General Assembly Rsolution 31/169.

The General Assembly,
Excerpt ....
Convinced that an international year of the child could serve to encourage all countries to review their programmes for the promotion of the well-being of
children and to mobilize support for national and local action programmes according to each country's conditions, needs and priorities,

,,Bearing in mind that the year 1979 will be the twentieth anniversary of the Declaration of the Rights of the Child'" and could serve as an occasion to promote further its implementation,

A ware that, for an international year of the child to be effective, adequate preparation and the widespread support of Governments, non-governmental organization and the public will be required,

1. Proclaims the year 1979 International Year of the Child;

2. Decides that the International Year of the Child should have the following general objectives:
(a) To provide a framework for advocacy on behalf of children and for enhancing the awareness of the special needs of children on the part of decisionmakers and the public;...
5. Designates the United Nations Children's Fund as the lead agency of the United Nations system responsible for co-ordinating the activities of the International Year of the Child,...;
6. Invites non-governmental organizations and the public to participate actively in the International Year of the Child and to co-ordinate their programmes for the Year as fully as possible, especially at the national
level;

106th plenary meeting - 21 December 1976

=======================================

International Year of the Child
In 1959, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. Twenty years later, this Magna Carta for children’s rights was still in abeyance, if not entirely violated. In order to remind the world at large and rally public opinion, 1979 was proclaimed International Year of the Child. UNESCO issued a poster, The Boy with the Dove, the work of the Cuban painter René Portocarrero. This gouache joins the posters of Sonia Delaunay and Joan Miró in the series Artists in Support of UNESCO’s Activities.

History - How IYC began and Surprising Results

For a well written historical and sourced overview of the International Year of the Child (IYC) , including its first modest proposal, initial opposition even within the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Country Delegations, growing acceptance, grass roots organization, unique achievements and long-term legacy see Chapter Fifteen "THE YEAR OF THE CHILD" in Margie Black's book "THE CHILDREN AND THE NATIONS": 

Download 29 Pages in PDF format:

http://www.unicef.org/about/history/files/Child-Nation-M-Black-Ch15-p353-377-year-or-child.pdf

View Below first 2 pages in jpg format:

Note on the Children and Nations:

Published in 1986. Development historian Maggie Black describes the evolution of ideas about how to attack hunger and poverty in the third world, the heroic endeavours made and the triumphs and disillusionments of their well-intentioned practitioners. She reaches beyond the growth of UNICEF and international aid to present the human face to all the energy, goodwill, science and effort expended in trying to build a better future for children the world over. 

Access the complete work:

http://www.unicef.org/about/history/index_childrenandnations.html