A/HRC/34/27 of Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Those commitments emphasize that no targets of the Sustainable Development Goals may ever be pursued to the detriment of children’s rights. 8. The universality and integrated nature of the 2030 Agenda mirror the universality and indivisibility of human rights, including the rights of the child, which are enjoyed by all children regardless of nationality or borders. The 2030 Agenda also marks an essential shift whereby the importance of the spectrum of human rights for development is recognized, as the Sustainable Development Goals reflect both freedom from fear and want and the core principles of equality and non-discrimination. 9. States make further specific promises to children in the 2030 Agenda regarding their rights and well-being. The vision of the declaration is for a world which invests in its children and in which every child grows up free from violence and exploitation. It underlines the importance of the Agenda for all children, especially those in vulnerable situations, and commits to their lifelong learning opportunities, to ending child labour in all its forms and to accelerating progress in reducing newborn, child and maternal mortality, and ending all such preventable deaths before 2030. Crucially, children are defined as agents of change, in recognition of their capacities to be active partners in realizing the Sustainable Development Goals. 10. Given that the 2030 Agenda is to be implemented in a manner consistent with international law, State obligations pertaining to the rights specified in the Convention on the Rights of the Child must be protected and promoted throughout implementation of the 2030 Agenda, as reflected in its four general principles on non-discrimination (art. 2), the best interests of the child (art. 3), their right to life, survival and development (art. 6), and their right to be heard (art. 12). Leaving no child behind and reaching those furthest behind first 11. In fulfilling the commitments of the 2030 Agenda, national strategies should aim above all to ensure that no child is left behind and that those furthest behind are made the first priority of implementation efforts. To ensure that all children are empowered to realize their potential, an integrated, human rights-based approach is required, underpinned by the principles of, inter alia, equality and non-discrimination, participation, sustainability, transparency, the best interests of the child, international cooperation and accountability. III. Lessons from the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals 12. It is crucial to take stock of the key lessons from implementing the predecessor framework of the 2030 Agenda, the Millennium Development Goals, to inform the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in a manner which contributes to the realization of children’s rights. The Millennium Development Goals were particularly supportive in concentrating political will and investment in the social sectors and contributed to substantial progress in reducing poverty and expanding access to health and education. For example, the overall global rate of under-5 child mortality declined from 12.7 million in 1990 to 5.9 million in 20152 and access to education has improved for more children around the world than ever before, with rates of primary school attendance for girls rising to parity with boys in some regions, and a decline in the overall number of children 2 4 See World Health Organization (WHO) Global Health Observatory, available from www.who.int/gho/child_health/en/.