28th Session of the Human Rights Council

(March 2-27, 2015)

Consideration of the draft resolution A/HRC/Res/L.28 titled ‘Rights of the Child: Towards better investments for the Rights of the Child’

(March 27, 2015)

General Statement by India

Thank you Mr. President,

1. India attaches high priority for welfare of children in our fiscal and budgetary policies. The concept of child budgeting was introduced since 2008 to track the allocation and utilization of resources across all relevant Ministries and to help evaluate their impact on the outcomes for children.

2. We believe that the budgetary exercise itself is a national prerogative and is best guided by the national processes. This Council should be a platform for sharing and encouraging good practices rather than for promulgating prescriptive norms on national budgeting process. We appreciate the efforts made by the main sponsors to reflect this reality in the draft resolution.

Mr. President,

3. Further, we believe that the full and comprehensive realization of the rights of the child can only be achieved through sustained, equitable and inclusive development. In this context, investments in the rights of the child go beyond child specific budgetary allocations and include broader measures aimed at ensuring gainful employment to parents/caregivers, extending income support to poor families and addressing social inequality, all of which have a direct bearing on the enjoyment of child rights. A broad-based, multi-sectoral and holistic approach to investments can best ensure the all-round development of children.

4. Similarly, it is important to recognize that obligations towards investments in the rights of child cannot be dissociated from the global economic and political factors that adversely impact a State’s fiscal space and capacity to mobilize resources. As affirmed in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, realization of the rights of the child should be a shared responsibility between developed and developing countries.

5. It is unfortunate that some of our constructive suggestions to make the resolution more balanced and realistic could not be accommodated. Nevertheless, we are willing to join the consensus with the hope that the main sponsors will give a thorough consideration to the different dimensions related to investments in the rights of child in their future initiatives.

Thank you.

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