UNICEF Strategic Plan 2022-2025
Renewed ambition towards 2030
Highlights
UNICEF’s Strategic Plan, 2022–2025, reflects UNICEF’s unreserved commitment to promoting the rights of all children, everywhere, as stated in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and guided by the Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action. It comes at a crucial time when the human rights of children are under threat to a degree that has not been seen in more than a generation.
It is the first of two sequential plans towards 2030 and it represents UNICEF’s contribution to child-focused Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in all settings. As such, it provides a global framework for country programmes and National Committees.
The Strategic Plan will guide synchronized action towards an inclusive recovery from COVID-19, acceleration towards the achievement of the SDGs and the attainment of a society in which every child is included, without discrimination, and has agency, opportunity and their rights fulfilled. The Plan was informed by voices of children, communities, governments, UN sister agencies, private sector, civil society and other partners. It outlines key programmatic goals and a related set of result areas, change strategies and enablers, including new or accelerated approaches on topics like climate action, mental health and social protection.
To meet the ambitious goals of the Strategic Plan, UNICEF will draw on its presence in over 190 countries and territories and deep expertise and thought leadership based on field evidence, research and data. UNICEF will also use its voice and partnerships to leverage financing and other resources and expertise from national governments, the private sector and the international development community, including key United Nations partners.
Files available for download
Other publications and documents
Strategic Plan 2022-2025 publication - English, French, Spanish
Integrated Results and Resources Framework of the UNICEF Strategic Plan, 2022–2025
Investment case for UNICEF’s Strategic Plan 2022-2025
Theory of Change, UNICEF Strategic Plan, 2022–2025
Strategic Plan 2022-2025 high-level visual representation
Engaging children and young people on UNICEF's Strategic Plan
For adolescents: UNICEF and You: Strategic Plan 2022-2025
What
UNICEF will work with a broad range of stakeholders towards accelerating achievement of child-related SDGs in five interconnected Goal Areas [outcomes] comprising 18 Result Areas [outputs] to ensure that, in all contexts, including humanitarian crises and fragile settings, every child, including adolescents:
1. Survives and thrives with access to nutritious diets, quality primary health care, nurturing practices and essential supplies
Accelerators:
- Strengthen primary health care and systems
- Focus on deep inequalities in access to essential health and nutrition services
- Scale up public health emergencies capacity
- Promote child-centered food systems
- Support a multifaceted response that supports optimal nutrition
- Change discriminatory laws, policies and social practices
2. Learns and acquires skills for the future
Accelerators:
- Strengthen the emphasis on early learning
- Improve education for marginalized adolescents
- Focus on safe and supportive school environments
- Strengthen links between education and other sectoral systems
- Innovate with holistic skills acquisition and multiple learning pathways
- Support digital learning
3. Is protected from violence, exploitation, abuse, neglect and harmful practices
Accelerators:
- Put greater focus on preventing violence and harmful practices
- Support stronger and more inclusive systems
- Address the behavioural, social, cultural and economic determinants
- Target interventions to children at greatest risk
- Strengthen access to response services
- Empower families, parents and caregivers
4. Has access to safe and equitable WASH services and supplies, and lives in a safe and sustainable climate and environment
Accelerators:
- Strengthen WASH service delivery and WASH systems
- Invest in safe water for children and communities in water-insecure contexts
- Scale up WASH in schools and health facilities
- Increase partnerships with private sector
- Expand child-sensitive programming to address climate change and disaster risks
5. Has access to inclusive social protection and lives free from poverty
Accelerators:
- Increase emphasis on inclusive programming that supports shock-responsive social protection systems
- Strengthen links among social protection systems and other sectoral systems
- Scale up critical elements of social protection systems
- Support inclusive financing strategies
- Advocate for explicit commitments to child poverty
- Continue use of cash transfers, including in humanitarian contexts
UNICEF, working together with a broad range of partners at the country, regional and global levels, aims to achieve impact for children by changing long-term outcomes in the five Goal Areas [outcomes] and in the five cross-cutting programme areas that are to be mainstreamed across all Goal Areas and are critical to achieving results towards the realization of children’s rights.
A set of guiding principles underlies all UNICEF activities: human rights, humanitarian principles, gender equality, anti-racism and non-discrimination, equity and inclusion, accountability and access. Stemming from UNICEF’s mandate and human rights-based approach, they indicate the critical commitments behind how the organization works – in both its internal systems and processes and in all areas of its work for children, including programmes, advocacy, partnerships, supply and procurement, across all contexts.
How
The new Strategic Plan has identified nine "Change Strategies” that are ‘game-changing’ operational strategies that will accelerate the achievement of UNICEF’s planned results through the period of this SP.
- Advocacy and communications
- Community engagement, social and behaviour change
- Data, research, evaluation and knowledge management
- Digital transformation
- Gender transformative programming
- Innovation
- Partnerships and engagement: public and private
- Risk-informed humanitarian and development nexus programming
- Systems strengthening to leave no one behind
The new Strategic Plan will also improve the internal effectiveness and efficiency of UNICEF in supporting the delivery of results and change strategies through five “Enablers”.
- Accelerated resource mobilization
- Agile, responsive business model
- Decentralized and empowered internal governance and oversight
- Dynamic and inclusive people and culture
- Strategic internal communication and staff engagement
Key shifts
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Design: A more outcome-oriented plan with a 2030 vision that catalyses transformative and systemic change at the outcome level, and focuses on an intersectional approach to inequality and discrimination to address underlying drivers of discrimination and transform structures and norms.
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Scope: Stronger emphasis on upholding and safeguarding the rights of all children everywhere, being bold about recovery from COVID-19 and building back better and greener, and new areas of work including peacebuilding and integrated climate action and mental health work across goal areas.
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Acceleration: Innovative programmes and technologies at scale, stronger integration of development-humanitarian-peacebuilding nexus, renewed focus on strengthening systems, including building resilience of communities.
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Means of Implementation: Reinvigorated partnerships and amplified resource mobilization, with UNICEF fulfilling a catalytic global role coupled with a renewed focus on local actors: from global solidarity and a well-functioning, joined-up UN system, to leveraging the private sector and working with local actors.
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Internal Enablers: Internal shifts for better organizational impact, efficiency and effectiveness, empowered workforce and agile operating model in a rapidly changing world.
