Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - A special place for children in EU external action {SEC(2008) 135} {SEC(2008) 136}
Date: 2008-02-05
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: European Union, basic needs, child protection, children's rights, foreign policy, humanitarian aid, less-favoured region

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 5.2.2008 
COM(2008) 55 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL, THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 

A Special Place for Children in EU External Action 

{SEC(2008) 135} 
{SEC(2008) 136} 

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COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL, THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS 

A Special Place for Children in EU External Action 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

The  European  Union  is  firmly  committed  to  promoting  children’s  rights  and  responding  to 
their basic needs as an integral part of both its internal and external policies. As part of the 
process of honouring this commitment, the Communication “Towards an EU Strategy on the 
Rights of the Child”, adopted on 4 July 2006, outlines a process for developing a long-term 
strategy for the EU on children’s rights.  

One  of  the  initiatives  identified  in  the  2006  Communication  is  the  elaboration  of  an  Action 
Plan  on  Children  in  External  Action.  The  present  Communication,  with  the  attached  Staff 
Working  Papers  on  'Children’s  Rights  in  External  Action'  and  on  'Children  in  Situations  of 
Emergency  and  Crisis'  is  intended  to  contribute  to  the  development  of  such  a  long-term 
strategy in connection with the EU Guidelines for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights 
of the Child, adopted by the Council in December 2007. 

The  attached  Action  Plans  support  an  enhanced  role  for  the  EU  in  the  global  challenge  to 
ensure the respect and promotion of children's rights together with identifying specific actions 
on the part of the European Commission.  

2. 

WHY CHILDREN MUST HAVE A SPECIAL PLACE IN EU EXTERNAL ACTION 

The importance of children and their healthy development for their societies and the special 
attention  required  to  ensure  the  full  realisation  of  their  rights,  have  not,  so  far,  been  given 
sufficient priority. Children and adolescents1 comprise one third of the world’s population and 
constitute  more  than  half  of  the  population  in  most  developing  countries.  As  a  group  they 
form a unique constituency with a particular set of needs and rights. However, their rights are 
regularly  abused  or  neglected  and  their  voice  goes  unheard  even  when  decisions  are  to  be 
taken on matters which directly concern them.  

Investing  in  children  and  young  people  today  means  investing  in  the  future.  Young  people 
with a good education, positive ideals, skills and a sense of social responsibility are likely to 
become  adults  with  a  commitment  to  sound  social  values,  ready  and  able  to  make  a 
constructive  contribution  to  the  economic  and  social  development  of  their  communities. 
Children and young people with these positive qualities are also likely in their turn to become 
caring parents for their own children. 

1  Children  include  all  people  under  18  years,  as  stipulated  by  the  UN  CRC  (Convention  on  the  Rights  of  the 
Child). The additional reference to adolescents is intended to better reflect the identification of children 
themselves in the different age groups under 18. 

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Ultimately progress in the condition of children is essential if we are to prevent state fragility 
and ensure long-term sustainable development, social cohesion, stability and human security 
at national, regional and global levels.  

The fight against those crimes which particularly affect children, such as trafficking in human 
beings,  must  be  based  on  concrete  measures  to  protect  children  from  violence  and 
exploitation. Preventive measures must be combined with assistance to child victims of these 
crimes so as to ensure their rehabilitation, recovery and long-term social inclusion. 

The  European  Union  is  fully  committed  to  achieving  the  targets  set  by  the  Millennium 
Development  Goals  (MDGs).  The  majority  of  the  MDGs  are  tied  to  the  well-being  and 
successful  development  of  children  and  adolescents,  including  those  on  health,  education, 
water and nutrition2. They all relate to key challenges that put at risk the mental and physical 
development of children in many parts of the world. To date it appears probable that not all 
countries will be able to reach the MDG targets. Therefore, unless measures are taken to put 
children at the heart of development policies, the likelihood of achieving the MDGs will be 
significantly reduced. 

