The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1989. It lays out the human rights of children and measures states need to take to ensure the rights of the child are protected. It is guided by four core principles: non-discrimination; the best interests of the child; the right to survival and development; and respect for the views of the child. It is the most ratified international human rights treaty in history with 195 countries having ratified it to date.
Article 31 recognises that children have the right to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities. This includes sport. The Convention also contains articles through which the right to sport can be realised (such as the right to education), rights which access to sport can help to realise (such as the right to health), and rights relating to child protection while participating in sports (such as the right to freedom from exploitation, violence and abuse).
The Committee on the Rights of the Child is composed of 18 independent experts from around the world. Their task is to monitor the implementation of the Convention, in particular through receiving and considering the reports on States who have ratified the treaty.
The below tools are designed to encourage States, National Human Right Institutions and civil society to increase their reporting the Committee on sports and provides guidance on how to do so.
