Appeal of the Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan on the Declaration of “Child Rights Month”

Every state and society has a responsibility to make sure that all children have equal opportunities in life and that they can develop physically, mentally, morally, and socially. They should also be safe, healthy, and able to take part in public life.

The UN General Assembly adopted the binding international legal framework - the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) on November 20, 1989, which recognized the status of children as independent subjects of rights. Azerbaijan also ratified this document, which  imposes significant obligations on states to guarantee  children's rights.

The state of Azerbaijan prioritizes the protection of children's rights within its policy. Our country continuously implements comprehensive reforms in this direction, which result in significant achievements in the legislative improvements and protection mechanisms, expanded access to quality services, and ensuring a decent standard of living for children in general.

The adoption of the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan "On the Rights of the Child" and other related regulatory legal acts in the present year, as well as the introduction of amendments to the legislation regarding the establishment of restrictions on children's use of social media platforms, is of significant importance in terms of improving legal regulation in the field of child rights protection, taking into account modern requirements.

Declaring 2026 as the "Year of Urban Planning and Architecture" in our country is of special importance in terms of ensuring children's right to live in a safe, healthy, accessible, and inclusive environment, as well as fulfilling the tasks under the SDGs.

As a part of the large-scale restoration and reconstruction work carried out after the 44-day Patriotic War, along with other regions of the country, necessary infrastructure and services for children are created in the liberated territories, and sustainable measures are being taken to ensure their rights.

In modern times, globalization and digital development lead to new social relations, which necessitates the improvement of policy and legislation on children’s rights, as well as the expansion of public legal awareness promotion in line with new trends.

The children’s rights protection and promotion take an important place in the activities of the Azerbaijani Ombudsman. In order to achieve these goals, cooperation is maintained with relevant state bodies, civil society organizations (CSOs), international institutions, and other stakeholders. 

Just like in previous years, this year as well, the Ombudsman declares "Child Rights Month" for the period of October 20 to November 20 as at the  country level, on the occasion of the anniversary of the adoption of the CRC.

The purpose of conducting this month-long campaign is to promote measures for the protection of children’s rights in the country, as well as to further increase public awareness and attention regarding this field.

Considering all the above, I call upon the relevant state and local self-government bodies, CSOs, and other stakeholders working in the field of the protection of the child rights to join the Ombudsman’s "Child Rights Month" initiative and to hold various events on the protection of child rights with the active participation of children themselves during the period covering the month-long campaign in the current year.

I believe that as a result of effective inter-agency cooperation, a more reliable protection of children's rights and a stronger focus on this field will be achieved.

Sincerely,

Sabina Aliyeva

The Commissioner for Human Rights 

of the Republic of Azerbaijan

(Ombudsman)

20 October 2026