Protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons A/RES/72/182 solutions for them, and encourages regional organizations to strengthen their activities and their cooperation with the Special Rapp orteur; 14. Also welcomes the recent ratification by several States of the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention), which builds on the Protocol on the Protection of and Assistance to Internally Displaced Persons and the Protocol on the Property Rights of Returning Persons, adopted by the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, and which marks a significant step towards strengthening the national and regional normative framework for the protection of and assistance to internally displaced persons in Africa, further welcomes the holding of the first Conference of States Parties to the Convention in April 2017, encourages African States to sign and/or ratify the Convention, and encourages other regional mechanisms to develop their own regional normative frameworks for the protection of internally displaced persons; 15. Calls upon all parties to armed conflict to comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law, and international human rights law, as applicable, with a view to preventing forced displacement and promoting the protection of civilians, and calls upon Governments to take measures to respect and protect the human rights of all internally displaced persons, without distinction of any kind, in accordance with their applicable obligations under international law; 16. Expresses particular concern that many internally displaced children, in particular girls, lack access to education in all phases of displacement owing to attacks against schools, damaged or destroyed school buildings, insecurity, the prevalence of violence, including gender-based violence, in and around schools, loss of documentation, language barriers and discrimination, call s upon States, in cooperation with all other relevant actors, including humanitarian and development agencies and donors, to ensure the right to a quality education, including primary and secondary education, for internally displaced children, without disc rimination of any kind, as well as to support existing schools to enable them to include internally displaced persons, calls upon all parties to armed conflict to respect the civilian character of schools and other educational institutions and to refrain from undertaking actions that could adversely affect the protection of these buildings against direct attacks, and strongly condemns all attacks, as well as threats of attack, against schools, in contravention of international humanitarian law; 17. Also expresses particular concern about the full range of threats, violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law experienced by many internally displaced persons, including women and children, who are particularly vulnerable or specifically targeted especially for sexual and gender-based violence and sexual exploitation and abuse, trafficking in persons, forced recruitment and abduction, encourages the continued commitment of the Special Rapporteur to promote action to address their particular assistance and protection needs, and calls upon States, in cooperation with international agencies and other stakeholders, to provide protection and assistance to internally displaced persons who are victims of the above-mentioned threats, violations and abuses, as well as other groups of internally displaced persons with special needs, such as severely traumatized individuals, older persons and persons with disabilities, taking into account all relevant resolutions of the General Asse mbly and the Security Council; 18. Emphasizes the importance of communication and consultation with internally displaced persons and host communities by Governments and other relevant actors, in accordance with their specific mandates, during all phases of displacement, as well as the participation of internally displaced persons, where appropriate, in 17-23174 7/11