Recognizing the Rights of the Child

ntl child day photo 2In recognition of the United Nations’ adoption of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), November 20 is observed annually in Canada as National Child Day and worldwide as Universal Children’s Day.

“Today is a day to celebrate the advances we have made in the welfare of children and to acknowledge the role that everybody plays in protecting the children in their community,” says Mary Ballantyne, CEO of the Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies. “It is also a day to remind ourselves that there are many children, including here in Ontario, who continue to suffer abuse and neglect.”

On National Child Day, Ontarians are asked to speak up for our children who are not protected by provincial legislation. The CRC defines a child as any human being under the age of 18, but Ontario’s Child, Youth and Family Services Act only protects children under the age of 16. The time has come for our province to change the laws so that they are in accordance with the declarations of the UN CRC.

For more resources on the National Day of the Child, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and child welfare in Ontario, visit:

The Declaration of the Rights of the Child
The Convention on the Rights of the Child
Celebrate National Child Day 2015
The Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies Child Welfare Report