The Committee on the Rights of the Child this afternoon concluded its seventy-eighth session after adopting its concluding observations and recommendations on the reports of Argentina, Angola, Algeria, Montenegro, Russian Federation, Lesotho and Norway under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its two Optional Protocols.
The concluding observations and recommendations on the States’ reports and other documentation will be available on the session’s webpage.
At the beginning of the meeting, the Committee held a minute of silence in remembrance of Wanderlino Nogueira Neto, a children’s rights defender and advocate, and former member of the Committee.
Renate Winter, Committee Chairperson, in her concluding remarks, summarized the activities of the Committee during the session, which was held from 14 May to 1 June 2018.
Ms. Winter reminded that as of 1 June, there were 196 States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child; 167 States had ratified the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict, and 174 States had ratified the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. With the ratification on 17 May by Bosnia and Herzegovina, and on 25 May by Slovenia, 39 States were now parties to the Optional Protocol on a communications procedure.
The Committee had examined the reports of seven countries; reviewed four cases received in relation to the Optional Protocol on a communications procedure, one of which it had deemed a violation, one inadmissible, while two had been discontinued; and continued the revision of General Comment N°10 (2007) on children’s rights in juvenile justice.
In the context of the treaty body strengthening process and the United Nations General Assembly resolution 68/268, the Committee had continued its work to enhance its working methods, including the simplified reporting procedure. The Committee continued preparing for the Day of General Discussion entitled “Protecting and empowering children as human rights defenders”, to be held on 28 September 2018 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
Bernard Gastaud, Committee Rapporteur, presented the report on the intersessional activities of the Committee Experts, and the Committee then adopted the report of the session.
Meeting summaries of all public meetings held during the seventy-eighth session can be found here, and meeting webcasts here.
The Committee will hold its seventy-ninth session at the Palais Wilson in Geneva from 17 September to 5 October 2018 when it will review the reports of El Salvador, Japan, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Mauritania and Niger.
Newspaper Aftenposten reported the Norwegian government to have paid up to USD24.800 over the past three years for Facebook services.

More than a year and a half ago, Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSAT) built five new satellite receivers in Inuvik, in northwest Canada, as part of a contract with the European Space Agency (ESA). The ground station has remained untouched since 2016.
India went big in their commitment to Beat Plastic Pollution today, with an announcement to eliminate all single-use plastic in the country by 2022. This unprecedented ambitious move against disposable plastic will drastically stem the flow of plastics from 1.3 billion people and business in the fasted growing economy in the world.
The country further showcased innovative solutions to environmental challenges. The western state of Maharashtra introduced an urban e-mobility program to scale back emissions. Meanwhile, the state of Andhra Pradesh in India’s southeast launched a scale-out plan to transition 6 million farms from conventional synthetic chemical agriculture to Zero-Budget Natural Farming.

The Prosecution of Tirana has revealed a money-laundering scheme led by two Norwegian citizens, who were trying to recycle 800,000 EUR which they have earned in fraud schemes. Ove Johanson and Joo Borgen Nilsen tried attempted to clean hundreds of thousands of Euros through ghost firms in our country, through transactions of shares. Investigations showed […]
Bane Nor, the state-owned agency responsible for Norway’s national railway infrastructure, has contracted Siemens to install the European Train Control System (ETCS) on the country’s entire rail network. Commissioning of the rollout lines is scheduled to be completed by 2034.
The all-electric catamaran called the Future of Fjords has been launched just as
US social networking major Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) has inked a 15-year power purchase agreement (PPA) in Norway for the output of the 294-MW Bjerkreim cluster of wind farms.
Since the autumn of 2017, the #metoo movement has had a huge impact around the globe. During their meeting in Malmö on 9 May, the Nordic ministers for culture issued a joint statement regarding their continued efforts to tackle sexual harassment and promote safe workplaces in the Nordic cultural sector.
The new U.S. embassy at Makrellbekken in Oslo has achieved LEED Gold certification for its numerous green elements. The embassy’s environmental features includes the restoration of a seasonal stream that runs through the site, green roofs, preservation of existing landscape, maximized use of natural light and a ground-source heat exchange.
The supreme legislature adopted a number of measures to strengthen gambling rules.
BBC World Service and Norwegian state broadcaster NRK are partnering to produce a podcast that investigates the mysterious death of a woman in Norway in the 1970s.
A group of Taiwanese nationals studying in Norway, labeled as “Chinese nationals” on visa and entry documents are taking their case to the Norway court system to redress the mistake.
On Friday the first of June 150 invited guests will be participating in the historic launch of the foundation “Født Fri” in the city centre of Oslo, Norway.
A KLM pilot has been arrested in Oslo after failing a breath test shortly before a flight to Schiphol, according to Norwegian media.
‘The Government has proposed a NOK 10 million increase in its funding for civil society’s international efforts to promote human rights. This additional funding will be used to strengthen efforts to promote freedom of expression and freedom of religion or belief,’ Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide said.
On Tuesday, 15 May, the Office of the Auditor General published a report from its management audit of the Climate and Forest Initiative – NICFI. –The report provides several useful insights and reminders, and we will follow up on the suggested recommendations in order to further improve our efforts. However, we disagree with some of the key conclusions, said Norway’s Minister of Climate and Environment, Ola Elvestuen.
Formosa Singers in Taipei National Concert Hall with conductor Thomas Caplin. Photo credit Formosa Singers.
In 2016 he took his youth choir on an Asia tour with about 24 choir members, the board and some parents. The trip went to Taiwan (Taipei and Tainan) and Korea. One of their songs was in Paiwanese, one of the languages of the Polynesian indigenous people of Taiwan. My wife, also a singer, attended the concert and said the conductor was great in getting the best out of each singer.
– Before the concert, Thomas Caplin wrote on facebook, there were two ladies looking at this poster in the lobby, so I went up next to them also looking. Then the younger looked up and said – “Oh! It’s you!!” She and her mother agreed that in reality I could be the son of that man in on the poster. So I said “Thank you….” what lovely women… :). Photo credit Thomas Caplin.
Global shipping should set a goal of halving greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, Norway’s government and shipowners’ association said on Thursday before talks by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in London next week.
The former Norwegian Prime Minister, Kjell Magne Bondevik, has said that the miseries of the Kashmiris should end now.
Iceland Foods, the UK-based frozen food retailer, is set to enter the Norwegian market this year, according to