Violence is a reality for half of the world’s children; one billion experience physical, emotional, and sexual abuse every year.

To address this global tragedy, the governments of Colombia and Sweden, in partnership with WHO, UNICEF and the UN Special Representative of the Secretary General on ending violence against children, will host the first-ever conference on the issue, in Bogota, on November 7 and 8. 

Experiencing violence is not only a violation of children’s rights, it also increases the risk of mental health conditions, non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and cancer, and infectious diseases. Violence does more than harm individual children; it undermines the fabric of society. It makes it harder for children to build happy, healthy lives and costs the global economy billions of dollars each year.