Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict | Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict

The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict aims to protect children from recruitment and use in hostilities.

The Protocol was adopted by the General Assembly on May 25, 2000 and entered into force on February 12, 2002.

The optional protocol is a commitment that requires that:

• States shall take all practical measures to ensure that members of their armed forces who have not reached the age of 18 do not participate directly in hostilities.
• States shall ensure that persons under the age of 18 are not subject to compulsory recruitment into their armed forces.
• States shall take all necessary measures to prevent such recruitment – including the adoption of a law prohibiting and criminalizing the recruitment of children under the age of 18 for participation in hostilities.
• States demobilize any person under the age of 18 who is compulsorily conscripted or used in hostilities and that States provide physical and psychological rehabilitation services to assist their social reintegration.
• Armed groups distinct from a country’s armed forces should under no circumstances recruit or use in hostilities persons under the age of 18.

How many countries have signed or ratified the Protocol?

Currently, 166 countries have ratified the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict. There are 18 countries that have neither signed nor ratified the protocol and 13 countries that have signed but have yet to ratify.

To see the list of countries, click here.

Secretary-General’s global campaign to achieve universal ratification

On May 25, 2010, the UN Secretary-General launched the “Global Campaign for the Universal Ratification and Implementation of the Optional Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child.” In addition to the optional protocol on the use of children in armed conflict, the campaign aimed to achieve universal ratification of the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography.

“Under 18s, no recruitment” campaign

To support this campaign, the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict launched the campaign “Under 18 years, no recruitment” to achieve universal ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict. This campaign concluded in 2012 and, combined with the awareness campaigns carried out through the Global Campaign, generated 21 new ratifications of the Optional Protocol.

Work continues to achieve universal ratification. Has your country ratified the optional protocol? Click here to find out.

For any questions regarding the ratification process, please contact the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict.