Guterres urges greater investment in children as crises threaten progress

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for greater investment in children’s health, education and social protection, warning that conflicts, poverty, climate disasters and shrinking aid are putting decades of progress at risk.

In a message issued on 21 October for the World Summit on Investing in Children’s Well-being in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Guterres said children were especially vulnerable to overlapping crises. He also pointed to developing countries’ debt burdens and insufficient progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals. [1]

The summit is discussing ways to strengthen systems that support children, from education and healthcare to humanitarian assistance for those affected by conflict and disasters. Guterres highlighted childhood cancer as an example of inequality driven by inadequate investment and weak social services.

He urged countries to act on the Sevilla Commitment, through which world leaders recognised the need for adequate funding for social protection and human development, including health and education. Guterres said scaling up domestic and international development finance and reforming the global financial architecture could help countries secure children’s futures. [1]