Chief Executive Officer & President, Together for Girls
Director of Policy & Advocacy; Regional Lead, Sub-Saharan Africa,
Together for Girls
Despite making up a large portion of the global population, data collected by First Focus shows that only around $0.09 out of every dollar of the U.S. foreign assistance budget is allocated towards children. Concerningly, children represent significantly less than 10% of foreign assistance funding and 1% of the total federal budget.
When we stand up for human rights, when we stand up for justice it influences how other governments think about and invest in these issues. However, US government investment in foreign assistance is decreasing.
Among these gaps in investments in children, is the need for continued funding for the Violence Against Children and Youth Surveys (VACS). Although these have been exclusively funded through PEPFAR, there are no commitments to implement any future VACS.
With support from the U.S. government, every country that has undergone a VACS and the associated multi-sector Data to Action process has implemented policy and programmatic changes for children and VAC prevention and response.
Countries like Kenya and Eswatini have subsequently seen significant reductions in childhood violence and have documented more than 50% and 80% reductions in different forms of sexual violence against girls respectively.
These successes underscore the need for a comprehensive, whole-child approach to U.S. foreign assistance as well as the need for a whole-of-government approach to address issues impacting children.
The inaugural Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children marks a historic moment in the global fight against violence impacting children. Convening ministers from UN Member States around the globe, it presents a unique opportunity to catalyze global action, secure new commitments from UN Member States, and accelerate progress toward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to ensure that every child lives free from all forms of violence.
The United States has established itself as a global leader in improving protections for children from exploitation and violence and its continued leadership is necessary now more than ever to build the resources and capacity of countries to champion both the problems and solutions to ending violence against children.
Countries that invest in their own children’s health, education and safety, have less conflict, less instability, and less violent extremism. Every single indicator whether it's economic, development, or peace and security, is improved when there are investments in children.
We know that kids who experience violence in childhood, and witness violence in childhood, are much more likely to perpetrate violence later on in their lives. And these cycles of violence continue and affect not only families and communities, but entire nations.
U.S. foreign assistance to low and middle income countries around the world helps them to make those investments in children, to ensure that those investments are happening at national level. As a result, we are investing in the health, safety and education of all children, globally.
Data from the VACS show that children experience different vulnerabilities throughout childhood, adolescence, and youth and demonstrates the interconnectedness of the issues they face (such as socio-economic status, food security, access to water, education, physical and mental health, security) so we know that a whole-child, life course approach to child well-being is critical.
In a year when violence against children, adolescents, and youth is on the global agenda, it is critical to maintain momentum on what we know works and will drive work on child and youth well-being forward.