14, was forced to flee the conflict in
Burundi without her family. “I fled by myself
as my family could only afford transport for
one person from our family and my father
and mother decided it would be me,” she says.
“It was a very difficult journey,” says Sara.
“A group of us were walking towards theborder with Rwanda when we met a groupof armed men. They picked some of us fromthe group and said we needed to give themmoney. When we didn't have money to givethem they took us into the forest.”
Sara was raped. As a result of the attack,she became pregnant.
Sara managed to get to a refugee campin Rwanda. Here, she later gave birth to ahealthy baby boy.
Save the Children has supported Sara
under its programme for vulnerable children
at Mahama refugee camp.
PHOTO: MARK K AYE / SAVE THE CHILDREN

violence is used to destabilise communities and expel
certain groups in order to regain control of an area,or as a means of repression, terror and control. For
instance, in South Sudan, allied militias raped womenand girls as part of a campaign to drive opponents
out of southern parts of Unity State.82 The widespread use of sexual violence by armed forces against
Rohingya children is documented and verified by the2017 UN report on children and armed conflict aswell as other UN reports from 2018 and 2019, which

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 29

I USED TO PLAY
AND ENJOY MY TIME
Hurriyah, 12, a Syrian refugee, lives with her family in
Lebanon.
“I used to play and enjoy my time,” she says. “But I’m
not happy anymore. In Syria I had more freedom. HereI can’t go outside or even open the door.”
Hurriyah and her family fled war. But now Hurriyah
faces a new threat: child marriage.
“I want to continue my studies,” says Hurriyah.
“I don’t want to get married, but my father is saying
I might have to leave school.”
Hurriyah was harassed on the way to and fromschool. Her father is now considering arranging for her
to be married. As refugees, he doesn’t feel the family
can call on the police to protect Hurriyah from harassment. He thinks early marriage might be the only way
to keep her safe and defend her reputation. Hurriyah’s
mother, Noor, on the other hand, is strongly opposed.
Noor is also worried about Hurriyah’s mental health.
“Hurriyah can’t go out and she is locked in her room all
day long,” says Noor. “She has started to have psychological issues – she has bad headaches and fears. Sometimes, she tells me she wants to commit suicide.”
Noor says, “The war is having a big impact on earlymarriage.” She has taken part in sessions run by Save
the Children to raise awareness of the issues aroundchild marriage in order to help prevent it.
PHOTO: NOUR WAHID / SAVE THE CHILDREN

30 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERSSTOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 31

stress that “rape and other sexual violence have been
particularly egregious and recurrent” and directedagainst girls and boys, women and men.83
Sexual violence has been used as a tactic in conflictto displace populations, gain information throughinterrogation, advance extremist ideology, and destabilise social structures. The UN Secretary-General’sreport on sexual violence in conflict points at how
women heads of households or women migrating withchildren are particularly vulnerable to sexual violenceby representatives of the authorities, armed groups,
smugglers or traffickers. Sexual violence can play a
big role in the political economy of terrorism, withterrorist groups generating revenue from abducting
and commodifying women and girls through physicaland online slave markets and through human trafficking.84 Girl heads of household or unaccompaniedand separated girls on the move face similar vulnerabilities which are exacerbated due to their age andgender-related power differentials.
Sexual violence is both a driver and result of child,early and forced marriage. Girls who become pregnant are exposed to a number of additional risks, and
90% of births to adolescent girls occur within a childmarriage.85
Girls affected by conflict also have limited opportunities to avoid unwanted pregnancies. At the sametime, access to antenatal care, assisted childbirth andemergency obstetric care is inadequate. Complications during pregnancy and childbirth remain the leading cause of death globally for adolescent girls aged

“Sexually abused children
are marked both physicallyand psychologically. They
are vulnerable to sexuallytransmitted diseases andto drug consumption, inorder to forget the abuse
they endure.”—Aboubacar,
Youth Ambassador, Mali103

32 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

15–19.86 Girls under 15 are five times more likely todie due to pregnancy- or childbirth-related complications than women over 19.87 According to the United
Nations Population Fund’s State of the World’s Population
2019, more than 500 women and girls die every day inemergency contexts due to lack of skilled birth attendants, emergency obstetrics and unsafe abortions.88
According to a recent report by UNICEF, 765 million children and adults worldwide were married as
children.89 Girls and women are disproportionately
affected, with one in five young women now in theirearly twenties already married before they turned
18, compared with one in 30 young men.90 An estimated 12 million more girls are married each year.91 A
growing body of research shows that child, early andforced marriage often increases with conflict and has
both immediate and long-lasting effects.92 Nine of the
10 countries with the highest prevalence rate of child,early and forced marriage are classified as fragile orconflict affected.93 Yet, despite the evidence showing
an increased risk of child marriage in conflict, there
remain significant gaps in data on the incidence andprevalence of child, early and forced marriage.94
The UN Secretary-General’s reports on children
and armed conflict and the Monitoring and Reporting
Mechanism (MRM) focus only on violations perpetrated by parties to a conflict. Thus, although the MRM
should cover data collection on girls forcibly married
to armed actors, other child marriages are outside its
mandate and are not captured. Other data collection
tools designed to measure child marriage prevalence
and incidence rates are rarely used outside of stable
contexts. Child marriage is a particularly compellingexample of a ‘secondary harm’ experienced by girls inconflict-settings that is not comprehensively addressed by existing policy and accountability frameworks
under international law.
While some impacts of sexual violence are specificto girls, such as obstetric fistula and the risks associated with unsafe abortions, other consequences canbe debilitating for both girls and boys. These include
psychological trauma, urinary and anal incontinence,loss of sexual pleasure, and exposure to HIV andother sexually transmitted infections.95 In addition,
survivors often live with stigma and distress for many
years if not the rest of their lives. Boys who suffer
sexual violence may feel emasculated; girls may perceive themselves or be perceived to be dishonoured,
impure or unmarriable. Babies conceived through conflict-related sexual violence may be rejected by theircommunities.
A survey conducted in 2015 in South Kivu Province,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, asked women
about their lives as mothers of children conceived
through sexual violence.96 Two-thirds reported theyoften see their assailant and/or remember the assault
when looking at their children; spousal acceptanceof the child was even lower than acceptance by theircommunity or family. The study found a critical needfor interventions to reduce stigma in order to prevent

pervasive and long-term negative impact for the mother and child. Stigma-reduction efforts require multi-level and multi-sectoral responses – including the
support and leadership of community and religious
leaders. In a study conducted in 2019 with individuals
born after genocide-related rapes in Rwanda, participants noted being treated differently from siblings,
and facing neglect and abuse at home. For many,
poverty added to the psychological and social challenges.97
Sexual violence against boys
Sexual and gender-based violations are signiﬁcantly
under-reported due to the associated stigma; andamong boys and men who have suffered sexual violence, under-reporting is widely understood to be
proportionally even greater. The descriptions thatcome to light reinforce the message that sexual violence is not about sex, but about power, humiliationand destruction. For example, it includes being forced
to watch acts of sexual violence on others and being
forced to perform sexual acts on another person– including a member of a boy or man’s family or ona dead body. Other manifestations include “castration, sterilisation, genital shocks and beatings, forced
masturbation of self and others, insertion of objects
into the urethra, oral and anal rape with objects suchas rifles, sticks or broken bottles.” 98 There are also
reported cases of older boys committing sexual violence against younger boys within conflict settings.99
A report on sexual violence against men and boysin the Syria crisis published by UNHCR in 2017 findsthat boys in Syria are subject to widespread sexual
violence. This includes sexual torture by multiple parties to conflict. Official and makeshift detention centres were reported as key sites of sexual violence.100
As with girls, male survivors can suffer from a wide
range of consequences. Physical injuries and conditions can include anal fissures, genital mutilation, andtesticular, penile or rectal pain. Psychological impacts
include “shame, loss of confidence, sleep disorders,feelings of powerlessness, confusion and suicidal

