"The Magic of Local Government Is Proximity": Spain's 7th Child-Friendly Cities Congress
On the 30th anniversary of the global Child Friendly Cities Initiative, the national summit in Spain addressed challenges such as housing, poverty, mental health, and child participation, making it clear that municipalities have an essential role to play.
13 May 2026 - Madrid hosted the 7th Congress of the Child-Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) in Spain on 12 and 13 May 2026, bringing together more than 220 in-person participants and over 130 online viewers. With equity as its organising principle, the two-day event addressed some of the most pressing challenges facing children today: housing, poverty, mental health, discrimination, and meaningful participation, and made a clear case for the essential role of local government in tackling them.
The congress coincides with the 30th anniversary of the Child-Friendly Cities Initiative globally. A working session with mayors and councillors from 13 municipalities in Spain and Portugal reinforced the cross-border dimension of the initiative, with joint conclusions to be published.
Participation That Leaves No One Behind
Children and young people were not just present at the congress: they helped organise it and led several sessions. The discussions went well beyond affirming participation as a principle, focusing instead on how to make it genuinely inclusive. Too often, the same profiles are invited to participatory spaces, leaving out children with disabilities, migrant children, and those who have never been told their voice matters. Practitioners shared approaches that worked: going to schools rather than waiting for children to come to formal spaces, building networks with organisations already working with vulnerable children, and designing spaces that adapt to participants rather than the other way around.
"Participation shouldn't depend on how much you adapt to the space, but on how much the space is willing to adapt to you." Rim, Paivoz (UNICEF Spain's youth advisory group)
The congress confronted the structural inequalities that determine children's life chances. In Spain, single-parent households, migrant families, and large families face significantly higher risks of poverty and while general poverty has declined, child poverty has remained stubbornly persistent.
Child poverty was framed not as an as the outcom of policy, and the congress highlighted the specific leverage municipalities hold: emergency aid, local social services, school attendance support, early childhood programmes, and affordable activities. A key insight from a recent UNICEF Spain report was that local benefits are most effective when treated as rights rather than discretionary transfers this reduces stigma, bureaucratic burden, and discontinuity of support. Partnerships between municipalities and civil society organisations were presented as a force multiplier, with network models already showing measurable results in reducing school absenteeism.
Housing and the Right to the City
Housing emerged as both a children's rights issue and an equity issue: the argument was made that housing doesn't merely reflect inequality but actively generates it. A child-centred perspective on urban design, delegates heard, benefits entire communities: safe streets, accessible services, and green spaces are good for everyone, not just children. Speakers acknowledged the limits of universal housing policies, which can overlook the specific situations of the most marginalised - including Roma families living in informal settlements.
Mental Health: Access Shaped by Inequality
Access to mental health services for children is deeply unequal, shaped by socioeconomic background, family situation, and migration history. The congress heard evidence confirming this and showcased local responses: emotional mapping projects co-created with children, well-being coordinator toolkits developed by youth councils, and mobile mental health resources operating under Spain's 2021 Comprehensive Child Protection Act (LOPIVI). The recurring theme was that mental health, like physical health, cannot be left unattended; and that the most vulnerable children are also the least likely to have access to support.
Local Government as the Decisive Level
The congress closed on a note of conviction about what municipalities can achieve. UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Kitty van der Heijden highlighted Spain as one of the most inspiring examples globally of CFCI commitment. Speakers from Spain, Portugal, and EU institutions converged on a shared argument: local government's proximity to children and families makes it uniquely placed to detect needs early, design targeted responses, and demonstrate that change is possible. A municipality that becomes child-friendly, several speakers noted, tends to inspire its neighbours. As UNICEF Portugal's Executive Director put it: "Alone we go faster, together we go further."
