Topics

Children’s rights

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child of 20th November 1989 recognises the rights to protection, development and participation of all persons under the age of 18. The convention centres on recognizing children and young people as holders of their own subjective rights. In Germany, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child came into force in 1992, making it binding for all actions taken by the state. As such, Germany committed itself to respecting, protecting and fulfilling the rights of children as set out in the Convention. The three additional protocols to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child are also binding law in Germany. The National CRC Monitoring Mechanism at the German Institute of Human Rights has been monitoring the Convention’s implementation in Germany since 2015.

Key concerns

Implementing the provisions of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in Germany requires resolute children’s rights policies that go beyond merely including children’s rights in the Basic Law. The state must also create reliable structures that give children’s rights more political weight in all areas of life.
Germany needs a child rights-based data collection system to track developments over the years and make the effects of policy measures more visible. This is necessary to make it easier for politicians and administrators to act in accordance with children’s rights.
All these structures and measures require the participation of children and young people. For this to succeed, there must be a targeted strengthening of self-organisation or self-representation of children and young people, in which they are the active participants.

Information for refugee parents: What do I have to do to get a birth certificate for my child? The guide shows parents the steps they need to take to get a birth certificate for their child.

Publications on this topic

A parent’s incarceration has an enormous impact on the life of a child. Maintaining contact with an incarcerated parent is a human right that the state is obligated to uphold, respect and ensure through legislation. In 2023, the CRC Monitoring Mechanism…

Realising the Convention’s requirements will require a resolute policy on children’s rights that does not stop at incorporating children’s rights into the Basic Law but also establishes structures that will strengthen the impact of children’s rights in all…

The incorporation of children’s rights into the Basic Law (Grundgesetz), Germany’s constitution, has been a key demand of children’s rights advocates for years. The Federal Government declared its intention to incorporate children’s rights into the Basic Law…

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Contact

Claudia Kittel

Head of Department

Phone: +4930 259 359 - 414

E-mail: apitz(at)dimr.de

Sophie Funke

Researcher and Policy Adviser

Phone: +4930 259 359 - 475

E-mail: funke(at)dimr.de

Walīd Malik

Researcher and Policy Adviser

Phone: +4930 259 359 - 245

E-mail: malik(at)dimr.de

Short biography

Children’s rights

Key concerns

Publications on this topic

Opportunities for contact between children and incarcerated parents

Parallel Report