Initiatives
Explore Child Friendly Cities initiatives around the world
Mozambique
Mozambique
[Past initiative], The Cidades Sustentáveis Amigas das Crianças (Sustainable Child Friendly Cities) initiative in Mozambique was launched in June 2017 in seven municipalities: Maganja da Costa, Manjacaze, Maputo (capital city), Montepuez, Quelimane, Pemba and Ribaué. The initiative is led by UNICEF in collaboration with ANAMM (National Association of Municipalities…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 28,829,000, Pop. under 18:, 14,929,000, CONTACT, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Av do Zimbabwe 1440, Maputo, Mozambique (+258) 21 481 100, RESOURCES, Brochura Cidade Amiga [PDF], Regulamento - Cidades Sustentaveis Amigas da Crianca [PDF], LIST OF CHILD-FRIENDLY CITIES IN MOZAMBIQUE, 7 RECOGNIZED CHILD-FRIENDLY CITIES, MUNICIPALITIES, • Maganja da Costa • Manjacaze • Maputo • Montepuez • Pemba • Quelimane • Ribaué
Norway
Norway
[Past initiative], In 2016/17, through the Child-Friendly Municipalities project, the Norwegian Committee for UNICEF conducted a mapping among children, parents and leaders of leisure activities for children and young people in the region of Kongsberg, spanning seven municipalities. The intention was to identify the respondents’ views of childhood conditions in the…, Contact, Marthe S. Engedahl Focal point CFCI Legal Adviser [email protected]
Paraguay
Paraguay
The Child Friendly Municipalities Initiative (Municipios Amigos de la Niñez y la Adolescencia) in Paraguay was first implemented in 2018-2019 in four pilot municipalities. Recently, the programme has been re-launched with a continuous flow of applications and evaluation of candidate cities, starting its implementation at the end of 2022 with five…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 7,353,038, Pop. under 18:, 2,472,346, CONTACTS, Maria Lilia Robledo Verna, Social Policy Officer (Social Protection), [email protected] Gustavo Rojas, Social Inclusion Officer, [email protected] UNICEF Paraguay Avda. Aviadores del Chaco 2050, Edificio World Trade Center, torre 1, piso 4 Asunción PY 1806, Asunción, Paraguay, LINKS, Municipios Amigos de la Niñez y la Adolescencia Website, RESOURCES, Lanzamiento del programa Amigos de la Niñez y la Adolescencia Grabacion Municipios Amigos [mp4], Art icle on Municipios Amigos de la Niñez y la Adolescencia, List of child friendly cities in Paraguay, 5 cities & communities participating in 2022-2023 CFCI cycle, Santa Rosa del Aguaray Fernando de la Mora San Juan Nepomuceno Mariscal Estigarribia Ciudad del Este Embedded video follows Display caption Hide Caption Display caption Hide Caption Embedded video follows Embedded video follows Display caption Hide Caption Display caption Hide Caption CFCI Paraguay
Poland
Poland
The Miasto Przyjazne Dzieciom (Child Friendly City) initiative in Poland was launched in September 2017 in the city of Gdynia, a city located on the coast of the Baltic Sea. The overall aim of the initiative in Poland is to engage all of society in implementing the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and to encourage and enable children and…, strengthen local municipal governance for children, . This includes implementing a child-friendly legal framework; assessing the situation of children; developing an Action Plan for Children; setting up a coordinating mechanism in local government to ensure priority is given to children’s issues; and assessing the impact of law, policy and practice on children. Priority areas include early…, to raise awareness of and promote child rights among adults and children, . This includes listening to children’s views and taking them into consideration when decisions are made on issues that affect them. The key role is played by taking actions to strengthen the existing tools of children’s participation in the city and creating conditions for the implementation of new solutions. It is particularly encouraged to…, to use strategic partnerships to engage all members of society in building a child-friendly environment, . This entails building broad platforms for cooperation between the media, civil society, and private sector. Since launch of Miasto Przyjazne Dzieciom initiative, it has grown to include collaboration with 13 cities that vary in size, population, and financial capacity. In each city, the initiative will be reviewed every two years. CFCI Poland…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 37,908,000, Pop. under 18:, 6,992,700, CONTACT, Iwona Przybyla MPD/CFC Coordinator in Poland [email protected] Polish Committee for UNICEF ul. Powązkowska 44C 01-797 Warszawa Poland, LINKS, CFCI website in Poland UNICEF Poland website, List of child friendly cities in Poland, 4 recognized cities, 4 recognized cities, Gdynia Sopot Torun Konin, 9 candidate cities, Kraków Poznań Grodzisk Mazowiecki Opole Kwidzyn Bydgoszcz Bielsko-Biała Bolesławiec Rybnik
