The Issue Where are child soldiers? Military recruitment of children is gradually being outlawed, but 50 countries still allow it. Many non-state armed groups also recruit children. Every year, the UN Secretary-General publishes a “list of shame” showing which state armed forces and non-state armed groups recruit and use children. On the 2017 list are the armed forces of seven countries (Afghanistan, Myanmar, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen). However, at least 43 state armed forces train children for armed conflict but do not normally use them in this way until they turn 18. Significantly, the Congolese army, FARDC, has been removed from the UN list for 2017. It marks a major step forward for the FARDC and follows on from the implementation of a 2012 UN Action Plan dedicated to eradicating the use and recruitment of child soldiers in its ranks. 56 non-state armed groups appear on the list for the same reason. They include the Mai-Mai Nyatura in Democratic Republic of Congo and the Kachin Independence Army in Myanmar, for example. The Taliban in Afghanistan and ‘Islamic State’ in Iraq and Syria use children on a large scale, including for suicide bombings. The UN's 2017 child recruitment list The map below shows (in red) the countries where armed forces or groups recruit children, according to the UN’s list of shame in 2017. They are: Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Mali, Myanmar, Nigeria, Philippines, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. In addition to countries on the UN list, non-state armed groups also recruit children in India Pakistan, Israel/State of Palestine, Libya, Philippines and Thailand. These countries are shown above in orange. The list is probably not complete, since commanders who use children often try to escape notice. Global recognition of a need for a Straight-18 standard The good news is that most states and some non-state armed groups now recognise the harm that recruiting children causes. Between 2001 and 2016, the number of countries restricting their military to adults has grown from 83 to 126, which is 71 per cent of states with armed forces. At least 60 non-state armed groups have also committed to stop or reduce their recruitment of children. Thanks to this progress, combined with some strengthening of international law, the so-called ‘Straight 18’ standard is slowly becoming the norm: no recruitment of anyone under the age of 18. The bad news is that some armed forces and groups still insist that they need children to fill their ranks. States that still allow child recruitment tend to be larger and wealthier than average, and they spend more on their military. For example, Australia, China, France, Germany, Saudi Arabia and the USA allow enlistment from age 17. Brazil, Canada, and the UK are among the small handful of countries that set the bar even lower, at age 16. In fact, whereas most African countries (with some stark exceptions) have now set the Straight-18 standard in law, only two of the G7 – the world’s largest economies – have done the same (Italy and Japan). Worldwide efforts to stop the recruitment of children is undermined when the world’s most powerful states do not commit to this themselves. Child Soldiers International works for a worldwide ban on all recruitment of children for any military purpose and it is critical that those guilty of recruiting children are held to account. Enlistment ages around the world The maps below show the minimum legal enlistment ages around the world. The first map shows the state of progress in 2001, the second is for 2016. Most of Europe and Africa have now adopted the Straight 18 standard (in green), and a number of states that used to enlist from age 16 have raised their age of recruitment to 17 (in orange). 2001 2016 Note that these two maps do not show where children are being recruited by non-state armed groups. They also do not show cadet forces or military schools, which are common around the world. For example, Russia only allows enlistment from age 18, via compulsory military service (conscription), but operates a system of military schools training children in combat tactics and the use of firearms. Thanks for visiting the page, we hope you found it useful and informative. We are committed to ending the use of child soldiers but providing life-changing projects for vulnerable children and bringing about sustainable change across the world comes at a price. We also want you to continue having the most comprehensive, high-quality resources and information at your fingertips but to do this, we need your support. Please help us continue our work and donate today. You can donate online now or simply text SIGN18 £10 to 70070. Thank youThe Child Soldiers International Team Find out more: Who are child soldiers? How is recruiting children harmful? What can be done? Take action now to stop the recruitment of child soldiers. Main sources The data used for these maps come from the following sources: States parties’ reports to the Committee on the Rights of the Child, the Committee’s Concluding Observations, and States parties’ binding Declarations on the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CRC/Pages/CRCIndex.aspx UN Secretary-General’s Report on Children and Armed Conflict (2002 and 2017): http://undocs.org/en/S/2017/821 Child Soldiers International, Louder than words: An agenda for action to end state use of armed forces, (London: 2012): https://www.child-soldiers.org/shop/louder-than-words-1 Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers, Child Soldiers Global Report: 2001, (London: 2001): https://www.child-soldiers.org/shop/global-report-2001 Photo © Child Soldiers International