International Children's Peace Prize
| International Children's Peace Prize | |
|---|---|
 Archbishop Desmond Tutu awarding the International Children's Peace Prize to Neha Gupta in 2014. | |
| Description | Outstanding contributions in advocating children's rights |
| Location | Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Reward(s) | €100,000 or $123,000 |
| First awarded | 2005 |
| Currently held by | KidsRights Foundation |
| Website | childrenpeaceprize.org |
The International Children’s Peace Prize is awarded annually to a child who has made a significant contribution to advocating children's rights and improving the situation of vulnerable children such as orphans, child labourers and children with HIV/AIDS.[1]
The prize is an initiative of Marc Dullaert, founder of the KidsRights Foundation, an international children's aid and advocacy organisation based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.[2] KidsRights should not be confused with the group which grants the Nobel Peace Prize.
History
The first Children's Peace Prize was launched in November 2005 during the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in Rome, an annual meeting of Nobel Peace Prize winners and international organisations such as UNICEF and Amnesty International. "We welcome the launch of Children’s Peace Prize during our summit," the summit's closing statement said.
Mikhail Gorbachev presented the 2005 prize, which was posthumously awarded to Nkosi Johnson, a South African boy who brought international attention to children with HIV/AIDS and founded the Nkosi's Haven home for HIV-positive mothers and children. The winner receives a 100,000 euro donation to benefit a charitable project for children, as well as a statuette which has been named the Nkosi in Nkosi Johnson's honour. The statuette is of a child pushing a ball, "show[ing] how a child sets the world in motion."
The 2006 award was handed out by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Frederik Willem de Klerk in a ceremony at the Binnenhof, the seat of the Dutch parliament in The Hague. The 2007 was presented at the Binnenhof by Bob Geldof and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Betty Williams. The 2008 prize was presented by Desmond Tutu.[3]
Recipients
| Year | Recipient | Country of Origin |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Nkosi Johnson | South Africa |
| 2006 | Om Prakash Gurjar | India |
| 2007 | Thandiwe Chama | Zambia |
| 2008 | Mayra Avellar Neves | Brazil |
| 2009 | Baruani Ndume | Tanzania |
| 2010 | Francia Simon | Dominican Republic |
| 2011 | Michaela Mycroft | South Africa |
| 2012 | Kesz Valdez | Philippines |
| 2013 | Malala Yousafzai | Pakistan |
| 2014 | Neha Gupta | United States |
| 2015 | Abraham Keita | Liberia |
| 2016 | Kehkashan Basu | United Arab Emirates |
| 2017 | Mohamad Al Jounde | Syria |
| 2018 | March for Our Lives | United States |
| 2019 | Greta Thunberg[4] | Sweden |
| Divina Maloum[4] | Cameroon |
Similar awards
An International Children's Peace Prize is also handed out by the Children as the Peacemakers Foundation. The World's Children's Prize for the Rights of the Child is awarded yearly by Swedish organisation Children's World. The Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP) issues a World Children Peace Prize.
Sources
- The Children's Peace Prize
- KidsRights Foundation
- World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates closing statement
- Telegraaf (Dutch)
- Children as the Peacemakers Foundation
References
- ^ "International Children's Peace Prize Archives". Office of the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth. Retrieved 2019-08-29.
- ^ https://kidsrights.org/childrenspeaceprize
- ^ Theirworld (2019-08-29). "US teenagers who campaigned for safer schools win the International Children's Peace Prize". Theirworld. Retrieved 2019-08-29.
- ^ a b "Desmond Tutu Announces the Winners of the International Children's Peace Prize 2019: Greta Thunberg (16) From Sweden and Divina Maloum (14) From Cameroon". Cision PR Newswire. 2019-10-04.