Portugal
Portugal
The Programa Cidades Amigas das Crianças (Child Friendly Cities Programme) in Portugal was launched in 2015 by the Portuguese Committee for UNICEF. The initiative aims to contribute to the realization of children’s rights in the country and is designed to encourage adoption of public policies that promote the well-being of all citizens, and in…, Stage 1 – Application, Municipalities that are interested can apply to join the Programme through three steps: Fill in the online form available on the website ; Fill out the online checklist available on the website ; Attach to the form a letter of intent and commitment signed by the Mayor., Stage 2 – Formal joining the Programme, If the application is accepted, a Protocol of Collaboration is signed, which includes the obligations set out in the Programme., Stage 3 – Planning, In the six months following the signature of the Protocol, the municipality must submit information to the Portuguese Committee for UNICEF which includes: The Mechanism for the Coordination of the Programme locally; Local Strategy for the Rights of the Child; Annual Local Action Plan. At this stage, the municipality has the status of “Child…, Stage 4 – Evaluation, After 12 months of implementation of the Annual Local Action Plan, the municipality must submit a Report containing: Evaluation of the previous year (12 months of intervention); The Annual Local Action Plan for the following 12 months. This process is repeated annually during the four years of the Local Strategy for the Rights of the Child.…, Stage 5 – Recognition, Recognition is granted to the municipality after a technical analysis of the Evaluation Report, in particular the targets and a positive evaluation of the of the results, showing concrete changes in the lives of children in the municipality. The results should be measured against the baseline values defined in the Annual Local Action Plan., Stage 6 – Renewal, At the end of each four-year cycle, in order for the recognition to be renewed, the municipality may restart the process by submitting A new letter of intent and commitment signed by the Mayor of the Municipality; A new Local Strategy for the Rights of the Child; A new Annual Local Action Plan. The information to be presented by the municipality…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 10.467.366, Pop. under 18:, 1.765.662, Number of children reached, : 517 506 , CONTACT, Teresa CAPITÃO and Mónica PACHECO UNICEF Portugal Av. Barbosa du Bocage, 87 – 6.º 1050-030 Lisbon PORTUGAL [email protected], LINKS, Programa Cidades Amigas das Crianças, List of child friendly cities in Portugal, 12 recognized cities, Cascais Fornos de Algodres Funchal Guimarães Lisboa Madalena do Pico Ponte de Sor Porto Póvoa de Lanhoso Seia Torres Novas Vila Verde, 19 candidates cities, Albergaria-a-Velha Braga Celorico da Beira Chamusca Esposende Fafe Fundão Marco de Canaveses Mêda Monção Ourém Ovar Penafiel Pombal Praia da Vitória Valongo Vila Franca de Xira Vila Nova de Famalicão Vila Nova de Gaia
Republic of Korea
Republic of Korea
The Child Friendly Cities Initiative in the Republic of Korea has earned remarkable progress in awareness-raising activities on the rights of children since 2013. As one of the biggest platform initiatives of the Korean Committee for UNICEF, it leverages other advocacy and fundraising activities of the National Committee while following the global…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 51,313,912, Pop. under 18:, 7,058,629, CONTACT, Korean Committee for UNICEF [email protected], LINKS, Website of CFCI in the Republic of Korea, List of child friendly cities in Republic of Korea, 91 recognized cities, Ansan Asan Bucheon Buk (a borough of Ulsan) Buk (a borough of Gwangju) Busan Busanjin (a borough of Busan) Buyeo Changwon Cheonan Cheongju Chilgok Chuncheon Chungju Daedeok (a borough of Daejeon) Daegu Metropolitan City Dalseo (a borough of Daegu) Dangjin Dobong (a borough of Seoul) Dong (a borough of Incheon) Dong (a borough of Gwangju)…
Romania
Romania
