The State of the World's Children 1990

The State of the World's Children 1990 summarizes the great set-backs and great achievements of the 1980s and sets out the central challenges for the decade ahead. It states that, as the world struggles to free itself from the burdens of debt servicing and military spending, there are signs of a new concern for children. The prospect of a World Summit for Children, the new Convention on the Rights of the Child, and practical advances such as the near achievement of universal child immunization could mark the beginning of a new priority for children. The principle of according children ‘first call’ on society’s concerns and capacities underlies all of the issues discussed in the report, as UNICEF believes it should underlie the many decisions and actions which will shape the decade ahead.