Civil society organizations in the Global South are critical to preventing and responding to violence against children.

Across Latin America, Africa, and Asia, Coalition members and other civil society organizations are leading the work to end violence against children. They are rooted in the communities they serve and are a foundational part of the response, yet too often they go unheard, under-platformed, and underfunded.

This must change if we are going to effectively prevent violence against children – particularly in and through schools where civil society’s role alongside government is critical.

Ahead of the Second Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children in Manila, the Coalition for Good Schools and our Asia Hub – alongside partners To Zero, Red por la Infancia, Raising Voices and others – are collectively calling on organizations around the world to stand with civil society across the Global South and endorse the call.

Together we can show our collective strength. 

The Coalition for Good Schools has been actively mobilizing members to articulate the role of civil society actors in VAC prevention work.

When Asia Hub members convened this April in Cambodia, passionate deliberations on Global South civil society leadership inspired the Hub to draft the first regional declaration, launched alongside the International Day to End Corporal Punishment.

This declaration quickly moved across the Global South – first to Latin America and later to Africa – with members and inspired similar regional declarations in collaboration with our partners at To Zero.

This campaign is a culmination of the efforts of many, and your voice will only make it stronger. 

The call

Over 1 billion children globally experience some form of violence each year. 

Research shows time and again that the people closest to an issue are also the best placed to solve it. Civil society organizations in the Global South are critical to preventing and responding to violence against children and adolescents, supporting children, families, and communities so they can thrive.

Yet they remain underfunded and under-platformed compared to their peers in the Global North.

This must change if we want to end all forms of violence against children and adolescents once and for all.

60+ organizations across Latin America, Africa, and Asia have authored and signed three regional declarations grounded in their own realities. All three carry the same message: civil society organizations are not secondary actors or mere implementers of policies designed elsewhere. They are strategic partners and a foundational part of the response.

Leading up to the Second Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children in Manila, we are joining other networks to bring these declarations together as one global call to action, and asking organizations around the world to endorse it.

What this campaign calls for

Participation: Ensure civil society takes part in or co-leads all spaces for the design, implementation, and evaluation of policies for children and adolescents.

Representation: Bring the voices of children, adolescents, and survivors safely and meaningfully into the decisions that shape their lives.

Meaningful consultation: Hold inclusive national, regional, and local consultations with diverse civil society perspectives that reflect the realities of every region.

Hope-based narratives: Challenge the damaging narratives around violence against children and adolescents, and replace them with a message of prevention, inclusion, and hope.

Funding: Commit to sustainable, transparent, and equitable funding for the organizations doing prevention, response, support, and advocacy.

Accountability: Support civil society reports that document progress and gaps, and the legal and institutional frameworks that hold governments to their commitments – and continue to support civil society to lead beyond accountability alone.

Stand with other civil society across the Global South.

By endorsing this call, your organization joins a growing network of Coalition members and others standing behind a shared message: civil society organizations in the Global South are strategic partners, not secondary actors or mere implementers of policies designed elsewhere.

Together, we can carry this message to the Second Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children in Manila this November and show collective strength alongside other like-minded networks.

Add your organization’s name.

Help spread the word

Help this call reach further.

Once you’ve endorsed, help amplify the collective voice of civil society across the Global South:

• Share the call on your social channels using the toolkit developed by To Zero and Spitfire Strategies.
• Invite partners and allies in your region to endorse the call to action.
• Bring the message to local media and help build visibility ahead of Manila. 

Questions or comments? Contact us at in**@*********************ls.org.