Children  must  be  placed  at  the  centre  of  the  EU’s  external  relations,  development  and 
humanitarian  aid  policies  because  of  their  vulnerability.  This  is  due  to  their  youth,  their 
relative inexperience and their dependence on adult care. They are especially vulnerable to the 
effects  of  family  breakdown,  to  commercial  exploitation  and  to  trafficking.  They  are 
particularly  at  risk  from  the  effects  of  state  fragility  and  from  armed  conflict.  They  are 
vulnerable to nutritional and health risks which can threaten their normal development or even 
their very lives. 

Children’s rights are closely linked to the rights of their mothers. The absence of sexual and 
reproductive  health  and  rights  of  mothers  and  the  lack  of  basic  social  protection  coverage 
have  direct  consequences  for  their  children’s  health  and  wellbeing.  Thus,  one  third  of  all 
pregnancies are neither desired  nor planned; half of all mothers giving birth world-wide are 
not assisted by a trained midwife and over 3 million children annually die from complications 
that  arise  during  or  immediately  after  delivery.  Many  others  will  experience  life-long 
consequences  from  their  mothers’  illness  during  pregnancy  or  from  unsafe  deliveries.  Over 
300.000 children annually are born HIV positive3. At least 10 million children die every year 
from preventable causes before reaching the age of five. 

Education remains a major challenge. 72 million children worldwide are not attending school. 
57% of this total are girls. For those children fortunate enough to be in school, the quality of 
the education they receive is highly variable. 4 

110 million children and adolescents are involved in child labour and are effectively deprived 
of the opportunity to receive an education. The employment of many of these children is in 
breach of the ILO Convention on the Minimum Age for Admission to Employment (1973). In 
addition,  conditions  in  the  workplace  are  often  hazardous  and  the  children  themselves  may 
work as slaves or be victims of trafficking in breach of ILO Conventions 29 on forced labour 

2  The  MDGs  on  poverty  and  hunger  (MDG1),  education  (MDG2),  gender  equality  (MDG3),  child  survival 
(MDG4)  as  well  as  those  on  maternal  health  (MDG5),  poverty  diseases  (MDG6)  and  water  and 
sanitation (MDG7). 

3 The World Health Report 2005: Make Every Mother and Child Count. 
4 UNSECO EFA Global Monitoring Report 2007. 

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and  182  on  the  worst  forms  of  child  labour.  Many  job-seeking  adolescents  face  great 
difficulties in finding Decent Work opportunities. Vocational training and skills-development 
programmes  are  often  unavailable  and  many  new  entrants  to  the  workforce  are  obliged  to 
work  in  the  informal  economy  with  no  social  protection  coverage.  Adequate  attention  to 
education is paramount as a means to empower children and adolescents to play an active role 
in society and to fully contribute to the progress of their communities. 

The  absence  of  sexual  and  reproductive  health  and  rights  for  adolescent  girls  encourages 
forced  sexual  relations,  forced  marriages,  unwanted  pregnancies  and  directly  contributes  to 
the rate of new HIV infections in developing countries. 

There are groups of children and adolescents who have special needs and who are particularly 
at risk: children belonging to ethnic or other minorities, child migrants, displaced children or 
refugees,  children  affected  by  armed  conflicts,  child  soldiers,  orphans  and  children  without 
parental  care,  children  affected  by  HIV/AIDS,  and  children  with  disabilities,  all  warrant 
special attention. Girls are particularly vulnerable and face additional risks. 

Children and adolescents are disproportionately affected by humanitarian crises whether man-
made, such as armed conflicts, or arising from natural causes. In such circumstances, children 
suffer  disproportionately  from  malnourishment  and  illness,  leading  to  high  mortality  rates. 
They  also  form  a  large  proportion  of  anti-personnel  mine  victims.  Children  are  easy  targets 
for  recruitment  by  armed  groups,  sexual  exploitation,  forced  labour  and  international 
trafficking.  In  times  of  crisis  the  risk  of  such  abuses  increases  due  to  the  weakening  of 
traditional community protection and support mechanisms and the separation of children from 
their  families.  Long-lasting  crises  can  have  a  devastating  effect  on  children  growing  up  in 
such  an  environment,  creating  “lost  generations”  with  the  risk  of  perpetuating  conflict  and 
crisis,  since  the  children  will  have  grown  up  knowing  only  violence  and  instability.  Girls 
living  in  conflict  areas  or  in  camps  for  displaced  persons  and  refugees  are  particularly 
exposed to different forms of violence, whether domestic or sexual. 

