Day of Children and Adolescents in the Americas

Permanent Council · Regular meeting
Organization of American States, Washington, D.C.

Ambassador Josué Fiallo, Permanent Representative of the Dominican Republic

Translated from the Spanish original, which is the authoritative text.

We thank Mr. Víctor Giorgi for his presentation of the annual report of the Inter-American Children's Institute.

The Dominican delegation joins in the celebration of the Day of Children in the Americas.

By the resolution adopted by this Permanent Council on May 10, 2017, June 9 was designated the Day of Children and Adolescents in the Americas, with the aim of promoting a day of reflection and work on the situation of children and adolescents and on the actions being carried out to promote and protect the rights of children.

Children and adolescents are holders of rights and must therefore enjoy all the fundamental rights established for persons, especially those that belong to them as persons in development. In the Dominican Republic these rights are enshrined in the Constitution and in the laws in force.

In our country we have institutions such as the National Council for Children and Adolescents (CONANI), whose aim is to set in motion sectoral interventions directed at confronting and eradicating violence against children and adolescents around three primary pillars: health, education and the justice system.

In a spirit of translating our legal framework into concrete practice, the institutions that carry out actions under the national strategy are engaged in designing and coordinating new actions around a National Roadmap for the Prevention and Elimination of Violence against Children and Adolescents, to be implemented through 2024.

In the economic and social sphere, the Dominican government has increased the measures of protection for those living in poverty, including through the creation of support centers and by expanding the network of quality childcare centers and early education programs.

Lastly, we wish to highlight the attention given to children with disabilities, an area of great importance for the Dominican government. In this regard, and through intervention policies, the government has implemented policies focused on children with autism spectrum disorder. We currently have centers and resources for their care. To date it has been possible to take in 988 children, and we are confident that the reach of programs of this kind will continue to expand nationwide.

Thank you very much.