Business and Technology University Opens Child Rights Center, Expanding Georgia’s Academic Network for Child Rights

TBILISI, Georgia, 2 October, 2025.  – Business and Technology University (BTU) in partnership with UNICEF Georgia has officially launched its Child Rights Center, becoming the 12th university in Georgia to host such a Center dedicated to promoting the rights of children. The new Center will focus on knowledge production, dissemination, and awareness-raising to advance child rights across academic and professional sectors.

The Child Rights Center at BTU is designed to enhance the capacity of academic staff, students and young people and professionals from diverse fields through specialized trainings, public lectures, diverse knowledge-sharing activities and participating in research projects. 

With the recent establishment of the Child Rights Academic Network of Georgia, collaboration among university-based centers has been revitalized. This network strengthens connections between academia, local authorities, and communities, reinforcing a shared commitment to safeguarding children’s rights and embedding child rights into higher education and community engagement.

UNICEF Georgia’s upcoming five-year programme of cooperation will prioritize a robust research agenda focused on child rights. The university-based Child Rights Centers will play a central role in facilitating research and supporting national studies, ensuring that future policies are grounded in locally generated, high-quality evidence.

The importance of such academic engagement was underscored by the adoption of the Code on the Rights of the Child in 2019, which emphasized the need for specialized training for professionals working with children. The Child Rights Centers are now positioned to lead this effort, bridging the gap between research, education, and policy to ensure that every child’s rights are understood, respected, and protected.

About

Child Rights Centres at universities in Georgia aim at integrating child rights education into higher learning and community engagement. Established in partnership with UNICEF and academic institutions in Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Zugdidi, Batumi, Gori, Telavi and Akhaltsikhe, these centres serve as resource hubs that promote awareness, dialogue, and capacity-building around child rights. Through trainings, public lectures, research, and curriculum development, the centres empower future educators, professionals, and students to understand and advocate for children's rights.