UN Committee on the Rights of the Child 

The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child monitors the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (SopS 59-60/1991) in the signatory states. The committee consists of eighteen experts, selected by the signatory states from amongst their citizens every four years. Each signatory state can appoint one of their citizens as a candidate. The current Chair of the Board is Ann Marie Skelton.

The Committee monitors compliance with the Convention and guides the interpretation of the Convention through periodic reports. The signatory states report to the Committee on the status of children’s rights and well-being in their own country. In response, the Committee issues conclusions and recommendations to the signatory states in order to promote the rights of children. Read more on the monitoring of the Convention

The Committee on the Rights of the Child guides the interpretation and implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child by publishing general comments. The general comments of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child are an important tool for everyone working with children. They help with understanding the contents of the Convention as well as the obligations it imposes. The Ombudsman for Children publishes unofficial translations of the general comments into Finnish. Learn more about the general comments

The Committee processes complaints filed by individual children and groups of children. A child or a group of children can file a complaint, if they believe that the state has violated the rights recognised by the Convention or its optional protocols. The Committee will issue a statement and, if necessary, recommendations on the basis of the complaints that it accepts for investigation. Learn more about the Committee's complaint procedure and its decisions.