A/65/262 and its focus on the protection of children from violence, at Headquarters and in the Middle East and North Africa, East Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America and Caribbean regions. She also held strategic meetings with the Child Protection Unit in New York, to enhance synergies and promote complementary work in areas falling within her mandate. 43. UNICEF is engaged in a number of initiatives to strengthen the evidence base concerning the nature and scope of violence against children, and consolidate efforts for data collection and analysis, and for the development of research on violence against children, including on harmful practices. The forthcoming 2010 UNICEF report on parental child disciplinary practices in a range of low- and middle-income countries confirms the high prevalence of violent disciplinary methods, but also recognizes that this practice coexists with non-violent discipline; close to 9 in 10 children experience physical punishment and psychological aggression, with higher rates among boys, among children between 5 and 9 years of age and in households where mothers condone corporal punishment and domestic violence; conversely, violent discipline was less prevalent when caregivers were engaged in greater levels of educational and play activities with their children. 44. The Special Representative was associated with the dissemination of this research, which addresses a priority dimension of her mandate and provides a sound basis to raise awareness of this phenomenon, to promote positive non-violent alternatives and to inform policies and actions for violence prevention and responses. 45. Sexual violence against children, and particularly against girls, has been a topic which has received increased attention. Building upon a national study on violence against children undertaken in Swaziland in 2007 and supported by the Clinton Global Initiative, UNICEF has joined WHO, the United Nations Population Fund and the United Nations Development Fund for Women, together with the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in a strategic partnership to promote similar research in other countries and provide support for the strengthening of an environment to protect girls against sexual violence. 46. This is a significant initiative that the Special Representative will continue to follow closely and which is expected to lead to important results. 47. OHCHR plays a decisive role in the process of implementation of the United Nations study’s recommendations and has established, since 2007, a focal point on violence against children. Since the appointment of the Special Representative, the Office’s advice and substantive support have remained crucial, helping to consolidate the human rights foundation of her mandate, while promoting the mainstreaming of children’s protection from violence across the organization. 48. OHCHR supported the organization in Geneva of the Special Representative’s meetings with members of the Inter-Agency Working Group on Violence against Children, with human rights treaty bodies, in particular the Committee on the Rights of the Child, and with special procedures of the Human Rights Council. 2 The Office also assisted in the organization of meetings with members of the NGO Advisory Council, the NGO Group for the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other civil society partners. __________________ 2 10 For further information, see A/HRC/12/47. 10-47898