Financial institutions should increase their positive impact on children
Published: Tuesday, Nov 19th 2024, 10:20
Retour au fil d'actualité
In a new study, Unicef Switzerland and Liechtenstein took a close look at 30 financial institutions in the two countries. The study examined how they can influence the lives of children and contribute to safeguarding their rights.
Financial institutions make decisions about lending, investing and risk-taking that have a global impact on businesses in every sector, writes the UN Children's Fund in a statement on International Children's Rights Day on Wednesday, November 20. These decisions have an impact on children in many ways - both positive and negative.
The study concludes that most of the 30 banks, insurance companies, asset and investment managers surveyed were not sufficiently aware of the rights of children, which go beyond the issue of child labor. Accordingly, they did not take sufficient measures to protect them.
Furthermore, children's rights often compete with other sustainability issues, to which the financial institutions pay more attention. In addition, considerations on children's rights are seen as difficult to implement due to the breadth of the topic, insufficient data, a perceived lack of influence and limited internal resources.
"Financial institutions have the power to actively contribute to improving the present and future of our children," says Bettina Junker, Managing Director of Unicef Switzerland and Liechtenstein. They could significantly increase their positive impact on children, for example by integrating children's rights into their governance and corporate strategy or by working towards improving the business practices of companies in their portfolio.
©Keystone/SDA
French 
English 
German 
Spanish 
Arabic