A/RES/62/140 them more vulnerable than boys to the consequences of unprotected and premature sexual relations and often being subjected to various forms of cultural, social, sexual and economic exploitation and to violence, abuse, rape, incest, honour-related crimes and harmful traditional practices, such as female infanticide, early marriage, forced marriage, prenatal sex selection and female genital mutilation, Deeply concerned also that female genital mutilation is an irreparable, irreversible harmful practice that affects more than 130 million women and girls alive today, and that each year a further 2 million girls are at risk of undergoing the harmful procedure, Deeply concerned further that, in situations of poverty, war and armed conflict, girl children are among those most affected and furthermore become the victims of sexual violence, abuse and exploitation and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS, which have a serious impact on the quality of their lives and leave them open to further discrimination, violence and neglect, thus limiting their potential for full development, Emphasizing that increased access to education, including in the areas of sexual and reproductive health, for young people, especially girls, dramatically lowers their vulnerability to preventable diseases, in particular HIV/AIDS infection and sexually transmitted diseases, Concerned by the increasing number of child-headed households, in particular those headed by orphan girls, including those orphaned by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, Deeply concerned that early childbearing and limited access to sexual and reproductive health care, including in the area of emergency obstetric care, causes high levels of obstetric fistula and maternal mortality and morbidity, Convinced that racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance reveal themselves in a differentiated manner for women and girls and can be among the factors leading to a deterioration in their living conditions, poverty, violence, multiple forms of discrimination and limitation or denial of their human rights, Welcoming the holding of the commemorative high-level plenary meeting devoted to the follow-up to the outcome of the special session on children on 11 and 12 December 2007, Stresses the need for full and urgent implementation of the rights of the 1. girl child as provided to her under human rights instruments, and urges States to consider signing, ratifying or acceding to the Convention on the Rights of the Child1 and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women2 as a matter of priority; 0H 1H 2. Urges States to consider signing, ratifying or acceding to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women 18 and the Optional Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child; 19 17F 18F _______________ 18 19 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2131, No. 20378. Ibid., vols. 2171 and 2173, No. 27531. 3