In addition to these challenges, the voices of children and adolescents are generally unheard 
or  unheeded  in  discussions  and  debates  on  decisions  that  will  affect  their  lives  whether  at 
family,  community,  local,  national  or  international  levels.  This  inaudibility  is  in  breach  of 
Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child5.  

3. 

NORMATIVE FRAMEWORK 

Children’s  rights  are  a  part  of  universal  human  rights  that  the  EU  is  committed  to  respect 
under international and European treaties, in particular the UN Convention on the Rights of 
the  Child  (CRC)6  and  its  two  Optional  Protocols7.  The  CRC  establishes  four  general 
principles that apply to all actions affecting children: non-discrimination (Article 2), the best 
interests of the child (Article 3), the right of the child to survival and development (Article 6) 
and  respect  for  the  views  of  the  child  (Article  12).  The  European  Union  also  embraces  the 

5 "Article 12: 1. States Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right 
to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due 
weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child.  

6 The full text of the UN CRC and its Optional Protocols is available at: www.ohchr.org. 
7  On  the  involvement  of  children  in  armed  conflict  and  on  the  sale  of  children,  child  prostitution  and  child 

pornography 

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Millennium  Declaration  and  the  Millennium  Development  Goals.  Further  it  advocates  full 
implementation  of  the  Cairo  Agenda  and  the  Beijing  Platform  for  Action  both  of  which 
contains  provisions  regarding  the  rights  of  children  and  adolescents.  Finally  the  EU  also 
supports the Plan of Action “A World Fit for Children” adopted at the conclusion of the UN 
Special Session on Children’s Rights (UNGASS) in 2002.  

The  promotion  of  children’s  rights  and  responding  to  children's  basic  needs  through  the 
vehicle of the European Union’s external actions must be seen in the broader context of the 
EU’s  commitment  to  promoting  human  rights  in  general.  Thus,  the  European  Charter  of 
Fundamental Rights  contains  an  explicit acknowledgement  of the rights  of  children  (Article 
24), including their right to such protection and care as is necessary for their well-being, their 
freedom  of  expression,  the  right  for  their  views  to  be  taken  into  consideration,  and  the 
obligation to consider the children's best interests in all actions relating to them.  

The 2006 Communication “Towards an EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child” describes the 
process of developing an EU long-term strategy on the rights of children, including improved 
coordination,  consultation  with  stakeholders,  more  efficient  mainstreaming  of  children’s 
rights and the assessment of the impact on children of existing EU actions. It commits the EU 
to promote and strengthen networking and children’s representation both within the EU and 
globally, and seeks to include them formally in all consultations and actions related to their 
rights and needs. The Communication also proposes children’s rights indicators and enhanced 
monitoring of the impact of existing actions on children. 

A  number  of  children’s  rights  in  external  relations  are  covered  by  existing  specific  EU 
development  policies:  for  example  those  associated  with  education8,  health9,  employment, 
social inclusion, Decent Work  10 and human trafficking11. The protection of children’s rights 
is  also  given  particular  prominence  in  the  EU’s  human  rights  and  democratisation  policy 
towards  third  countries,  especially  in  the  context  of  implementing  the  EU  Guidelines  on 
Children  and  Armed  Conflict12.  The  Council  recently  adopted  EU  Guidelines  for  the 
Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child13, including an Implementation Strategy 
that  identifies  as  a  first  priority  area  the  issue  of  combating  all  forms  of  violence  against 
children.  These  Guidelines  advocate  the  promotion  of  synergies  and  the  strengthening  of 
inter-institutional  cooperation.  They 
the  European 
Commission  on  the  rights  of  the  child,  as  well  as  reinforcing  coherence  between  activities 
undertaken by Member States and those of the European Union’s institutions. 

initiatives  promoted  by 

include 

The  enlargement  process  is  another  powerful  tool  providing  opportunities  to  promote 
children’s rights. One of the criteria for membership of the EU is that the candidate country 

8  Education:  the  Communication  “Education  and  training  in  the  context  of  poverty  reduction  in  developing 

countries” and the subsequent Council Resolution on “Education and poverty”. 

