H.M. Konungens tal vid World Child & Youth Forum

Welcome to the third “World Child & Youth Forum" in Stockholm.

I am glad to see so many of you here at the Royal Palace for a day dedicated to the children of the world.

In our work and travels around the world, the Queen and I have had the opportunity to meet many dedicated and inspiring people and organisations that are working hard to improve the rights and wellbeing of children.

But, I am sad to say that we have also noticed this is not enough. We need more action from every part of society to put children and young people in the centre – and together we must find new and better ways to secure a sustainable world.

The Queen and I discussed for many years how to initiate a global forum for this purpose. I am happy to say that this resulted in the World Child & Youth Forum four years ago.

This Forum is meant to be an independent platform and meeting place for business, international organisations, governments and NGOs.

It is still early days, but our vision is to create an exciting and creative arena and a think tank where ideas can be shared and put into reality.

Today we will have the opportunity to hear about many new initiatives that have a positive impact on children's rights. We will share experiences, learn from each other, meet old and new friends — and hopefully new collaborations and partnerships will develop.

Let us be open-minded; let us be innovative and curious.

Let us all share our experiences from every sector of society to help create a world where every child gets a chance to grow up - healthy, loved, educated and protected – to a life where they can achieve their full potential.

Thank you!