Protection for every child
Millions of children across Europe and Central Asia need urgent protection from violence in their homes, schools, communities and online. They need protection from unnecessary family separation and harmful institutionalization.
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Child protection in Europe and Central Asia
Our goal: UNICEF’s vision is for every child to grow up in a safe and protective environment.
We work to eradicate all forms of violence against children, end the institutionalization of children across the region, and ensure that every child has access to justice.
And we work with governments to strengthen child protection systems, recognizing that systems that work for the most vulnerable children are systems that work for every child.
Data from the region
An estimated 34 million children across the Europe and Central Asia region are subjected to violent discipline at home, according to available data.
Around 37 million girls and women of all ages in the region experienced sexual violence during their childhood.
9 million school students aged 13 to 15 have reported being victims of bullying in the past month.
Despite progress over the years, the share of children living in residential care in the region is around 200 for every 100,000 children, compared to a global average of around 100 per 100,000.
Children with disabilities are up to 30 times more likely to be in residential care than children without disabilities, and older children with complex needs are more likely to be placed in residential care than younger children.
Children from the poorest families have less information about their right to justice than other children and are less likely to seek justice when their rights are violated.
Violence against children
Millions of children in the region experience violence at home, in the classroom, on the streets and online, yet this violence often goes unacknowledged and may even be seen as ‘normal’. Around half of all children in the region experience violent discipline in their own homes. In all, around 37 million girls and women across Europe experienced some form of sexual contact as children. Bullying in schools affects at least 10 million children. While more access to the Internet expands children’s opportunities for learning and education, it also means more risks, with children increasingly vulnerable to cyberbullying and sexual exploitation. These risks are evolving as a result of overlapping crises across the region, particularly conflict, poverty and inequality and climate change.
Family separation and child institutionalization
Every child has the right to grow up in a family environment. Yet children across the region are being institutionalized at twice the global average rate and nearly half a million children live in residential care facilities. The younger the child when they are removed from their family – and the longer they spend in institutional care – the greater the damage. Often isolated from families and communities, they are highly vulnerable to violence, neglect and abuse. The most disadvantaged children are most likely to be institutionalized, including children with disabilities, the poorest children, those affected by migration, those from ethnic minorities and older adolescents with complex needs.
Access to justice
Justice for children in the region is often hampered by systems that fail to recognize their rights or act in their best interests, and a lack of services to meet their needs. Children who are disadvantaged are the most likely to have their rights violated and most likely to be in trouble with the law. They are also the least likely to seek – or find – support from the justice system. Children under arrest or in detention are at risk of violence and even torture: locked away behind closed doors, they are among the most ‘invisible’ children in society. With a growing number of children coming into contact with the law as victims or witnesses of violence, there is an urgent need to strengthen child-friendly proceedings and specialized services that align with international standards and contribute to effective testimony and evidence in court proceedings.
Key policies
Global
1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child: Articles require all states to prioritize protection for children.
- 2000: Optional Protocol to the CRC on the involvement of children in armed conflict
- 2000: Optional Protocol to the CRC on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography
- 2011: Optional Protocol to the CRC on a communications procedure.
2015 Sustainable Development Goals: Targets 16.2 (ending violence) and 16.3 (the rule of law)
Regional
1950 European Convention on Human Rights
1996 European Social Charter
2021 European Child Guarantee
2024 European Commission Recommendation on developing and strengthening integrated child protection systems in the best interests of the child
Violence
2007 Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse (‘Lanzarote convention’)
2024 UN Convention against Cybercrime
Institutionalization
2009 UN Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children
Justice
1985 UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (‘Beijing Rules’)
1990 UN Guidelines for the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency (‘Riyadh Guidelines)
1990 Rule for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty (‘Havana Rules’)
2005 UN Guidelines on Justice in Matters involving Child Victims and Witnesses of Crime
What is UNICEF doing?
Across the Europe and Central Asia region, UNICEF supports the building of strong national child protection systems that work in the best interests of all children, including the most vulnerable. Our work to strengthen child protection includes a focus on three key areas: preventing and responding to violence against children, keeping families together, and ensuring access to justice. Across all three areas, we advocate for and strengthen social services – including support for social workers who are focused on child protection and who can move fast to help children.
Working to end violence against children
Our goal: To end every form of violence against children in every setting
UNICEF recognizes that while violence against children is pervasive, it is not inevitable. We work with governments to ensure that every sector – from education to justice – is equipped to prevent, respond to and reduce violence against children. Every form of violence against children must be eliminated, but different forms may need different responses to ensure that children and families get the support they need at the right time. Prevention, however, is key. We work to change the attitudes and behaviour that allow violence against children to continue, while strengthening systems and the skills of professionals so that children at risk are identified and supported. And we work to break the silence on violence against children. This is essential to end the violence, wherever and whenever it occurs.
Keeping families together
Our goal: By 2030, zero children in institutional care in Europe and Central Asia
UNICEF’s position is clear: no child should grow up in a large-scale institution because there is no other family or community-based alternative for them. We have worked to prevent the institutionalization of children in the region since the early 1990s, recognizing that shutting a child away from society is never in their best interests. Our work has led to the closure of large-scale residential institutions for children, and has helped to reunite children with their families, or place them in nurturing, family-based care. Over the last two decades, UNICEF has worked with governments to reduce the share of children in institutional care from 666 for every 100,000 children to 200 per 100,000.
Supporting access to justice for all children
Our goal: Equitable access to justice for all children in the region
UNICEF champions child-friendly justice systems for all children across the region. These uphold children’s best interests and champion alternatives to detention, including restorative justice. Significant progress has been made over the years: in parts of the region such as the Western Balkans, there was a 60 per cent decrease in children’s detention between 2006 and 2012, followed by notable drops in pre-trial detention.
We advocate for specialized protection and support for children who are victims or witnesses of crime. We promote combined and cross-cutting services – such as the Barnahus model – that offer child-sensitive interviewing, medical care, psychological support and legal assistance under one roof. Child-friendly justice systems also make sure that children can claim their rights, receive fair treatment and have their voices heard.
UNICEF works with governments and partners to support legal and policy reforms, the training and skills of professionals, and child-sensitive services for children who come into contact with the law, whether they are alleged offenders, victims or witnesses.
Through reforms, training and child-centred practices and services, we help governments ensure safer communities, better protect children’s rights and prioritize rehabilitation and reintegration over punitive measures.