VIOLENCE AGAINSTPEOPLE WHO ARE
LGBTIThe Independent International Commissionof Inquiry confirms reports from humanrights campaigners that atrocities havebeen perpetrated in Syria against people
who are or are perceived to be Lesbian,Gay, Bisexual, Transgender or Intersex (LGBTI), including “torture, stoning,beheading, and burning people alive.”104
UNHCR’s global review of efforts toprotect LGBTI asylum-seekers and refugees reported that parties to conflict can“disproportionately subject LGBTI persons
to discrimination, homicide, torture, displacement, sexual violence, amongst other…
violations.”105 Such discrimination has also
taken the form of “anti-gay pamphleteering, beating and murdering LGBTI protestors and their defenders…[and] sexual
exploitation of transgender individuals.”106

thoughts”.101 Other consequences include social
exclusion, stigmatisation and problems reintegrating
into their family. The pervasiveness and power ofculturally prescribed norms around masculinity, malesexuality and the male protective role should not be
under-estimated. These notions underlie some malesurvivors’ “feelings of emasculation and self-blame”
and fears and anxieties about being perceived ashomosexual.102 

SAMIRA: SEPARATED FROM HER CHILD
Samira is a 15-year-old Yezidi girl from Iraq and themother of a two-year old child. In 2016, she was
kidnapped with her mother and sisters in Sinjar Province in Iraq. She was kept in captivity and sold to atleast three people who beat and sexually assaulted
her, before being forced into marriage with an ISIS
combatant and giving birth to a child. Her husband
was killed in coalition bombing and Samira fled withher child to Mabrouka Camp in north-east Syria. In
the camp, Save the Children supported her to accesshealth and education services, psychosocial support
and parenting advice. Authorities in north-east Syria
relocated her from the camp to a Yezidi home. She
was separated from her child and returned to Sinjar.
The child remains under the care of the authorities in
Syria. Samira said, “I would prefer to stay in slavery
and live in camps my whole life rather than leave mychild. I did not want to leave her to live without mother, or to live the life that I lived. I wanted to give her
the rights that I have been denied as a child.”

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 33

34 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

“As children, we do not accept the idea of child marriage. I think that many grownups believe in child marriage. After many attempts to change their views, some havebeen convinced. Their mindsets have changed. Adults have taught us so many things.
Any man can teach his daughter what to do and what not to do. And at some point,
it will be his turn to listen to me and learn from me, because I have so much to teachyou,” says Hiba, age 17, from Syria and now living in Jordan.
P H OTO : J O R D I M ATA S / S AV E T H E C H I L D R E N

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 35

5
ATTACKS ON SCHOOLS AND HOSPITALS
4000

3000

2000

SEX-DISAGGREGATIONNOT AVAILABLE

1000

2005/6 2006/7 2007/8 2009 2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

FIGURE 10
Number of attacks on schools and hospitals.
SOURCE: VERIFIED INCIDENTS AND CASES FROM THE UN SECRETARY-GENER AL’S ANNUAL REPORTS ON CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICT.
THE ACTUAL NUMBERS ARE LIKELY TO BE HIGHER .

“Where I’m from, parents are scared to send their children to school.”
Purity, Youth Ambassador,
Nigeria, age 14107■ The number of attacks on schools and hospitals108
increased in 2018, with total of 1,892109 verified incidents of attack and military use of schools and hospitals in 18 countries. This is an increase of as much as
32% compared to 2017. In addition, the report points
to reported, but not verified, incidents in Pakistan (34)and Thailand (1).
A total of 730 incidents of attacks on schools andeducation personnel and 887 incidents of attacks on
hospitals and medical personnel are verified in the
UN Secretary-General’s 2019 report on children andarmed conflict. In addition, 142 schools and 17 hospitals were used for military purposes. The reportshows an overall increase in attacks in Afghanistan,
Colombia, Central African Republic, Yemen, Somalia,
Sudan, Mali, occupied Palestinian territory and Libya.
Data on verified attacks on schools and hospitals is
not sex-disaggregated because it documents attacks on buildings and physical structures – so-called

36 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

collective violations. However, evidence points to thespecific targeting of girls’ education. In Afghanistan,for instance, the number of attacks on schools has
increased dramatically, with girls’ schools repeatedly
targeted. In June 2018, more than 80 girls’ schools
were closed after Islamic State militants in eastern
Afghanistan threatened to bomb them.110
Attacks on girls’ schools are often a direct attack
on girls who step outside of restrictive gender norms
and expectations. In some cases, violent extremistgroups have clearly stated their rationale for attacking girls’ schools – for example, to warn girls not
to go to school, demand that teachers and parents
close girls’ schools, or to try to restrict mobility anddress codes for women teachers and girls attending
schools.111 Some of these attacks have been driven
by entrenched and regressive norms around genderand girls’ roles and value. In such settings, a common
perception may be that girls’ value derives solely fromtheir marital and reproductive capacities or care-taking roles, and that their behaviour and presence
should be confined to the private sphere.112
Positively, the global reporting of incidents ofarmed parties using schools for military purposescontinues to decrease, down 25% from 188 schools

THE GLOBAL COALITION
FOR THE PROTECTION
OF EDUCATION FROMATTACK
From the launch of the Safe Schools Declaration in 2015 until 2018, the Global Coalition
for the Protection of Education from Attack(GPCEA) reported that, in the 12 countries
that endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration in2015, incidents of military use of schools anduniversities declined.117 By end of 2019 the number of endorsements of the Safe Schools Declaration by states reached 101, with Ukraine andSeychelles becoming the 100th and 101st statescommitting to keep schools safe.
Since the Safe Schools Declaration launch,
Save the Children’s Safe Schools programme
has helped to keep children safe from all
hazards in and around school, and supported
governments to put their commitments into
practice.
In Ukraine, where more than 750 educational
facilities have been damaged since the beginning of the conflict in 2014,118 many children
fear attending school and are distressed by
the presence of armed soldiers in and aroundtheir schools. According to Save the Children’s
gender assessment in 2019, based on consultations with 107 children living in government-­
controlled areas near the contact line, boys
fear being beaten by soldiers and girls reportsexual harassment by the military.119

in 2017 to 142 schools in 2018. Of these 142 schools,
over 90% are found in four countries: Iraq (48), Yemen(32), Syria (24) and South Sudan (26). In Syria, Iraq
and Somalia, schools and children’s journeys to andfrom school have been reported to be sites of recruitment – of boys, in particular.113
As the data on incidents of attacks on schools andhospitals are collective violations, it is difficult to draw
any definite conclusions based on gender analyses.
Despite this, it is possible to suggest some differencesin the experience of attacks on schools and hospitals“The military catcall
and harass us. We arescared and run fromthem when we see them.
Military people stop thecar close to girls at thestreet, talking to themand trying to touch them.
Parents do not let us
leave the house in
the evening.”“Military men are always
drunk. Nobody can tellwhat they are up to andthey spend time near theschool. They think they
can do anything.”— Comments at a focus
group with girls aged
14–17, Ukraine.

across genders. Countries affected by conflict tend
to have wider gender gaps in enrolment than elsewhere.114 And girls overall are 2.5 times more likely to
be out of school in conflict settings than boys.115 This
could lead to a greater number of boys experiencing
attacks on schools than girls but is highly context
dependent, given the deliberate targeting by somegroups of girls’ education. And when girls are not inschool, they are more likely to be married as children,
experience early pregnancy, and face life-long gender-based violence and health issues.116 

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 37

6
DENIAL OF HUMANITARIAN ACCESS TO CHILDREN
2000

1000

SEX-DISAGGREGATIONNOT AVAILABLE

2005/6 2006/7 2007/8 2009 2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

FIGURE 11
Number of incidents of denial of humanitarian access.
SOURCE: VERIFIED INCIDENTS FROM THE UN SECRETARY-GENER AL’S ANNUAL REPORTS ON CHILDREN AND ARMED CONFLICT.
THE ACTUAL NUMBERS ARE LIKELY TO BE HIGHER .

