A/HRC/25/47 lag behind: in these countries, there is a higher risk of poverty and malnourishment, higher levels of child mortality, and higher rates of children out of school.5 28. Violence compromises social progress. It is often associated with poor rule of law and weak enforcement, high levels of organized crime and homicide rates, and a culture of impunity.6 For children, violence goes hand in hand with deprivation, high risks of poor health, poor school performance and long-term welfare dependency, and hampers the enjoyment of their rights. 29. Violence against children remains pervasive and concealed and continues to affect millions of children in all stages of development. In early childhood its impact is often irreversible, damaging the development of the brain, compromising children’s physical and mental health, and in serious cases leading to disability and death. As children grow up, the cumulative exposure to various manifestations of violence often becomes a continuum, spilling over from one context to another, spreading across a child’s life cycle and at times persisting across generations. 30. Beyond its impact on individual victims and their families, violence diverts resources from social spending, slowing economic development and eroding the human and social capital of nations. In hours, violence can destroy development gains that took years to achieve. The protection of children from violence is a concern the international community cannot afford to omit from the post-2015 development agenda: it is a human rights imperative, and also a question of good governance and good economics. 31. Violence against children is not a new topic in the development agenda. It is a core dimension of the right to freedom from fear, proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and emphasized by the United Nations Millennium Declaration and the process generated thereafter. In the Millennium Declaration, Member States reaffirmed the right of children to be raised in dignity and free from fear of violence, and expressed determination to “spare no effort in the fight against violence” (para. 8); moreover, they resolved to encourage the ratification and implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols, which set out the normative foundation for children’s right to freedom from violence. Furthermore, during the Millennium Summit of the United Nations, States expressed their commitment to strengthen child protection systems, to enhance accountability, and to prevent and combat all forms of violence against women and girls. 32. Despite their undeniable relevance, these values have remained on the margins of the development agenda. One major reason was the fact that no clear goal, target or indicator was identified to mobilize action and to monitor progress. This situation can be changed this time around and there is a sound foundation to build upon. 33. As noted by the United Nations System Task Team on the Post-2015 United Nations Development Agenda, “the prevention and reduction of all forms of violence and abuse — and protection against their specific manifestations … — should be at the heart of any agenda which fully recognizes the centrality of human security, both as a human rights imperative and as integral to development”.7 According to the Task Team, sustainability 5 6 7 8 See, for example, the report of the United Nations System Task Team on the Post-2015 United Nations Development Agenda, entitled “Realizing the future we want for all”, paras. 44–45. Available from www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/Post_2015_UNTTreport.pdf. See, for example, A New Global Partnership: Eradicate Poverty and Transform Economies Through Sustainable Development (United Nations, New York, 2013), p. 9. Available from www.un.org/sg/management/pdf/HLP_P2015_Report.pdf. See the report of the Task Team, “Realizing the future we want for all”, para. 91.