The WAIMH Infant Rights Framework, established by the World Association for Infant Mental Health, is a remarkable contribution to our field. It highlights specific rights for infants (birth to age three) that go beyond general child rights, and it does so by centering the reality that babies depend on sensitive, responsive caregiving for healthy development.
What makes this framework especially powerful—and honestly, very exciting—is its clarity and boldness. WAIMH names what many parents and professionals feel intuitively: infants experience the world deeply, and they deserve care and protection that reflect their unique developmental needs.
These rights include:
The framework builds upon the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and reinforces the understanding that the earliest years are a uniquely sensitive period. By naming the specific needs of infants and toddlers, WAIMH elevates a part of early childhood that often receives less attention in public policy and family support services.
You can download the full WAIMH paper here:
WAIMH Position Paper on the Rights of Infants (PDF)