■ While the number of verified incidents of denial of
humanitarian access120 fell from 1,579 incidents in 2017
to 795 in 2018, the UN Secretary-General’s report onchildren and armed conflict asserts that “the decrease
could be explained by restricted access to information, rather than an improvement of the situation.”121
The restraint of, threats against, and targeting of
humanitarian personnel and civilian infrastructure
has prevented humanitarian actors from gaining
information. The report on children and armed conflict includes the verification of 128 killed or wounded
aid workers, as well as 116 aid workers abducted ordetained, in Afghanistan, Central African Republic andSyria.
In Iraq, for example, there were no verified incidentsof the denial of humanitarian access, however bureaucratic processes have made it difficult for humanitarian workers to reach those in need with help.122 In
addition, families and children with actual or alleged
affiliation with Islamic State continue to be prevented
from accessing basic services such as healthcare.123
The same applies in Syria, where the restriction of
movement and access to basic health services has caused the death of several children in Rukban.124

38 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

With at least 275 incidents, Yemen continues torank highly for the prevalence of denial of humanitarian assistance to children affected by conflict. Other
high numbers of incidents were documented in Mali
and the Central African Republic. There was a sharp
increase in the number of incidents verified in Nigeria(from 5 in 2017 to 33 in 2018).
Similarly to attacks on schools and hospitals, thedata on incidents of denial of humanitarian accessmostly concerns collective violations. Almost none ofthe data on denial of humanitarian access was disaggregated by sex in either the 2018 or 2019 reports onchildren and armed conflict.125 It is therefore difficult
to draw any substantive definitive gendered conclusions.
However, analysis suggests that it is possible thatgirls suffer more severely from the denial of humanitarian access. This is due to cultural and social
restrictions on girls’ movements, which exacerbate
their dependency on adult and/or male counterparts,and further limit their access to essential aid and services.126 More research is needed to understand thescale and scope of this violation as it pertains to gender and age. BRIDGING THE FUNDING GAP
There are many effective child protection interventions in conflict situations. These include:• case management for children who have sufferedor are at risk of serious violence or exploitation;• family tracing and reunification, and the provision of alternative care for unaccompanied andseparated children, and• the release and reintegration of children associated with armed forces and armed groups.
However, the scale of these interventions is limited
in humanitarian responses, and often they cometoo late, if at all.
Although funding for child protection has increased since 2010, it remains very limited, making up
an average of 0.53% of total humanitarian funding
between 2010 and 2018. The gap in funding forchild protection is even more stark when considering how many children are in need of protection.
Findings suggest that in 2018, an average of only
US$3 was spent per year on each child in need ofprotection.127
When it comes to child protection in needs
assessments and response strategies, there is significant room for improvement. Only 8% of Humanitarian Response Plans had a dedicated chapter onchild protection in 2018, yet 21% of humanitarianneeds overviews included a sub-chapter on childprotection.128 Furthermore, child protection assessments and response plans are rarely gender-mainstreamed, leaving gender-related drivers andimpacts ignored, and often resulting in gender-blindinterventions that fail to adequately address girls’
and boys’ distinct needs.
Sexual and Gender-based Violence (SGBV)
against children in conflict is a violation that must
be better addressed. Boy and girl survivors of SGBV
often fall between two inter-agency coordination
mechanisms within the protection cluster – the GBV
area of responsibility and the child protection areaof responsibility. It is crucial that the two areas of
responsibility continue to build on the positive collaboration established to ensure that child survivors
receive child-focused, gender-sensitive, specialist
support to both prevent and respond to SGBV.
Funding for SGBV interventions for children
represents on average a mere 0.12% of total global humanitarian aid per year (annual average for2010–18) (see Figure 13). Given the magnitude of
SGBV in humanitarian contexts and the children,in particular girls, who are at risk of exposure
to child, early and forced marriage, more funds
are urgently needed to adequately prevent andrespond to the needs of child survivors.

0,25%

0,20%

0,15%

0,10%

0,05%

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

FIGURE 12: FUNDING FOR SGBV INTERVENTIONS FOR CHILDREN AS A PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL HUMANITARIAN AID, BY YEAR129
SOURCE: THE ALLIANCE FOR CHILD PROTECTION IN HUMANITARIAN ACTION, SAVE THE CHILDREN INTERNATIONAL & CHILD
PROTECTION ARE A OF RESPONSIBILIT Y (2019) UNPROTECTED: CRISIS IN HUMANITARIAN FUNDING FOR CHILD PROTECTIONSTOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 39

CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATIONS

Lama lives in a displacement
camp, North East Syria.
P H OTO : S AV E T H E C H I L D R E N

40 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

“Children are more at risk of harm now
than at any point since records began.”Our analysis shows that children are disproportionately suffering in modern conflict. While thenumber of children living in conflict reduced in2018 from an all-time high in 2017, the number of verified violations increased yet again. Children are more
at risk of harm now than at any point since records
began.
This report reflects the scale of the challenge facing
states and their partners. However, the overarchingstatistics mask the multifaceted ways in which age,gender and disability affect children’s vulnerability
to different grave violations, as well as shaping theirwider experience of conflict for children. Beneath such
surface-level statistics such as the fact that boys are
more likely to be abducted, killed or maimed, andrecruited and used by armed forces or armed groups,
or the fact that girls are more likely to experiencesexual violence, there are wide-ranging and often
mutually reinforcing effects of conflict that current
mandates fail to capture. This includes for instance,
access to education and protection, violations facing
children affected by forced displacement, access tohealth and nutrition, and the use of negative coping
mechanisms, such as child marriage. Conflict exacerbates underlying gender norms, vulnerabilities andgender biases, and therefore requires responses that
address the different protection risks for girls, boys
and children of diverse sexual orientations and gender
identities.
In order to protect children and respond to theirneeds in conflict settings we need to ensure that gender and age are effectively taken into account – fromthe way we monitor and report violations, to how
we respond programmatically, to the norms andstandards we set and enforce. The dynamics aroundage, in particular, highlight the constant need to protect the right to childhood from the negative impact
of modern conflict. It is only through engaging withchildren that we will achieve the changes that areneeded. The lack of children’s participation in conflict
prevention, in humanitarian response, in development
and in peace-building – in addition to under-funding in
critical areas – are major barriers to the best possible
response to children impacted by conflict.
As set out in Save the Children’s previous ‘Stop the
War on Children’ reports, we believe states can stop
the war on children by taking concrete action in threeareas. These are:• upholding international norms and standards;• holding perpetrators of violations against children
to account, and• enabling children to recover from conflict and taking
practical action to protect them from harm
In 2019 we saw some progress against these threepillars; however, many of our recommendations stillrequire action.
We also call on states and humanitarian actors to
respond to the issues raised in this report regarding
the gendered impact of conflict on children.

