The Romanian Children's Board is looking for new members eager to change the world

BUCHAREST, 10 May 2023. The Romanian Children's Board is looking for new members, as some of its incumbent members have turned 18. The new members will be selected through a recruitment process run by the children, a process which starts by registering on an online form. Established at the initiative of UNICEF, the Romanian Children's Board is a group of children and teenagers from all over the country, of different ages and abilities, from different ethnic backgrounds, living in family environments or included in the child protection system.

The Children's Board was set up in 2019, in the context of Romania's Presidency of the Council of the European Union, when the Romanian Government and UNICEF worked together to promote at European level, as a priority, the right of children to participate in decisions that concern them. Working in online and offline workshops, the children of the Romanian Children's Board drafted in the first months of 2019 the preliminary version of the "Bucharest Declaration of the Children of the European Union", an urgent call to the European Union and its member states to ensure that children's participation becomes a priority and a reality.

Children and young people who want to be part of the Board are invited to apply by filling in the online form available here until 24th of May 2023. We encourage children with refugee status and who speak Romanian to apply to become part of the Children's Board. UNICEF also encourages children from disadvantaged backgrounds, children living in rural areas or whose parents are working abroad to apply to participate in the selection process for new members.

The Children’s Board promote children's rights in numerous public events organized by UNICEF and its partners, participating in debates and giving speeches in plenary sessions of national and international organizations. Among the activities and initiatives in which the Children's Board is part are consultations through the U-Report platform on various issues concerning children; participation in the Child Friendly Cities Initiative of the "Romania for every child" project; drawing attention on the importance of mental health, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine; promoting media education among adolescents, together with UNICEF Romania and the Independent Journalism Centre; participation in the process of the Situation Analysis of Children and Adolescents in Romania; involvement in the process of creating and implementing the Strategy for the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of the Child 2022-2027, as well as the National Action Plan on the Implementation of the Children's Guarantee; marking international children's days, such as 1 June and the International Children's Rights Day.

More details about the work of the Romanian Children's Board can be found here.

Horia: "The Children's Board made me realize what it really means to fight for your rights and what civic participation is. I learned new things while being able to be part of change. For example, because I am also part of the Child Friendly Cities Initiative, I was able to contribute at the local level, representing the Brasov Children's Council in a local council meeting, where I proposed budgetary projects for children, for the installation of playground equipment for children with disabilities, which were then included in the budget plan, working together with the City Hall for their implementation".

Diana: "The Children's Board helped me reconnect with myself, with passions I had abandoned for a while and with my true ideals. It has given me a confident voice, showing me how important it is to actually involve children. It has become a family I never would have guessed I would have and from whom I have learned how I can be 'myself' to the fullest. Most importantly, it has given me the reassurance that the future is truly in good hands, especially because of the children's active involvement in various decision-making processes that are crucial to our development."

Andrei: "The Children's Board gave me the opportunity to figure out what I really want to do in the future - to fight for JUSTICE, for EQUALITY, for the rights of every child. This Board has even helped me discover some of my passions. 

Beyond all this, through this Children's Board, I have met quality people, people you can really learn from, and I have discovered young people with an incredible mindset, young people who will definitely change things for the better. I am grateful to be part of the Children's Board!".

After the closing of applications, all submissions will be evaluated by the current Board members, who will choose, at the end of an objective selection process, 15 new colleagues. The new members will then receive training on topics such as children's rights, communication, advocacy, speech writing and delivery, and other topics of interest to them.