STATEMENT BY MS ELAINE TEO, DELEGATE TO THE 67TH SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY ON AGENDA ITEM 65, ON PROMOTION AND PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD, THIRD COMMITTEE, 19 OCTOBER 2012

Mr Chairman, thank you for giving me the floor.

Ten years ago, at the Special Session of the 57^th General Assembly devoted to Children, former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said “there is no issue more unifying, more urgent, or more universal than the welfare of our children.” He added that children had rights – to grow up free of poverty and hunger, to have access to education, to be protected from infectious diseases, to live safe from the threat of war, abuse and exploitation.  Indeed, our children are our future, and what they are exposed to today will shape the world of tomorrow. Today, the Convention on the Rights of the Child is one of the most widely-accepted Conventions among UN Member States.

Singapore became party to the Convention in 1995. The journey to give our children the lives they deserve, however, began much earlier, but not without challenges. In the post-World War II era and early years as an independent state, Singapore had to grapple with political instability, as well as uncertainties as a small island state with no land, and no natural resources except our people.  Singapore also faced serious unemployment, squatter settlements, poor sanitation, and shortage of food, which led to a whole host of social problems from crime and violence to malnutrition and diseases. All of which threaten the rights of a child.

Today, 47 years on from our independence, things have changed.

In the latest Global Competitiveness Report on the “Quality of the Educational System”, Singapore stands amongst the best in terms of the ability to meet the needs of a competitive economy. Children of different abilities have opportunities to maximise their potential at all levels of the education system. The Compulsory Education Act ensures that all our children complete primary education.  More than 90% of each primary school cohort go on to secondary school. We also have specialised schools catered for students with particular talents in Sports, Mathematics, Science, Technology, and the Arts. Post-secondary education options are similarly wide ranging in the technical education institutes, polytechnics, Arts institutions, and universities to support the wide ranging interests and abilities of our young people. Support is given to children with mild special needs to attend mainstream schools, whereas special education schools are available to cater to those with more severe disabilities. Financial assistance schemes, providing 100% subsidy for school fees, free textbooks, school attire, and daily breakfast, ensure that children from lower-income families are not denied learning opportunities due to their family circumstances.

Singapore’s healthcare system also ensures that all our children have proper access to healthcare. We have a low maternal mortality ratio of 3 per 100,000 births, an infant mortality rate of 2 per 1000 live births and an under-5 mortality rate of 3 per 1000 live births. Singapore’s life expectancy at birth is 81.8 years. True to the call for comprehensive maternal and child health services in the 2005 World Health Report on Making Every Mother and Child Count, all pregnant women have access to comprehensive antenatal care in Singapore. All births are delivered by doctors, if not trained midwives. All pregnant women are offered HIV screening so that mother-to-child transmission can be prevented. Our children are protected from preventable diseases where basic immunisation for diphtheria, pertussis, mumps, measles, rubella, tetanus, tuberculosis and polio are provided for free. 99% of our children are medically screened by the time they reach 7 years old, with referrals to specialist treatment or early intervention programmes to support the child’s developmental needs when it is called for. Comprehensive school health and dental services are available for school-going children. Should a child fall ill, there is access to a full range of health services. However, a good healthcare system would not have worked if good sanitation and access to clean water were not already available to the population.

In the best of societies, there will be the threat of child abuse and neglect. In Singapore, the interests and welfare of our children are protected through a sound legislative and administrative framework. The Employment Act prohibits employment of a child under the age of 12. The Children and Young Persons Act protects a child from abuse, neglect and exploitation; and the rehabilitation of children and young persons who have run afoul of the law. Our Women’s Charter protects girls against sexual exploitation. We have a Child Protection Service, which works with the police, schools, hospitals and social services agencies to ensure that there are timely and appropriate interventions to help a child in distress. Family Service Centres are set up in the community to provide social support to disadvantaged families and children. 

Man was sent to the moon, small pox was eradicated, the use of abominable weapons were banned within a span of one childhood. Mr. Kofi Anan said “they were achieved because people had the commitment to use their minds and their hearts to work together and reach the goals they had set for themselves”.  Since Singapore’s early days of independence, we may have taken more than the span of one childhood to make true all the promises of a better future to our children – but we did. Change is possible. We ask all fellow Member States to join us in ensuring a better future for our children.

Thank you.