In addition to our existing roadmap to stop
the war on children, we call on:• States to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law and international humanrights law, including the full implementation of suchmandates as the Children and Armed Conflict, and
Women, Peace and Security Agendas, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Beijing
Declaration and Platform for Action. 130• UN Security Council members and other humanitarian actors to implement a holistic approach toaddressing sexual and gender-based violence, infragile, conflict-affected and post-conflict settings,
including access to sexual and reproductive health

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 41

services, and tailored prevention strategies, such as
through efforts to identify, challenge and address
discriminatory attitudes and norms at all levels that
accept, excuse and drive gender-based violence.
• Donors and humanitarian actors to:• increase multi-year investment in humanitarianchild protection with the aim of growing its proportion of total humanitarian funding from 0.5%
to 4%, including substantially increasing funding
for both mainstreamed and targeted interventions on gender equality, girls’ empowerment, andsexual and gender-based violence in humanitarian settings. Funding must be secured for bothgender- and child protection advisors.
• increase funding to the MRM to strengthen
capacity to monitor and verify violations, disaggregated by age and sex.
• require full adherence to the Minimum Standards
for Prevention and Response to Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies and the MinimumStandards for Child Protection in Humanitarian
Action131 as a funding condition.132• The Office of the Special Representative of theSecretary General on Children and armed Conflict,with financial and diplomatic support made available
by states, ensure that data collection through the
MRM is sex-disaggregated whenever possible, and towork with parties to conflict to develop action plansthat specifically address the ways in which all thegrave violations differentially target girls, boys andchildren of diverse sexual orientations and gender
identities.
• Humanitarian actors to support children to raisecomplaints of violations of their rights in conflictdirectly – through sustainable funding, institutionalised mechanisms, and age and gender-sensitive
capacity- and skills-building, in spaces that include:• local, national, and regional accountability
mechanisms and processes;• the complaints procedure of the African
Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child;• UN human rights accountability mechanisms,
including the Universal Periodic Review andConvention on the Rights of the Child, and bycommitting to sign and ratify the third Optional
Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of theChild, which enables children to hold parties
to the UNCRC to account for failing to uphold
their rights;• accountability processes for the Sustainable
Development Goals, such as the voluntary national reviews, and• the ongoing Beijing +25 review process, leading
to a five-year plan for increasing progress on
girls’ rights.

42 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS• All actors to ensure meaningful participation forchildren in humanitarian response, peace-building
and development by:• ensuring that all humanitarian responses are
informed by child consultations as a way todevelop inclusive, age-, gender- and disability-sensitive and transformative responses;• strengthening child participation as part ofthe children and armed conflict agenda byimplementing and resourcing the participationcommitment in resolution 2427, and• systematically supporting the inclusion of children in peace-making and peace-building efforts.
• All actors on the ground in humanitarian settings must consistently collect, analyse, and use
data disaggregated by sex, age, and disability andto the greatest extent possible, recognising thedirect impact this has on design and delivery of
programmes and advocacy for children in conflict.
Specific focus should be given within initiatives of
the Inter-Agency Standing Committee on joint integrated analysis to work across sectors to address
data gaps on child marriage in humanitarian settings.
For a full list of recommendations, please see the Stop
the War on Children 2019 report.133 APPENDICESAPPENDIX 1: METHODOLOGY
The ﬁndings in this report are based on
three main sources:• Updated data on the number of children living inconflict zones conducted by the Peace ResearchInstitute (PRIO), Oslo. The core dataset used tomap conﬂict patterns in this report is the UppsalaConﬂict Data Program’s Georeferenced Event Dataset (UCDP GED). The UCDP dataset provides thegeographical location, timing and intensity of eachconflict event globally, covering the years 1989–
2018. To estimate the number of children living in
conﬂict areas, and populations more generally, PRIO
cross-referenced the conﬂict data with population
data from Gridded Population of the World (GPW)and from the UN (2018).

• Analysis by Save the Children of the 2019 United
Nations Annual Report of the Secretary-Generalon Children and Armed Conﬂict. The analysis also
draws on previous Save the Children mapping of thenumber of grave violations in the reports on children
and armed conflict from 2005–17.
• A Proteknon consulting group study commissioned
by Save the Children134, which examines more deeply
the gender dimensions of the six grave violationscommitted against children in conflict-affected areas,
informed the gender analysis of the six grave violations.

APPENDIX 2: DATA LIMITATIONSThe MRM135 data in the UN Secretary-General’sannual reports on children and armed conflict inevitably only paints a partial picture due to access restrictions, security threats and limited resources, whichmeans not all cases can be reported or veriﬁed andare therefore not included in the report. Although thenumbers on veriﬁed violations are likely to only be
the tip of the iceberg, the trends are measurable andreﬂect the reality that we see in conﬂict zones today.
There remains a significant and worrying gap inchild-specific and sex-disaggregated data in conflicts.
For example, there is currently no comprehensive,
reliable data on child casualties in conflicts around theworld. Authoritative sources of conflict and fatality

data, such as the Uppsala Conflict Data Programme
and the Armed Conflict and Events Data project, do
not provide any information on the age distribution of
those killed in conflict.
The absence of systematic sex and age disaggregated data makes it difficult to provide comprehensive
gender analysis. Extensive primary research at country level would have been necessary to fully addressthese gaps in data.
In addition, to a broader gap in sex and age disaggregated data, there is also a significant gap in dataon incidence and prevalence rates for specific violations more likely to be experienced in the private
rather than public sphere, and thus more likely to

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 43

be experienced by girls. Specific and ongoing gaps indata on child marriage in humanitarian contexts, andparticularly in conflict contexts, is one such example that neither the protection agendas under the
Security Council’s mandate nor data collection efforts
under the international humanitarian architecture
have been able to address.136
For data on children of diverse sexual orientation,
gender identity and expression (SOGIE), there is analmost complete absence of formal research, pro-gramming or documentation in relation to all thegrave violations. Where obtaining sex-disaggregateddata per violation is challenging, obtaining data onchildren of diverse SOGIE is even more so.
However, this report does provide an overarchinggender analysis of the available data sets, policies andpractices, while also highlighting any gaps. It serves asa point of departure for the formulation of recommendations and advocacy for field practitioners, donors
and the wider humanitarian community.

APPENDIX 3: DEFINITIONS USED IN THIS REPORTThis report uses the Uppsala Conﬂict Data Program(UCDP) deﬁnitions of conﬂict. The UCDP is theworld’s foremost provider of data on organised violence, and its Georeferenced Event Dataset and otherdatasets inform this research.
Conﬂict/armed conﬂict: when armed force is usedby an organized actor against another organised
actor or against civilians, resulting in at least 25 battle-related deaths in one calendar year (low-intensity
conflict). Medium intensity is defined as 25–999 battle
deaths, and high intensity defined as 1,000 or more
battle-related deaths in a country-year.
The deﬁnition includes three types of conﬂict:• State-based conﬂict takes place between two states(inter-state conﬂict), or between one state and one
or more rebel groups (civil conﬂict).
• Non-state conﬂict is fought between two organised,
armed actors, of which neither is the government ofa state.
• One-sided violence is perpetrated by an organised
armed group, either a state’s military forces or anarmed group, against civilians.
Conﬂict incidents/events: a conﬂict event is deﬁned
as a lethal incident, either a violent clash between two
armed groups or an attack on civilians by a group/groups, at a given time and place. Conﬂicts usuallyconsist of multiple conﬂict events.
Conﬂict zone/area (or an area impacted by
conﬂict): an area within the borders of a country
and within 50km from where one or more conﬂict
incidents takes place in a given year.
Battle-related deaths: the use of armed force
between warring parties in a conﬂict, be it statebased or non-state, resulting in deaths. We use theterm to include both combatant and civilian deaths,
unless otherwise speciﬁed.