Romania is home to more than 3.7 million children who live across the country in 103 municipalities, 320 towns, and in 2.859 communes. Despite the significant progress in the past 30 years, three in ten children in Romania are affected by, severe material and social deprivation, . Besides, Romania has the highest rate of, children at risk of poverty or social exclusion, in the European Union (41.7 %) and it increased for the second consecutive year, almost double the EU average. Over 300,000 children do not complete compulsory education, nearly 50 % do not have basic literacy and numeracy skills at age 15 (PISA)., Infant mortality rate, has slightly increased in 2021 at 5.6‰ (1,008 deaths). Half of all child deaths occur in the first 28 days of a child's life (neonatal period). Although the teenage pregnancies decreased by 20% over the past five years, it remains at a worrying level of (15,811, teenage pregnancies, among adolescents aged 15-19 in Romania in 2021). In the case of adolescents under 15, the number of pregnancies decreased in the past two years, but North-West and North-East regions showed an increase by 11%. Children from vulnerable groups have poor access to health, education and social services and face discrimination. These children are also…, Key results:, A concept for the implementation of the CFCI to guide implementation of the initiative at national level. TORs for the National Coordinating Body (NCB), Local Steering Committees (LSC) and Local Coordination Units (LCU) drafted. A National Coordinating Body (NCB) established to oversee the implementation of the initiative at national level. It…, Next steps for 2023, Terms of Reference for the child rights situation analyses to be finalized and posted. Conduct child rights situation analyses in the seven municipalities and communes and develop local action plans based on local consultations with the key stakeholders and children. Award the title of candidate for Child Friendly City for the seven localities.…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 19,042,455, Pop. under 18:, 3,737,960 (Source: National Institute of Statistics, as of 1 st of January 2022), CONTACTS, Viorica STEFANESCU, Child Rights Systems Monitoring Specialist [email protected] Marian DAMOC, CFCI National Expert [email protected] UNICEF Romania 20-22, Alexandrina St., 1st District 011442 Bucharest 1 Romania, Links, UNICEF Romania website (in English) UNICEF Romania website (in Romanian), List of child friendly cities in Romania, 7 cities & communities engaged in CFCI, Bacau (municipality) Brasov (municipality) Bucharest (municipality) Deva (municipality) Moinesti (municipality) Colonesti (commune) Corbasca (commune) CFCI Romania CFCI Romania CFCI Romania
The Netherlands
The Netherlands
The Child Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) has been active in the Netherlands since March 2022. With the CFCI, the Dutch Committee for UNICEF brings together local governments to establish safer, more just, equitable, inclusive and child-responsive cities and communities. CFCI uses the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as a framework to…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population, : 17.800.000, Pop. under 18, : 3.400.000, CONTACT, Esther VREEBURG, Program manager Child Friendly Cities, [email protected], LINKS, Child Friendly Cities in Nederland - UNICEF CFCI-program for municipalities in Nederland, List of child friendly cities in the Netherlands, Cohort of candidate cities 2024, Diemen Eemsdelta Hellendoorn Saba, Cohort of candidate cities 2023, Den Haag Gooise Meren Sint Eustatius
Slovenia
Slovenia
The Otrokom prijazno UNICEF-ovo mesto (UNICEF Child Friendly City) initiative in Slovenia was launched in 2002. The model for the initiative was originally exported from neighbouring Italy and is led by the Slovenia National Committee for UNICEF. Currently, 15 municipalities are participating in the initiative, including the capital city Ljubljana…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 2,068,000, Pop. under 18:, 364,253, CONTACT, Alja Skele, Advocacy Manager, [email protected] Slovenian Committee for UNICEF Pavšičeva 1, 1000 Ljubljana - SLOVENIA, LINKS, UNICEF Slovenia website , List of child friendly cities in Slovenia, 15 child friendly cities, Domžale Hrastnik Kamnik Kidričevo Ljubljana Maribor Nova Gorica Piran Postojna Ptuj Radlje ob Dravi Ruše Trbovlje Velenje Zagorje ob Savi
Spain
Spain
The Ciudades Amigas de la Infancia (Child Friendly Cities) initiative in Spain was launched in 2002 and has the support of the Ministry of Youth and Children, the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP) and the University Institute of Needs and Rights of Children and Adolescents (IUNDIA). The initiative drives participating local…, external impact assessment, of the twenty-two-year initiative in Spain was carried out. The impact evaluation aimed to measure the changes brought about by the initiative in both local governance and the lives of children and adolescents. Using the matching technique and regression models, it were able to attribute observed changes to the initiative. The findings were…, Cross-Cutting Goals, Governance and Rights-Based Approach, : Child-friendly cities are more likely to implement actions that improve governance and integrate children’s rights into public management. Notable increases were observed in diagnostic assessments, child rights awareness campaigns, and child participation initiatives., Capacity Building and Policy Integration, : Training for local politicians and technical staff has increased annually. Budget allocations for child-related policies have grown, with each additional year in the initiative linked to a 1.4% increase. There has been greater integration of children’s rights into youth and gender policies, though structural legal protections remain limited., Rights-Based Objectives, Being Valued and Treated Fairly, : 75% of children in child-friendly cities feel they are treated fairly. There has been a 2.4% annual increase in adapted sports programmes for children with disabilities. 70% of children believe their local governments are making efforts to support vulnerable groups., Being Heard, : All child-friendly cities have child participation bodies, compared to only 27% of non-participating cities. Participation leads to more diverse discussions and greater focus on social rights. Each year in the initiative is associated with a 10% increase in implemented proposals and a 6% increase in self-managed proposals. However, only 1 in 4…, Access to Essential Services, : 87% of child-friendly cities report universal access to quality services. There has been a notable increase in early childhood education enrolment and mental health programmes., Safe and Clean Environments, : 71% of local entities believe children live in safe and clean environments. Safety and pedestrian safety measures in schools have improved annually., Play and Leisure, : 77% of local entities agree that children have adequate spaces for play and leisure. 82% of children report access to cultural and social life, contributing to their well-being. The initiative in Spain supports municipalities participating in the initiative through a dedicated website as well as training opportunities, networking events, child…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 48.085.361 (INE. Censo 2023), Pop. under 18:, 8.078.184 (INE. Censo 2023), Pop. under 18 that live in a CFC:, 3.949.389, CONTACTS, Silvia CASANOVAS. Child participation and local policies manager. [email protected] Paola BERNAL, Child Friendly Cities Specialist. [email protected], LINKS, Ciudades Amigas de la Infancia UNICEF Spain, RESOURCES, (in Spanish), NEW, - Impact Evaluation of CFCI in Spain - 2024 2024 CFCI Impact assessment TOOL BOX Child Participation Indicators for better local policies Monitoring a Local Action Plan Local Governance Toolkit: Identifying and quantifying investment for children Booklets for local action: Keys to promote child and adolescent participation Participatory…, List of child friendly cities in Spain, 321 recognized cities, 321 recognized cities, Albacete (reno) Alcalá de Henares (reno) Alcalá la Real Alcantarilla (reno) Alcázar de San Juan (reno) Alcobendas (reno) Alcoi (reno) Alcorcón (reno) Aldeamayor de San Martín Alfaro (reno) Alhaurin El Grande Alhendín (reno) Aljaraque (reno) Almendralejo Almería (reno) Almussafes (reno) Alovera (reno) Alpartir Alzira (reno) Andoain (candidate)…
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
[Past initiative] In Sri Lanka, as in many other countries around the world, local governments are responsible for the provision and coordination of many social services and take many decisions that have the greatest direct impact on children’s lives. A child-friendly city, town, community, or any system of local governance is committed to…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 21,497,310, Pop. under 18:, 6,000,000 (approx), CONTACT, Mira BIERBAUM, Social Policy Specialist, [email protected], LINKS, UNICEF Sri Lanka website
Sweden
Sweden
During 2017-2019 UNICEF Sweden started a pilot project together with five municipalities in Sweden to adapt and develop the methodology to the conditions of Swedish municipalities. In 2020 we launched CFCI as a strategy to support municipalities with the implementation of the CRC. Today we have three recognized municipalities and one new…, COUNTRY FACTS, Population:, 10 521 556 (2022) (scb.se), Pop. 0-19 years old:, 2 431 940 (2022) (scb.se), CONTACT, Katharina EISEN, Focal point CFCI,Child Rights Education and Local Governance Officer [email protected], LINKS, Unicef Sweden website, List of child friendly cities in Sweden, 3 recognized cities, Skellefteå kommun Karlskoga kommun Degerfors kommun , 1 candidate city, Tomelilla kommun