9 The Communication on "Health and poverty reductionPoverty” and the reduction" and the Council Resolution 
on health‘Health and povertyPoverty’, and the Communication and Programme for Action on poverty-
related  diseases  in  external  action  and  the  relevant  Council  conclusions.  The  Communication  and 
Programme for Action on poverty-diseases in the external action, and its council conclusions.  
10  The  Communication  “Decent  Work  for  All”,  EU  Declaration  on  Globalisation  adopted  by  the  European 

Council of 14 December 2007”.  

11 The Communication on Trafficking of Human Beings also gives priority to children and the global dimension 

of trafficking. 

12 Adopted by The Council of the European Union adopted EU Guidelines on Children and Armed Conflict on 

8th December 2003.  

13 http://ec.europa.eu/external_relations/human_rights/guidelines/01_deathpenalty_1998/guidelines1_en. pdf. 

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has  achieved  stability  of  those  institutions  guaranteeing  democracy,  the  rule  of  law,  human 
rights  and  respect  for  and  the  protection  of  minorities.  In  the  framework  of  these  criteria 
developed  by  the  European  Council  in  Copenhagen  in  1993,  the  Commission  promotes  the 
reform of child protection and closely monitors progress on children’s rights throughout the 
accession process. 

The  present  Communication  also  supports  the  development  of  an  integrated  approach  to 
advance children’s rights at the international level by using the different instruments available 
in  the  Union’s  external  action.  It  starts  from  the  premise  that  satisfying  children's  and 
adolescents’ basic needs is essential for the realisation of their rights.  

EU  humanitarian  aid  provides  a  needs-based  emergency  response  aimed  at  preserving  life, 
preventing and alleviating human suffering and maintaining human dignity while respecting 
the  fundamental  humanitarian  principles  of  humanity,  neutrality, 
impartiality  and 
independence.  These  principles  imply  that  humanitarian  aid  must  be  provided  solely  on  the 
basis of need, with particular attention to the most vulnerable individuals in the population. In 
this  context,  the  EU  pays  special  attention  to  the  needs  of  children  and  adolescents. 
Humanitarian  aid  decisions  “must  be  taken  impartially  and  solely  according  to  the  victim’s 
needs and interests”14. They contribute “to the protection of the human rights of the victims of 
armed conflicts or natural disasters”15, and are implemented in a manner consistent with the 
applicable international law. 

There are also commitments relating to children in specific geographical regions. For example 
the  Cotonou  Agreement  contains  provisions  regarding  human  rights  and  children’s  rights, 
including  the  active  participation  of  young  citizens  in  public  life16.  The  EU  Strategies  for 
Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific specify as priority areas, children’s rights, child labour, 
education,  health  and  basic  services  and  the  special  attention  necessary  for  vulnerable 
children. The European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instruments make specific reference 
to children’s rights (including child labour) as being among the areas of cooperation eligible 
for Community assistance. The EU Strategy for Latin America and the Vienna Declaration of 
Ministers attending the EU-LAC Summit in 2006 made commitments to “ensure the respect 
and implementation of the rights of the child” (Article 5) and recognises the need to “generate 
specific  public  policies  for  the  protection  of  children  and  youth  and  to  break  the  cycle  of 
poverty”.  Improved  cooperation  between  the  EU  and  the  Association  of  South  East  Asian 
Nations (ASEAN) in the field of combating child trafficking is specifically envisaged in the 
Action Plan adopted at the EU-ASEAN Summit that took place in November 2007.  

14 Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 concerning humanitarian aid. 
15  The  Communication  COM(2001)  252  final  "“The  European  Union’s  role  in  promoting  human  rights  and 

democratisation in third countries”.". 

