An International Summit on Child Protection in Travel and Tourism is taking place in Bogotá DC, Colombia, this week.

The summit is co-organised by a High-Level Task Force on Child Protection in Travel and Tourism, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) and ECPAT International with the participation of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and it will be hosted by the Government of Colombia.

It will be attended by a broad range of stakeholders representing high-level government officials, industry leaders, thematic international experts, practitioners and advocates committed to child protection. It aims at maximising opportunities for learning and networking.

During a special session on Sports events and the protection of children from sexual exploitation, organised by the Council of Europe, Elda Moreno, Head of the Children’s Rights and Sport Values Department, will inter alia refer to the “Start to Talk” initiative, recently launched by the Council of Europe to promote the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on the protection of children against sexual exploitation and sexual abuse (Lanzarote Convention) in the field of sports. She will also moderate a discussion on past experience from previous campaigns organised during mega sporting events, the formulation of strategies for future initiatives focused on preventing SECTT at such events, identifying a priority advocacy agenda, and a commitment to collective action for the way forward.

Among the many distinguished speakers of the session, Mr George Nikolaidis, Chair of the Lanzarote Committee (monitoring body of the Lanzarote Convention), will talk about the relevance of the Convention in the context of international sports events. In another panel, he will also explain what the Convention requires States to do to protect children against travelling sex offenders.

International Summit on Child Protection in Travel and Tourism

Global study on Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism