The maltreatment of children has always occurred through out the history and across cultures. Child protection first became a concern in societies of the global North, in the late 19th century. Ever since, the history of child maltreatment, and of protection, has been well documented in the global North. In comparison, the modern history of child abuse and protection in the global South starts only with the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1989. States’ efforts to meet their UNCRC obligations have given rise to an increased interest, both practical interventions and research, in child protection. However, the history of child protection in the global South remained an underresearched and poorly documented area. This article attempts to fill this gap by compiling the history of child protection in countries of the global South.
