OHCHR, UNICEF and WHO sign memorandum of understanding on way forward for UN Secretary-General's Study on Violence against Children
14 February 2005 - Deputy Directors from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) met with the WHO Assistant Director General for Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health, Dr Catherine Le Galès-Camus, and the Director of the Department of Injuries and Violence Prevention, Dr Etienne Krug, to discuss progress on the United Nations Secretary-General's Study on Violence Against Children. The Independent Expert leading the study, Professor Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, opened the meeting by describing progress to date and plans for 2005-2006. A Memorandum of Understanding between the three UN organizations was signed, and discussions addressed joint fund raising, regional consultations and opportunities the Study represents to develop a common framework for preventing violence against children that combines the strengths of human rights, child protection and public health. Two meetings of the Editorial Committee have so far taken place, during which chapter outlines for the Study report have been developed, potential authors identified and a production schedule agreed. Following a request by the Editorial Board, UNICEF's Innocenti Centre in Florence hosted an expert consultation on 10-11 February 2005 to discuss the feasibility of deriving global estimates of the number of children affected by various types of violence. WHO staff from the Departments of Injuries and Violence Prevention and Evidence and Information for Policy participated along with measurement experts from the International Labour Organization, UNICEF and NGOs.