Using innovation to improve the lives of millions of the world’s most disadvantaged children and to bridge the divide between those who have almost everything and those with virtually nothing is explored in UNICEF’s The state of the world’s children, published on 20 November.
Marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the report, promotes an agenda for change in which governments, civil society, businesses, community organizers and a broad range of actors work together to find creative solutions to the most pressing problems children face. It calls for these solutions to cross borders, push boundaries and forge new global networks in an increasingly interconnected world so that inequity and injustice are challenged.
The report notes that such action is urgently needed given that millions of children still face discrimination, physical and sexual abuse and neglect. The poorest 20% are twice as likely to die before their fifth birthday as the richest 20% and almost a quarter of children in the least developed countries are engaged in child labour.
A number of innovations, many by young inventors themselves, are showcased. These range from the Solar Ear, the world’s first rechargeable hearing aid battery charger, to floating boat schools providing education to children in flood-prone areas, and from a urine-powered electricity generator to a new building material made from unwanted rice waste. Personal stories are also highlighted, such as Josephine, a young woman in Zambia who uses mobile technology to provide her peers with free and confidential counselling on HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.
In addition, the fully digital report, which includes multimedia and interactive components, invites readers to share their own innovations and creativity to help children around the world.
