UNICEF Uganda is first of 10 countries to host ACTIVATE Talks to contribute to UNICEF’s State of the World’s Children 2014 Report: ‘Innovating for Children, Innovating for Equity’
Uganda has been selected as the host country for the first of a series of 10 ACTIVATE Talks around the world to mark 25 years since the signing of the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC).
Under the theme ‘Innovating for children, Innovating for equity’, vibrant and inspiring ACTIVATE Talks and activities will stress the gaps that remain in realizing all children’s rights in the world and the role innovation can play to address them, highlighting practical action to reach the most excluded children.
With the CRC signed on November 20, 1989, the Talks and activities throughout the year will underscore a wide range of positive outcomes for the world’s children from the many commitments made by the international community in the previous 25 years.
“When the CRC was signed the world made a promise to its children: That we would do everything in our power to protect and promote their rights – their rights to survive and thrive, to learn and grow, to make their voices heard and to reach their full potential. From declining infant mortality to rising school enrolment, there is much to celebrate as we approach this 25th anniversary,” said Ms. Aida Girma, UNICEF Uganda Country Representative.
The Talks will also explore innovative solutions that will ensure even more progress is made for the world’s children over the next 25 years.
“Still, we will take this historic milestone as an urgent reminder that we can and should do a lot more. The world needs new ways of thinking and working to create a greater impact for children. We need innovative solutions to save more children’s lives and to help more children reach their full potential. And we need innovative solutions to reach the most excluded and vulnerable children, both across and within countries,” she added.
The ACTIVATE Talks will invite bright and creative innovators in international development and humanitarian action to speak on specific challenges children face as well as some solutions that will help them overcome these challenges in the local context.
At the Uganda ACTIVATE Talk, five innovations will be featured: Matibabu, a mobile phone application used to test for malaria in pregnant mothers and unborn children; MobileVRS, a mobile phone birth registration service that runs by SMS; The Medical Concierge, a telemedicine service providing free professional consultations on child health; EMO Solution, which creates odourless latrines in schools to help ensure an uninterrupted quality education for children; and U-Report, a mobile-phone based citizen participation service that enables young people to express their views on national and community development issues so that they are better able to contribute to public affairs management.
The Uganda ACTIVATE Talk will be preceded by an exhibition showcasing several more innovations within Uganda that support improved living conditions for children.
The best knowledge and inputs from the ACTIVATE Talks and activities throughout the year will culminate in a new, digital State of the World’s Children report, which will be launched at the 25th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child on November 20th in New York, USA.
When?
Friday, February 28, 2014
1:00pm – 3:30pm: Innovation Exhibition
4pm – 6:15pm: ACTIVATE Talk
Where?
Victoria Hall, Serena International Conference Centre. Media cameras and other equipment must be set up at 3.30pm, latest.
For more information, please contact:
Mr. Simon Kaheru, Email: unicef@mediaanalyst.co.ug