44 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

Children living in conﬂict-affected areas/
conﬂict-affected children: children who residewithin conﬂict zones.
Children: we use the deﬁnition from the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child, which deﬁnes children as individuals under the age of 18 years.
Gender: the socially constructed roles, behaviours,
activities and attributes that a given society considers
appropriate for a person, often based on their sex.
Gender equality: the absence of discrimination on
the basis of sex or gender. For Save the Children,
gender equality is when one sex or gender is not routinely privileged or prioritised over another and all
people are recognised, respected and valued for theircapacities and potential as individuals and membersof society. Further, gender equality is when all people – girls, boys, women and men – have equal rights,
obligations and opportunities to: security and good
health; a viable livelihood and dignified work; participate in the care of home and dependent family members; take an active part in public and political life;
learn and participate in relevant education; and live alife free from violence.
Gender expression: external manifestations ofgender, expressed through one’s name, pronouns,
clothing, haircut, behaviour, voice or body characteristics. Society identifies these cues as masculine andfeminine, although what is considered masculine andfeminine changes over time and varies by culture. Typically, transgender people seek to make their gender
expression align with their gender identity rather than
the sex they were assigned at birth.
Gender identity: each person’s deeply felt internal
and individual experience of gender, which may or
may not correspond with their sex assigned at birth.
There are many diverse gender identities that do
not fit into the categories of women, men, girls andboys, and that are experienced by adults and children
around the world. A non-binary gender identity refers
to any gender identity or expression that does not fit
the male/female or boy/girl binary.
Gender roles: behaviours, attitudes and actions
that society feels are appropriate or inappropriate
for a man or woman, boy or girl, according to cultural norms and traditions. Gender roles are neither
static nor universal but vary between cultures, overtime, between generations and in relation to othersocial identities, such as social class, socio-economic
status, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, ability
and health status. Gender roles and equality may
also shift with processes of urbanisation or industrialisation, and the fluid nature of gender roles requires
careful and ongoing gender analysis.
Gender-sensitive: when the different needs, abilities
and opportunities of boys and girls, men and women,
and individuals of diverse gender identities are identified, considered and accounted for.137

Sexual and gender-based violence/gender-­based violence: gender-based violence is a generalterm for any harmful act that is perpetrated against
a person’s will and that is based on socially ascribed(gender) differences between males and females. The
composite term sexual and gender-based violence isused by UNHCR and emphasise that power differentials between adults and children, as well as thosebetween women, men, girls and boys, can be driversof sexual violence. 138
The six grave violations against children: theUN Security Council has identified six grave violations against children in situations of armed conflict:killing and maiming of children; recruitment or use ofchildren in armed forces and groups; rape and otherforms of sexual violence against children; abductionof children; attacks against schools and hospitals; anddenial of humanitarian access to children. These grave
violations were defined on the basis of their egregious
nature and their severe impact on children’s wellbeing.
In addition to the six violations, the annual report hasverified incidents of detention of children since 2012.

APPENDIX 4: LIST OF ABBREVIATIONSDRC: Democratic Republic of Congo

PRIO: Peace Research Institute OsloCRPD: Convention on the Rights of Persons
with Disabilities

SOGIE: Sexual orientation, gender identityand expression

GBV: Gender-Based Violence

SGBV: Sex and Gender-Based Violence

GCPEA: Global Coalition to Protect Educationfrom Attack

STIs: Sexually Transmitted Infections

GPW: Gridded Population of the World

SVAC: Sexual Violence in Armed Conﬂict

HIV: Human Immunodeficiency Virus

UCDP GED: Uppsala Conﬂict Data Program’sGeoreferenced Event Dataset

ICC: International Criminal Court

UN: United Nations

IHL: International Humanitarian Law

UNHCR: United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees

LGBTI: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenderor Intersex
MONUSCO: The United Nations Stabilization
Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

UNCRC: United Nations Convention of the Rightsof the Child
UNICEF: United Nations Children’s Fund

MRM: Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism on
grave violations against children in conflict

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 45

ENDNOTES
1

2

3

4
5

6

7

8

9

10

When looking at number of children living in conflictzones, the total under-eighteen population isconsidered, which means that the sex disaggregation
is bound to be around 50/50.
Since 1990, the global child population has increasedby 12%, while the number of children living in conﬂict
zones has increased by 66%.
PRIO, Østby, Gudrun; Siri Aas Rustad & Andreas
Forø Tollefsen (2020) ‘Children Affected by Armed
Conflict 1990–2018’ in Conflict Trends 1 2020. These
numbers are prepared for Save the Children by
the Peace Research Institute in Oslo (PRIO). Data
sources used to create graph: Uppsala Conflict Data
Program (UCDP) Georeferenced Event Dataset(GED) (Sundberg and Melander, 2013; Högbladh,2019); Gridded Population of the World (GPW) v4(Center for International Earth Science Information
Network, 2016); and World Population Prospects(UN, 2017),
See endnote 3
UN Secretary-General (2019) ‘Secretary-General
Annual Report on Children and Armed Conflict’,https://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.
asp?symbol=S/2019/509&Lang=E&Area=UNDOC
This will differ from the countries with the highest
number of children living in conflict zones, as theassessments also takes three other factors into
consideration, outlined in the text to follow.
Save the Children (2019) ‘Stop the War on Children’
https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/
node/14409/pdf/report_stop_the_war_on_children.
pdf
Save the Children (2019) ‘Every child in Afghanistanborn into war’ https://www.savethechildren.org.uk/
news/media-centre/press-releases/Every-child-inAfghanistan-born-into-war
UNICEF (2018) ‘Half of Syria’s children have grown
up only seeing violence as conflict nears eight-year
mark’, https://reliefweb.int/report/syrian-arabrepublic/half-syria-s-children-have-grown-onlyseeing-violence-conflict-nears
International Criminal Court (2011) ‘The
Rome Statute’, updatet version of original
document from 1998, https://www.icc-cpi.int/

46 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

11

12

13

NR/rdonlyres/ADD16852-AEE9-4757-ABE79CDC7CF02886/283503/RomeStatutEng1.pdf
African Child Policy Forum & Save the Children (2019)‘When children and youth take the lead: amplify
children and youth’s voices to bring lasting change’,from Children and Armed Conflict: A Pan-African
conference 2019, http://cac.africanchildforum.org/
index.php
The MRM was created in 2005 by Security Council
Resolution 1612. At the global level, the MRM
is overseen by the Special Representative of theSecretary-General for Children and Armed Conﬂict,
in close cooperation with UNICEF and the UN
Department of Peacekeeping Operations. At country
level, the MRM is overseen by Country Task Forceson Monitoring and Reporting, which are co-chairedby the representative of UNICEF and the highest
UN representative in the country. By collecting
timely, objective, accurate and reliable information
on violations and abuses committed against children
by parties to armed conﬂict, the MRM provides the
UN Security Council with an evidence base to holdperpetrators accountable. It also helps actors on the
ground advocate for and plan adequate protection
and response measures and programmes. Parties toconﬂict who are listed for grave violations should signaction plans – these are agreed with the UN with aview to complete a series of time-bound, concrete
activities to halt and prevent violations and to takeremedial action. Successful completion of an action
plan leads to de-listing. For more information, see
http://www.mrmtools.org/mrm/
In the MRM toolkit the two violations of an attack
on a school or hospital and denial of humanitarianaccess are called impersonal attacks. They may nothave physically impacted on a specific child at thatpoint in time, but they may later have an impact
on children. In this report we refer to individual
violations, where individual children are harmed andcan be counted, as the four violations of killing andmaiming of children, recruitment or use of children
in armed forces and groups, rape and other forms
of sexual violence against children, and abduction ofchildren. And we refer to collective violations, whichin the MRM are called impersonal violations. For

