The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) briefed the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) Ethiopia Country Taskforce on January 15, 2026, ahead of the Committee’s review of Ethiopia’s 6th and 7th combined periodic reports on January 26–27, 2026.
As part of the reporting process, and in line with the Principles relating to the Status of National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) (the Paris Principles), which require NHRIs to cooperate with international and regional human rights mechanisms, EHRC submitted a complementary report on the situation of children’s rights in Ethiopia on March 6, 2024.
Since the submission of the report, positive developments and emerging challenges affecting children’s rights have occurred in the country, necessitating EHRC to update its report and provide a briefing to the CRC Ethiopia Country Taskforce.
The briefing drew on EHRC’s Annual Human Rights Situation Report (2024/25) and recent monitoring findings. The Taskforce was specifically briefed on key issues, including violence against children and harmful practices, children deprived of a family environment, children with disabilities, the right to education, children deprived of liberty, and children affected by displacement and conflict.
The engagement aimed to ensure that the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child is provided with up-to-date, and independent information on the situation of children’s rights in Ethiopia during its consideration of the State party’s reports.
The CRC Ethiopia Country Taskforce expressed its appreciation to EHRC for providing independent and up-to-date information and emphasized the importance of the briefing in enabling the Committee to conduct a meaningful constructive dialogue with the State party and to formulate tailored concluding observations.