Celebrating 10 Years of “Child Friendly Communities” in Austria
In 2024, the Child Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) in Austria celebrated its 10th anniversary. More than 350 municipalities have been certified "Child Friendly Community", implementing child rights measures for over 322,000 children across Austria.
In 2024, the Child Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) in Austria celebrated its 10th anniversary. For ten years, Austrian municipalities and cities have had the opportunity to become certified as a “Child Friendly Community”. By 2024, more than 350 municipalities had taken this step, implementing child rights measures for over 322,000 children across Austria.
The anniversary year provided an opportunity to reflect on key milestones from the past decade. At the heart of the celebrations was a publication showcasing the highlights of the past 10 years and the broad variety of child-friendly measures within the seven thematic areas that form the foundation of the Austrian Child Friendly Communities Initiative. These areas include child-friendly governance and administration, child participation, health, leisure, family and school care, safety, and education.
Interviews with children and young people, experts, and policymakers highlighted the crucial role of local governments in implementing children’s rights – and the importance of actively involving young people in local decision-making processes. For every Austrian municipality seeking certification as a “Child Friendly Community”, conducting a workshop specifically for and with children and youth is a required step. The opinions, needs, and wishes of young people must then be mandatorily considered in the community’s local development action plan.
"Children and young people need space to express themselves and be heard. Their ideas and concerns deserve attention and respect. It is important that we, as a society, give children and young people the opportunity to raise their voices and actively participate in decision-making processes."
Fabian, youth from the Child Friendly Community Kufstein
The anniversary publication has been presented on various occasions—for example, at the certification ceremony for family- and child-friendly communities, which took place in April 2024 in Klagenfurt. This event is organized annually by the non-profit state-owned organization “Familie und Beruf Management GmbH” with whom the initiative is carried out in collaboration. UNICEF Austria’s Executive Director, Christoph Jünger, along with the Austrian Federal Minister for Women, Family, Integration, and Media, Susanne Raab, and the President of the Austrian Association of Municipalities, Johannes Pressl, honored 55 Austrian municipalities for their outstanding commitment to children's rights.
“I am delighted that so many Austrian municipalities have chosen to place a special focus on children and their rights over the past ten years, providing them with opportunities for effective participation in their living environment. My vision is that every child in Austria will live in a child-friendly community in the future!"
Christoph Jünger, UNICEF Austria Executive Director
To conclude the anniversary year, a social media campaign featured children, mayors, and other stakeholders from child-friendly communities. On UNICEF Austria's social media channels, young people from the municipalities of Götzis, Neukirchen am Großvenediger, Oberwaltersdorf, and Frohnleiten shared what makes their community particularly child-friendly, how they can participate in decision-making, and why every child should grow up in a child-friendly community.