14

15
16
17
18

19

20

21

22

23

24

more on this, see the UN’s ‘Field Manual: Monitoring
and Reporting Mechanism on grave violations againstchildren in situations of armed conflict’ (2014) on
https://childrenandarmedconflict.un.org/wp-content/
uploads/2016/04/MRM_Field_5_June_2014.pdf , page
19.
In the UN SG’s annual report on children and armed
conflict, both verified cases/incidents and reported
cases/incidents are presented. For a wide rangeof reasons, the reported violations are not always
verified. In this publication we have only included
verified violations in the numbers presented.
See endnote 13.
Proteknon (2020) ‘Gender Analysis: The six grave
violations of children’s rights in conflict’See endnote 16
For example, girls living in countries affected byconflict are 2.5 times more likely to be out of school
than boys. UNESCO (2015), Education for All Global
Monitoring Report, https://unesdoc.unesco.org/
ark:/48223/pf0000233557
Gender-Based Violence AoR (2019), Research,learning and evidence digest, https://gbvaor.net/sites/
default/files/2019-11/Research%2C%20Evidence%20
and%20Learning%20Digest-%20Intimate%20
Partner%20Violence%20%28IPV%29%20in%20
Emergencies%2C%20Helpdesk.pdf
World Health Organization (2011), World reporton disability, https://www.who.int/disabilities/
world_report/2011/report/en/
UNICEF (2017) ‘Including children with disabilities
in humanitarian action’ http://training.unicef.org/
disability/emergencies/
iMMAP and Humanity and Inclusion (2018), ‘Removing
Barriers The Path towards Inclusive Access’ https://
humanity-inclusion.org.uk/en/news/1-in-5-syrianrefugees-has-a-disability-new-survey-reveals
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities(CRPD), https://www.un.org/development/desa/
disabilities/convention-on-the-rights-of-persons-withdisabilities.html
UNICEF (2019) Children with disabilities in situations
with armed conflict https://www.unicef.org/disabilities/
files/Children_with_Disabilities_in_Situations_of_
Armed_Conflict-Discussion_Paper.pdf

25
26
27

28

29
30

31

32
33

34
35

36

UNICEF (2017) See endnote 21
UNICEF (2019) See endnote 24
The Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian
Law and Human Rights (2019) Disability andArmed Conflict, https://www.geneva-academy.
ch/joomlatools-files/docman-files/Academy%20
Briefing%2014-interactif.pdf, p 91
Resolution 2475 (2019), Adopted by the Security
Council at its 8556th meeting, on 20 June 2019 https://
undocs.org/s/res/2475(2019)
UN Secretary-General (2019) See endnote 5
One example of this is on Yemen Data gathered by
the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project(ACLED) revealed that 31,000 people were killed in
the war in 2018, the deadliest and most violent year
on record in a country where children make up half
the population. UNICEF has stated that verified data
confirms the death or injury of at least 5,000 children
but caveats that “actual numbers are expected to
be much higher”. At the same time, the report onchildren and armed conflict documents that 576
children have been killed in 2018, and 1,113 maimed.
UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and UNHCR(2019) Afghanistan: Protection of civilians inarmed conflict. Annual report 2018, https://unama.
unmissions.org/sites/default/files/unama_annual_
protection_of_civilians_report_2018_-_23_
feb_2019_-_english.pdf
UN Secretary-General (2019), paragraph 20 – see
endnote 5
Save the Children (2019) Afraid to Go Outside: The
impact of conflict on children in Afghanistan, https://
afghanistan.savethechildren.net/sites/afghanistan.
savethechildren.net/files/library/Afraid%20to%20
Go%20Outside%20-%20Report%20-%20Digital.pdf
UN Secretary-General (2019) paragraph 84 – see
endnote 5
Save the Children (2019) Blast Injuries: The impact
of explosive weapons on children in conflict, https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/node/15209/pdf/
ch1325872_2_0.pdf
Oxford Research Group (2013) Stolen Futures: The
hidden toll of child casualties, https://www.files.ethz.
ch/isn/173769/Stolen%20Futures.pdf As reported byProteknon (2020) – see endnote 16

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 47

37
38
39

40

41

42
43
44

45

46

47

48

49
50

51

Ibid.
Ibid.
The Guardian Nigeria (2019) ‘UNICEF condemns useof teenage girls as suicide bombers in Borno’, https://
guardian.ng/news/nigeria/unicef-condemns-use-ofteenage-girls-as-suicide-bombers-in-borno/
K Turner (2016), ‘The rise of female suicide
bombers’, Counter Terrorist Trends andAnalyses, Vol 8 (3), https://www.jstor.org/
stable/26351404?seq=2#metadata_info_tab_contents
as reported by Proteknon (2020) - see endnote 16
Definition as applied in the MRM: Recruitment refers
to compulsory, forced or voluntary conscription orenlistment of children into any kind of armed force
or armed group(s) under the age stipulated in theinternational treaties applicable to the armed force
or armed group in question. Use of children refers to
the use of children by armed forces or armed groups
in any capacity, including, but not limited to, children
used as fighters, cooks, porters, messengers, spies
and collaborators. It does not only refer to a child
who is taking or has taken a direct part in hostilities
http://www.mrmtools.org/mrm/1095_1125.htm
UN Secretary-General (2019) – see endnote 5
UN Secretary-General (2019) – see endnote 5
Human Rights Watch (2015) “We Can Die Too”:
Recruitment and use of child soldiers in South Sudan,
https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/report_pdf/
southsudan1215_4.pdf
UNDAW (2006) D Mazurana and K Carlson ‘The
girl child and armed conflict: recognizing andaddressing grave violations of girls’ human rights’,
UN Division for the Advancement of Women, EGM//
DVGC/2006/Ep.12 https://www.researchgate.net/
publication/237282392_The_girl_child_and_armed_
conflict_Recognizing_and_addressing_grave_
violations_of_girls’_human_rights
United Nations Security Council, Resolution
1612 (2005), https://www.un.org/ruleoflaw/files/
SecurityCouncilResolution1612_en.pdf
UN Secretary-General (2017) ‘Secretary-General
Annual Report on Children and Armed Conflict’,https://undocs.org/S/2017/821 As reported byProteknon (2020) - see endnote 16
Child Soldiers International (2013), ‘Report to
the Committee on the Rights of the Child in
advance of Yemen’s initial periodic report on
the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the
Rights of the Child on the involvement of children
in armed conflict’, https://www.refworld.org/
publisher,CSCOAL,,YEM,5208b8a64,0.html As
reported by Proteknon (2020) - see endnote 16
Proteknon (2020) - see endnote 16
Child Soldiers International (2008), Global Report
2008, https://www.child-soldiers.org/shop/globalreport-2008-1 As reported by Proteknon (2020) - see
endnote 16
United Nations Population Fund et al., (2018), Child
Marriage in Humanitarian Settings: Spotlight on thesituation in the Arab region, https://www.unicef.org/

