A/HRC/37/48 report,1 the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)presented the most current data on violent discipline and exposure to domestic abuse during early childhood, violence at school, violent deaths among adolescents, and sexual violence in childhood and adolescence. 9. The data provided by UNICEF revealed alarming levels of violence affecting very young children and the ways that millions endure violence throughout childhood, often at the hands of people they know and trust. The report renews the call made in United Nations study for national plans and strategies to prevent and respond to all forms of violence against children. This has been a priority for the Special Representative, and has gained renewed relevance in advancing progress towards the violence-related targets of the 2030 Agenda. 10. Another report, Ending Violence in Childhood, by the international learning initiative Know Violence in Childhood, provided a critical review of research and data from across regions. The information contained in the report can stimulate action to help to ensure that all children grow up free from violence and enjoy the opportunity to develop to their full potential. 11. The Special Representative continued to support United Nations policy developments aimed at the elimination of all forms of violence against children and accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. These included the IV Global Conference on the Sustained Eradication of Child Labour, in Buenos Aires, from 14 to 16 November 2017; the high-level meeting of the General Assembly on the appraisal of the United Nations Global Plan of Action to Combat Trafficking in Persons, on 27 and 28 September 2017; and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) International Symposium on School Violence and Bullying: From Evidence to Action, in Seoul, from 17 to 19 January 2017. 12. According to estimates, there are 152 million boys and girls in child labour, including 73 million engaged in its worst forms. Four million children continue to be subjected to forced labour. Moreover, the unprecedented scale of migration and forced displacement across the globe has increased the number of children at risk of economic exploitation. Participants in the IV Global Conference highlighted their concern that the rate of reduction in child labour was slowing, and identified critical actions to accelerate efforts to end child labour by 2025 and forced labour by 2030, and to generate employment opportunities for young people around the world. 13. The political declaration adopted at the high-level meeting of the General Assembly on trafficking reaffirmed States’ commitment to the Global Plan of Action, and addressed the social, economic, cultural and political factors that make people vulnerable to trafficking, including the culture of tolerance of violence against children. It recognized victims as agents of change in the global fight against trafficking in persons, and encouraged the incorporation of their perspectives and experience in all efforts to prevent and combat it. 14. The International Symposium on School Violence and Bullying was held to support implementation of the recommendations made in the report of the Secretary-General on protecting children from bullying (A/71/213). Organized by UNESCO and the Ewha Womans University, it brought together United Nations agencies, Governments, members of civil society, academia and young people. A multi-stakeholder platform for data and research was launched at the Symposium to address the prevalence of bullying and school violence, and to gather evidence on effective interventions. 1 4 UNICEF, A familiar face: violence in the lives of children and adolescents (New York, 2017).