Project report

New Practical Guidance Helps Civil Society Advance Children’s Rights Through Public Budgeting

Intern 1 · 5 Aug 2026

Abstract

The How to Child Rights Series is pleased to launch How to Analyze, Track and Influence Public Budgets for Children’s Rights, a new practical guidance designed to strengthen civil society’s capacity to analyze, track, and influence public budgets through a child rights lens. This marks the conclusion of a collaborative process that included multilingual consultations, a regional peer-to-peer learning exchange, and a global launch webinar, bringing together practitioners and experts from around the world to shape and introduce the guidance. Explore the guidance: Three practical tools for civil society and much more Authored by Lubna Iskandar, the guidance is intended for civil society organizations, national coalitions, child rights practitioners, advocates, researchers, and other stakeholders working on governance, accountability, and public finance. It consists of three complementary tools: 📘Guidance landing page 📄 Tool 1 – An Introductory Guide for Civil Society: introduces the fundamentals of child rights budgeting and provides an accessible entry point for organizations beginning this work. 📄 Tool 2 – How to Conduct Public Budget Allocation and Expenditure Analysis Using a Child Rights Lens: presents practical methodologies for analyzing public budget allocations and expenditures through a child rights lens, enabling organizations to generate robust evidence for advocacy. 📄 Tool 3 – How to Develop Effective Public Budget Advocacy Strategies and Plans: supports organizations in translating budget analysis into strategic advocacy, helping them influence public decision-making and promote greater investment in children’s rights. And two webinars: 🎥 Launch Webinar 🤝 Peer-to-Peer Learning Exchange The guidance is available in English, Arabic, French, and Spanish! Together, these tools support organizations in moving from understanding public budgets to generating evidence and influencing decision-making to advance children’s rights. A collaborative and multilingual process The guidance was developed through an extensive participatory process. Between November and December 2025, Child Rights Connect, in collaboration with Save the Children and the Manara Network, organized consultation sessions in Arabic, English, French, and Spanish, engaging 169 practitioners from civil society organizations, international NGOs, UN agencies, academia, and independent experts. The process continued with a regional peer-to-peer learning exchange with experiences from across the Middle East and North Africa, where participants shared practical experiences, validated the draft guidance, and contributed recommendations that were incorporated into the final tools. 👉 You can learn more about the peer-to-peer exchange and access the webinar recording, presentation slides, and concept note here. The peer-to-peer is intended as a long-lasting resource for those in the region and beyond highlighting innovative or successful approaches that can be adapted by others. Global launch The guidance was officially launched on 23 July 2026 through a global webinar featuring opening remarks by Yasmeen Shariff, Elected Member of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC), a presentation by the guidance author Lubna Iskandar, regional reflections from practitioners across Nepal, Peru, Niger, Lebanon, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and closing remarks by Dr. Cephas Lumina, Member of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child. 👉 Watch the launch webinar and access the recording, presentation slides, and concept note here. The webinar generated lively discussions, with participants exchanging ideas, asking practical questions, and exploring how the guidance can support child rights budget advocacy in different national contexts. Developed with the generous support of the Advancing Children’s Rights Research Network Palestine (Project AcoRN), the guidance responds to a growing need for practical tools that help civil society organizations engage more confidently in public budgeting processes. While public budgets are essential for translating children’s rights commitments into reality, many organizations have limited access to practical methodologies for budget analysis and advocacy. Explore the guidance. Use it. Test it. Then tell us what worked, what didn’t, and what you’d improve. Your feedback and examples will help us strengthen the guidance, showcase good practice, and make it even more useful for everyone. Share your experience with us at HowtoChildRights@childrightsconnect.org