48 STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS

52
53

54

55
56

57

58

59

60
61
62

63
64
65
66

mena/sites/unicef.org.mena/files/2018-08/CM%20
in%20humanitarian%20settings%20MENA.pdf As
reported by Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
United Nations Population Fund et al., (2018) – see
endnote 50
World Health Organisation, webpage, ‘Gender
and women’s mental health’ https://www.who.int/
mental_health/prevention/genderwomen/en/
UN Secretary-General (2018) ‘Report of theSecretary-General on conflict-related sexual
violence’, https://undocs.org/S/2018/250
Ibid.
UN University (2018), Cradled by Conflict:
Preventing and responding to child recruitment anduse in contemporary conflicts – implications for
programming (technical note), http://collections.unu.
edu/eserv/UNU:6575/CradledTechnicalNote.pdf As
reported by Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
Definition as applied in the MRM: Detention refers
to any person deprived of personal liberty except
as a result of conviction for an offense. Deprivationof liberty refers to any form of detention or
imprisonment or the placement of a person in a public
or private custodial setting, from which this person is
not permitted to leave at will, by order of any judicial,administrative or other public authority. See more on:
http://www.mrmtools.org/mrm/files/3_Annexe_III_
Abduction_and_Detention_Clarification.pdf
Some cases of detention relate to recruitment anduse of children and have been reported in relation
to the grave violation of the recruitment and use ofchildren by armed forces and groups.
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights (2019) The United Nations
Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty, p.
569, https://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CRC/
StudyChildrenDeprivedLiberty/Pages/Index.aspx
UN Secretary-General (2019) – see endnote 5
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for
Human Rights (2019) – see endnote 59
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees(2017) We Keep It in Our Hearts: Sexual violenceagainst men and boys in Syria, https://data2.unhcr.
org/es/documents/download/60864
UN Secretary-General (2019) – see endnote 59
Ibid.
UN Secretary-General (2019) – see endnote 5
Definition as applied in the MRM: Abduction isdefined as the unlawful removal, seizure, capture,apprehension, taking or enforced disappearance ofa child either temporarily or permanently for the
purpose of any form of exploitation of the child. This
includes, but is not limited to, recruitment in armed
forces or groups, participation in hostilities, sexual
exploitation or abuse, forced labour, hostage-taking
and indoctrination. If a child is recruited by force byan armed force or group, this is considered as two
separate violations – abduction and recruitment.
http://www.mrmtools.org/mrm/1095_1125.htm

67
68
69

70

71

72
73
74

75

76

77
78

UN Secretary-General (2019) paragraph 64 – see
endnote 5
Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
Still more than 112 girls are missing/in captivity
according to Bring Back Our Girls Nigeria. See
BringBackOurGirls (2019) tweet message, https://twitter.com/bbog_nigeria
UN Secretary-General (2015) ‘SecretaryGeneral Annual Report on Children andArmed Conflict’, Children and armed conflict
https://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.
asp?symbol=A/69/926&Lang=E&Area=UNDOC
Global Coalition to Protection Education from Attack(2018) “I Will Never Go Back to School”: The impactof attacks on education for Nigerian women andgirls, http://protectingeducation.org/sites/default/files/
documents/attacks_on_nigerian_women_and_girls.
pdf
Ibid.
Ibid.
UNESCO (2015) Education for All Global Monitoring
Report https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/
pf0000233557
United Nations Human Rights Council (2017) Reportof the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights on the situation of human rights in Libya,
including the effectiveness of technical assistanceand capacity-building measures received by theGovernment of Libya, https://documents-dds-ny.
un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G17/006/12/PDF/G1700612.
pdf?OpenElement As reported by Proteknon (2020) –see endnote 16
Save the Children (2019) ‘Many Afghan children
are afraid to go outside, new survey by Save theChildren finds’ (press release), https://afghanistan.
savethechildren.net/news/many-afghan-children-areafraid-go-outside-new-survey-save-children-finds
Ibid.
Definition as applied in the MRM: “any violent actof a sexual nature to a child. This encompasses
rape, other sexual violence, sexual slavery, enforced
prostitution, forced marriage/pregnancy, or enforced
sterilization.” Rape/attempted rape is defined as “anact of non-consensual sexual intercourse. This can
include the invasion of any part of the body witha sexual organ and/or the invasion of the genitalor anal opening with any object or body part. Any
penetration is considered rape. Efforts to rapesomeone, which do not result in penetration, areconsidered attempted rape.” Sexual violence is “anydefined sexual act, attempt to obtain a sexual act,
or acts to traffic a child’s sexuality. Sexual violencetakes many forms, including rape, sexual slavery and/or trafficking, forced pregnancy, sexual harassment,
sexual exploitation and/or abuse, and forced
abortion.” http://www.mrmtools.org/mrm/1095_1125.
htm. This is the definition of sexual violence applied
under the MRM, but does not reflect in full the forms
that sexual violence takes and should perhaps berevised.

79
80
81

82
83

84
85

86
87
88
89

90

91
92

93

94
95

96

97

Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
UN Secretary-General (2019) – see endnote 5,paragraph 36
UN Secretary-General (2019) ‘Conflict Related
Sexual Violence: Report of the United Nations
Secretary-General’, https://www.un.org/
sexualviolenceinconflict/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/
report/s-2019-280/Annual-report-2018.pdf
Ibid.
United Nations Human Rights Council (2019) Sexualand Gender-based Violence in Myanmar and theGendered Impact of its Ethnic Conflict, https://www.
ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/MyanmarFFM/Pages/
sexualviolence.aspx
United Nations Human Rights Council (2018) Reportof the Independent International Fact-finding Mission
on Myanmar, https://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/
HRC/MyanmarFFM/Pages/ReportoftheMyanmarFFM.
aspx
UN Secretary-General (2019) – see endnote 81
World Health Organization (2018) Adolescentpregnancy (webpage), https://www.who.int/newsroom/fact-sheets/detail/adolescent-pregnancy
Ibid.
Ibid.
United Nations Population Fund (2019) ‘State of theworld population report’ unfpa.org/swop-2019
UNICEF (2019) ‘115 million boys and men around theworld married as children’ (press release), https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/115-million-boys-andmen-around-world-married-children-unicef
UNICEF (2019) ‘115 million boys and men around theworld married as children’ (press release), https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/115-million-boys-andmen-around-world-married-children-unicef
Girls Not Brides, webpage, https://www.
girlsnotbrides.org/about-child-marriage/
See for example Toward an End to Child Marriage:
Lessons from research and practice in development
and humanitarian sectors, Save the Children 2018,https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/library/
toward-end-child-marriage-lessons-research-andpractice-development-and-humanitarian-sectors
Save the Children (2019) Addressing Data Gaps andChild, Early and Forced Marriage in Humanitarian
Settings, discussion draft, https://blog.savethechildren.
org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/F_STC_union_
online_dec19.pdf
Ibid.
Save the Children (2013) Unspeakable Crimes
Against Children Sexual violence in conflict, https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/node/7252/
pdf/7252.pdf
Rouhani et al. Stigma and Parenting Children
Conceived From Sexual Violence, PEDIATRICS
Volume 136, number 5, November 2015
Kahn & Denov. ‘‘We are children like others’’:
Pathways to mental health and healing for children
born of genocidal rape in Rwanda. Transcultural
Psychiatry 2019, Vol. 56(3) 510–528)