16  Articles  26  (youth  issues)  states  that  “cooperation  shall  support  policies,  measures  and  operations  aimed  at 
protecting the rights of children and youth, especially those of girl children” and “promoting the active 
participation of young citizens in public life”. 
Article  33  (institutional  development  and  capacity  building)  also  states  that  “cooperation  shall  play 
systematic  attention  to  institutional  aspects  and  in  this  context,  shall  support  the  efforts  of  the  ACP 
States to develop and strengthen structures, institutions and procedures that help to … …promote and 
sustain universal and full respect for and observance and protection of all human rights and fundamental 
freedoms”. 

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4. 

THE NATURE OF THE EU’S RESPONSE 

The aim of this Communication, together with the accompanying Action Plan on Children’s 
Rights  in  External  Action  and  the  Staff  Working  Paper  on  Children  in  Situations  of 
Emergency and Crisis, is to establish a framework for a comprehensive EU approach towards 
the protection and promotion of children’s rights in third countries. Such an approach must be 
based on a holistic and universally applicable view of children’s rights and be part of broader 
development and poverty reduction strategies.  

The  specificity  of  the  situation  of  children  and  adolescents  in  each  country,  sub-region  or 
region  demands  that  each  circumstance  be  individually  analysed  to  ascertain  which  of  a 
number  of  possible  instruments  will  provide  the  EU  with  the  most  appropriate  response.  In 
many  countries,  governments  are  unable  and/or  inadequately  committed  to  promote  and 
protect  children’s  rights.  Ensuring  effective  complementarity  between  the  different  policy 
tools  and  financial  instruments  of  the  EU  as  well  as  the  European  Development  Fund  is 
indispensable. The EU will maximise and coordinate the use of the available instruments in its 
external action as follows: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

Children  and  adolescents  in  development  cooperation.  In  countries  where  financial 
and institutional capacities are too weak to guarantee children’s access  to  acceptable 
living conditions and to basic services, the EU should make full use of development 
cooperation and poverty eradication measures  designed to address the root causes of 
poverty. At the same time, the rights and needs of children and adolescents should be 
effectively mainstreamed across various national policies. 

Children  and  adolescents  in  trade  policy:  EU  trade  policy  is  formulated  recognising 
fully  the  need  to  ensure  that  it  is  consistent  with  the  protection  and  promotion  of 
children's  rights.  In  trade  policy  the  promotion  of  children's  rights  is  part  of  the 
broader  agenda  of  sustainable  development.  In  bilateral  agreementsthe  issue  of 
children's rights is covered by labour standards. 

Children  and  adolescents  in  the  political  dialogue.  In  view  of  the  central  role  of 
political  dialogue  between 
the  national  authorities,  systematic 
consideration  should  be  given  in  these  dialogues  with  partner  countries  to  the 
implementation of commitments under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The 
same point should be made in EU actions in international fora.  

the  EU  and 

Regional  and  global  actions.  Country-level  actions  will  be  supplemented  by 
appropriate actions at a regional and at the global level addressing issues that have a 
supra-national character.  

Empowerment  of  children  and  adolescents.  The  EU  should  address  the  lack  of 
capacity to meet obligations with regard to children’s rights by empowering children 
and adolescents to play an active role in those matters that affect them directly.  

Children  and  adolescents  in  humanitarian  aid.  In  countries  on  the  verge  of  conflict, 
actually in conflict or emerging from conflict, children’s needs are often unrecognised 
or ignored and their rights regularly violated. Humanitarian aid is also used in the case 
of  humanitarian  crises  resulting  from  natural  disasters  where  governments  are 
overwhelmed,  unable  or  unwilling  to  act.  Humanitarian  aid  will  address,  inter  alia, 
three crucial issues related to children during crises and emergencies:  

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(a) 

separated and unaccompanied children,  

(b) 

children associated with armed forces or armed groups,  

(c) 

children’s education in emergencies.  

The  Staff  Working  Papers  annexed  to  this  Communication  explore  in  greater  detail  the 
integration of the concerns of children in external relations and the situation of children in the 
context of humanitarian aid. 

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