ARTICLE II PURPOSES AND OBJECTIVES
The purposes and objectives of the present Convention shall be to:
1. Unite the States Parties in their determination of redeeming the promises made by them to the South
Asian Child at the World Summit for Children and at various other national and international conferences
and successive SAARC Summits;
2. Work together with commitment and diligence, to facilitate and help in the development and protection
of the full potential of the South Asian child, with understanding of the rights, duties and responsibilities
as well as that of others;
3. Set up appropriate regional arrangements to assist the Member States in facilitating, fulfilling and
protecting the rights of the Child, taking into account the changing needs of the child.
ARTICLE III GUIDING PRINCIPLES
For the establishment of regional arrangements, States Parties shall be guided by the following principles:
1. States Parties to this Convention shall consider survival, protection, development and participatory
rights of the child as a vital pre-requisite for:
a)
Accelerating the process of their peoples realisation of human rights and fundamental
freedoms, and
b) Achieving economic and social development in South Asia.
2. States Parties shall reaffirm the right of the child to enjoy all rights and freedoms guaranteed by the
national laws and regionally and internationally binding instruments.
3. States Parties consider the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as a comprehensive international
instrument concerning the rights and well being of the child and shall, therefore, reiterate their
commitment to implement it.
4. States Parties shall uphold the best interests of the child as a principle of paramount importance and
shall adhere to the said principle in all actions concerning children.
5. States Parties, while recognising that the primary responsibility of looking after the well-being of the
child rests with the parents and family, shall uphold the principle that the State has the right and
authority to ensure the protection of the best interests of the child.
6. States Parties shall consider this Convention as a guiding force for all national laws and bilateral or
multilateral agreements that are entered into in the field of child welfare.
7. States Parties shall always consider gender justice and equality as key aspirations for children, the
realization of which, collectively by the governments, would enhance the progress of South Asia.
PART II - REGIONAL PRIORITIES AND ARRANGEMENTS
ARTICLE IV REGIONAL PRIORITIES
1.
Without prejudice to the indivisibility of the rights enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of
the Child and other international and national instruments and law, States Parties shall place special emphasis
on the important areas for child development and well being as regional priorities that can benefit immensely
from bilateral and regional cooperation.
2.
Recognising basic services such as education, health care, with special attention to the prevention of
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