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 49

98 Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
99 Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
100 United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees(2017) We Keep It in Our Hearts: Sexual violenceagainst men and boys in Syria, https://data2.unhcr.
org/es/documents/download/60864
101 Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
102 Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
103 African Child Policy Forum & Save the Children (2019)– see endnote 11
104 Human Rights Campaign (July 2012) Helping
LGBTQ Refugees and Asylum Seekers in the Ageof ISIL, available at: http://dcrally4refugees.org/
PDFs/lgbtq_refugees_whitepaper.pdf (accessed 21
December 2016). As reported by Proteknon (2020) see endnote 16
105 United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees(2015) Protecting Persons with Diverse Sexual
Orientations and Gender Identities: A global report
on UNHCR’s efforts to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender, and intersex asylum-seekers andrefugees, https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/566140454.
pdf As reported by Proteknon (2020) - see endnote 16
106 United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees(2015) – see endnote 106
107 African Child Policy Forum & Save the Children (2019)– see endnote 11
108 Definition as applied in the MRM: Attacks include thetargeting of schools or medical facilities that cause
the total or partial destruction of such facilities.
Other interference to the normal operation of the
facility may also be reported, such as the occupation,
shelling, targeting for propaganda of, or otherwise
causing harm to schools or medical facilities or theirpersonnel. Note: A ‘school’ denotes a recognisable
education facility or learning site. Education facilities
and learning sites must be recognised and known
by the community as a learning space and marked
by visible boundaries. ‘Medical facilities’ are places
where the sick and wounded are collected and/or
provided with healthcare services. See more on: www.
mrmtools.org/mrm/1095_1125.htm
109 This includes military use of schools and hospitals andother interference with education and health services.
110 The Telegraph (6 June 2018) ‘Eighty Afghan girls’
schools close over Islamic State threat’, https://www.
telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/06/06/eighty-afghan-girlsschools-close-islamic-state-threat/
111 Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack(22 November 2019) ‘Girls targeted when schools
attacked, impacting lives, education’, http://www.
protectingeducation.org/news/girls-targeted-whenschools-attacked-impacting-lives-education
112 Ibid.
113 UN Secretary-General (2019) – See endnote 5
114 In most conflict-affected countries for which
sex-disaggregated data is available, the rate ofout-of-school-children among girls is greater thanfor boys. See A Jones and R Naylor (2014) The
Quantitative Impact of Armed Conflict on Education,

Protect Education from Insecurity and Conflict,https://www.educationdevelopmenttrust.com/
EducationDevelopmentTrust/files/d7/d77e9724-b4c741a2-b5e1-6a839e871d1f.pdf
See also S Gates, H Hegre, HM Nygård and H Strand(2010) ‘Consequences of civil war’, background paperfor World Development Report 2011, http://www.
prio.org/Publications/Publication/?x=5154
115 UNESCO (2015) – see endnote 18
116 J Freccero and A Whiting (2018) Toward an End toChild Marriage: Lessons from research and practicein development and humanitarian sectors, Save theChildren, https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/
library/toward-end-child-marriage-lessons-researchand-practice-development-and-humanitarian-sectors;
D Mazurana and A Marshak (2019) Addressing
Data Gaps an Child, Early And Forced Marriage in
Humanitarian Settings, discussion draft, Save theChildren, https://blog.savethechildren.org/wp-content/
uploads/2019/12/F_STC_union_online_dec19.pdf
117 Counting the countries where there was at least one
reported incident of military use of schools during
the same period (Afghanistan, the Central African
Republic , Iraq, Kenya, Lebanon, Mozambique,
Niger, Nigeria, Palestine, Somalia, South Sudan, andSudan), GCPEA found at least 160 reported incidentsof military use of schools and universities in 2015,
compared with at least 80 reported incidents in 2018;
GCPEA (2019) Practical Impact of the Safe Schools
Declaration, https://reliefweb.int/report/world/
practical-impact-safe-schools-declaration
118 UNICEF & Education Cluster (2019) Attacks on
Education in Ukraine: Situation report, 9 September
2019, https://reliefweb.int/report/ukraine/attackseducation-ukraine-situation-report-9-september-2019
119 Save the Children (2019) Listen to Us: Girls’ andboys’ gendered experiences of the conflict in eastern
Ukraine.
120 Definition as applied in the UN Secretary-General’sannual report on children and armed conflict: “Theintentional deprivation of or impediment to thepassage of humanitarian assistance indispensable
to children’s survival, by the parties to the conflict,including willfully impeding relief supplies as provided
for under the Geneva Conventions; and significant
impediments to the ability of humanitarian or otherrelevant actors to access and assist affected children,in situations of armed conflict. The denial should beconsidered in terms of children’s access to assistanceas well as humanitarian agencies’ ability to accessvulnerable populations, including children.” http://
www.mrmtools.org/mrm/1095_1125.htm
121 United Nations Secretary-General (2019) paragraph
11 – see endnote 5
122 United Nations Secretary-General (2019) paragraph
79 – see endnote 5
123 United Nations Secretary-General (2019) paragraph
79 – see endnote 5
124 United Nations Secretary-General (2019) paragraph
181 – see endnote 5

125 Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
126 Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
127 The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian
Action, Save the Children International & Child
Protection Area of Responsibility (2019) Unprotected:
Crisis in humanitarian funding for child protection,
https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/library/
unprotected-crisis-humanitarian-funding-childprotection
128 Child Protection Area of Responsibility (2018) Review
of Child Protection Positioning and Support for
Localisation, https://www.globalprotectioncluster.
org/wp-content/uploads/6.-CP-AoR-HNO-andHRP-Baseline-2018-CP-Positioning-and-Visibility-ofLocalisation.pdf
129 The following sectors were examined to look forfunding for SGBV interventions for children: GBV,
protection, child protection, and health. Data wassourced from UNOCHA’s Financial Tracking Service
in February 2019.
130 The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action is
being called out specifically in this report due to theupcoming 25-year anniversary of the framework.
The timing of the anniversary, ongoing stock-taking
and review process, and upcoming five-year actionplans to ensure that girls’ rights are achieved in allcontexts, including conflict contexts, require it to behighlighted here.
131 The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian
Action (2019) Minimum Standards for Child
Protection in Humanitarian Action, https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/node/16008/pdf/
cpms_2019_web_en.pdf
132 United Nations Population Fund (2015) MinimumStandards for Prevention and Response to GenderBased Violence in Emergencies, www.preventionweb.
net/files/submissions/47102_gbvie.minimum.standards.
publication.final.eng.pdf
133 Save the Children (2019) – see endnote 7
134 Proteknon (2020) – see endnote 16
135 The MRM was created in 2005, by Security Council
Resolution 1612. At the global level, the MRM
is overseen by the Special Representative of theSecretary-General for Children and Armed Conﬂict,
in close cooperation with UNICEF and the UN
Department of Peacekeeping Operations. At country
level, the MRM is overseen by Country Task Forceson Monitoring and Reporting, which are co-chairedby the representative of UNICEF and the highest
UN representative in the country. By collecting
timely, objective, accurate and reliable information
on violations and abuses committed against children
by parties to armed conﬂict, the MRM provides the
UN Security Council with an evidence base to holdperpetrators accountable. It also helps actors on the
ground advocate for and plan adequate protection
and response measures and programmes. Parties toconﬂict who are listed for grave violations should signaction plans – these are agreed with the UN with aview to complete a series of time-bound, concrete

activities to halt and prevent violations and to takeremedial action. Successful completion of an action
plan leads to de-listing. For more information, see
http://www.mrmtools.org/mrm/
136 Save the Children (2019) – see endnote 93
137 Save the Children (2017) ‘Transforming inequalities,
transforming lives’ https://resourcecentre.
savethechildren.net/node/12220/pdf/save_the_children_-_gender_equality_policy_june_2017.pdf
138 Definition of SGBV as used by UNHCR https://www.
unhcr.org/sexual-and-gender-based-violence.html

STOP THE WAR ON CHILDREN 2020: GENDER MATTERS 51

Eglantyne Jebb said
‘The only international languagein the world is a child’s cry.’We have heard that cry
and it will not go unanswered.

The war on children must stop.

stopwaronchildren.org