The Romanian Ombudsperson and UNICEF support children participation
The first ever consultation between the Children's Board and the Ombudsperson was followed by the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between UNICEF and the Romanian institution
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Bucharest, January 14, 2020. The new Children's Board of Romania, the Romanian Ombudswoman and the Child Ombudsman met on Tuesday, in a first consultation in which children's priorities were discussed, the role of the Child Ombudsman in the coming years in order that the rights of the Romanian children to be promoted and respected.
On this occasion, the UNICEF Representation in Romania and the Romanian Ombudsperson signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the period 2020-2022.
“The consultation with the Children’s Board that took place today and the Memorandum signed with UNICEF are important steps toward the functioning at maximum capacity of the Child’s Ombudsman, which is an independent structure part of the Romanian Ombudsperson, which must become a fully functional mechanism for the protection and promoting children’s rights, including by constant involvement of the children” said Ombudswoman Renate Weber.
Established in 2018, the Child Ombudsman is a structure coordinated by a deputy of the Romanian Ombudsperson, which acts to promote and protect the rights of children Among the duties of the Child Ombudsman are the collaboration with the formal structures of the children, but also proposing measures designed to encourage the participation of children in decisions that affect their lives.
"To ensure that all children benefit from all rights and that public policies are built on evidence, ongoing monitoring of children's rights is needed. The Child Ombudsman is a guarantor of respecting the rights of the child and a key partner in promoting children's participation, including through online and offline consultations. I am pleased that the Children's Board will work closely with the Child Ombudsman to monitor and promote the rights of the child,” said Gabriel Vockel, Deputy Representative of UNICEF in Romania.
UNICEF will provide technical support to the Child Ombudsman to become a member of the European Network of the Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC) and to increase the capacity of its personnel. UNICEF will also assist with the improvement of the petition filing system. UNICEF and the Romanian Ombudsperson will also work to promote a culture of institutional accountability and transparency regarding the respect of children's rights in Romania.
Over 1800 children and adolescents expressed their opinion on the role of the Child Ombudsman through the innovative UNICEF-supported U-Report platform. The survey results are available at https://romania.ureport.in/v2/opinion/1498/.
About the Children's Board
Established in 2019, the Children's Board of Romania is a group made up of children of different ages, from all over the country, coming from family backgrounds and from the child protection system, with different ethnic origins and with a varied experience in the field of representation. For most of them, this is the first time that their voice reaches the decision makers, 26 of the 32 members being recruited in the last months of 2019.
About the Child Ombudsman
The Child Ombudsman receives individual complaints made by children or their representatives in relation to actions of public institutions in the field of health, education, special protection of the child, of applying the private and non-custodial measures and of any institutions whose activity relating to the protection and promotion of the rights of the child. It also treats any complaint about violations of one or more children rights and promotes the rights of the child among children and adults.
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About UNICEF
UNICEF is present in Romania and in 190 other countries and territories to promote the survival and development of children from early childhood to adolescence. In Romania, UNICEF works with key actors such as the Government, Parliament, local authorities, civil society, the private sector, national and international partners and the media to ensure the access of all children to early quality education and to school, to protect adolescents and to monitor the rights of the child, for social protection and for mobilizing resources for the benefit of the children.
For more information about UNICEF and its work for children, visit www.unicef.org.
