The National Children’s Day is being celebrated across the country with the slogan “Primary Education for All and Let All Be Assured of Social Security” by organizing different programmes today.

Minister of State for Information and Communications, Dilendra Prasad Badhu unveiling a report about working children at a program organized to mar the National Children’s Day at Bal Minder in Kathmandu, Thursday. nepalnews.com/rh

Earlier the Day was being observed on August 20, but departing from the tradition the Day is being observed on September 14, commemorating the ratification of the United Nations Child Rights Convention (CRC) by Nepal.

According to reports 40,000 children were displaced and 8000 children were orphaned with the number of children orphaned due to the decade-long Maoist insurgency.

A research carried out in 30 conflict-hit countries showed that conflict had an adverse impact mostly on children’s education. In Nepal more than 500 children fled to India in search of work due to the conflict, a recent report released by Save the Children said.

The research also revealed that around 14 per cent of new school going children do not have textbooks and more than half of the children failed in their respective exams. 20 per cent children do not have access to primary education.

The report also stated that more than 43 million children across the world are out of schools because of conflict of various natures. More than half of the militia in conflict hit countries are below 15 years.

Report quoted director of the Nepal Children’s Organisation, Bal Mandir, Rajeshwor Niraula as saying that the challenges concerning children is piling up every year but there has been little awareness on child education after 1990.

Director of Child Development Society Sarad Sharma said that political parties have not implemented the commitments about the children made in their manifestoes.