This guide book is an update of Child Care in Islam, which was previously published by Al-Azhar in cooperation with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the year 1405 Hijrah (1985 AD).

The previous document constituted an important advocacy and information tool for the Islamic world. Over 20 years, global developments and the emergence of several pressing issues necessitated the re-evaluation of the previous manual and its content, in order to meet the challenges confronting our children, who are the youth of tomorrow and the adults of the future.

The guide book comprises four themes:

• child rights
• child health
• child protection
• child education

Care was taken to keep the discussion of these themes brief, simple and supported by evidence from the Noble Qur’an, the Noble Prophetic Sunna (practices) and the Noble Hadiths. A summary of each theme appears at the end of the book. This guide book was principally designed for the use of the wide-ranging groups of people who serve the cause of the Muslim child. They include: theologians and imams (mosque prayer leaders), who preach protection and care for children; health care providers; governmental and non-governmental organizations that work in the field of child care; policy makers and programme formulators who address the rights and needs of childhood; international agencies working in the field of childhood; and experts and individuals concerned with children’s issues both inside and outside the Muslim world.