Validation workshop on barriers & hidden costs in children’s access to education and health services

A validation workshop “Barriers and Hidden Costs in Children’s Access to Education and Health Services” was held at the UNICEF Office for Croatia in Zagreb on 14 September 2026. The workshop was organized as part of the cooperation with the Ministry of Labour, Pension System, Family and Social Policy within the implementation of the project “Croatia – Strengthening the Framework for the Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation of the National Action Plan for the Implementation of the Council Recommendation Establishing the European Child Guarantee.” 

The workshop forms part of project activities aimed at developing a framework for conducting an in-depth analysis of the “hidden costs” associated with children’s access to education and healthcare services in Croatia. It is also part of the multi-country Technical Support Instrument (TSI) project on strengthening child protection systems in Croatia, Czechia, Ireland and Portugal. As part of the project, a detailed analysis of barriers to accessing education and healthcare services was carried out, and recommendations for addressing these barriers were developed. 

The workshop brought together policymakers, experts, service providers, civil society organizations and independent experts to review the findings and recommendations emerging from the analysis and jointly explore opportunities for their implementation. Participants discussed barriers that prevent children from fully accessing education and health services in Croatia, as well as possible ways to overcome them. 

The objective of the workshop was to review, validate and further strengthen the initial findings and recommendations by drawing on the experience and perspectives of stakeholders from different parts of the system. Emphasis was placed on exploring pathways for implementing the recommendations, including actions that could be undertaken in the short term and those requiring additional preparation, investment, coordination or political support. 

The workshop was designed as an interactive and participatory process. Following the presentation of the key findings and recommendations, participants examined their potential impact and feasibility through discussions, small-group work and prioritization exercises. Attention was given to practical, institutional, financial and political barriers to implementation, as well as to the conditions that could help make specific measures more achievable. 

The feedback and discussions generated during the workshop will contribute to the further refinement of the recommendations to ensure they are relevant, feasible and grounded in the realities of implementation in Croatia. The workshop also aimed to encourage the identification of concrete steps and contributions that different institutions could make toward implementing measures that improve children’s access to education and healthcare services. 

The workshop was facilitated by Balazs Varadi, Marija Pavkov and Maja Soldić, consultants from the Budapest Institute team that conducted the analysis.