Voluntary National Reviews: Guidance Note on Violence Against Children

Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) are a vital method of measuring a nation’s progress towards achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The 2030 Agenda encourages all levels of society – government, academia and the private sector – to engage in these annual appraisals and to include children in the reporting process.

This Voluntary National Review Guidance Note for CSOs: Ending Violence Against Children, Sexual Violence and Sexual Exploitation seeks to inform and support CSO engagement in the VNR process with an Ending Violence Against Children lens – and a focus on sexual violence, commercial sexual exploitation and other forms of violence against children.

It is designed to help national CSO advocates to influence the national VNR process from a child rights-based perspective and ensure that reviews meaningfully capture progress achieved against SDG targets related to ending all forms of violence against children. It provides key information on the VNR process, as well as how it can be used as a part of longer-term advocacy to end violence against children.