Safeguarding

UNICEF is on the ground in more than 190 countries to help children survive and thrive. No matter where we operate, our mission is to protect children’s rights. This means ensuring no one is placed in harm’s way as a result of a programme UNICEF supports, or an individual with whom UNICEF is affiliated.

Safeguarding is more than an organizational commitment. It’s an individual responsibility to abide by practices that minimize risk, and to speak up against suspected wrongdoing or threats. All UNICEF personnel play a role in making UNICEF a safe organization for the people we serve.

If you suspect someone is at risk of harm – whether deliberate or accidental – by coming into contact with UNICEF’s operations or personnel, contact us immediately.

Our safeguarding policy in practice

Guided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, UNICEF places the safety of everyone reached by our work – child or adult – at the heart of our considerations. From programme design to delivery, we make every effort to reduce and eliminate the potential for harm, abuse and exploitation that can arise throughout the course of our actions.

Safeguarding considerations account for any type of harm, whether intentional or accidental, physical or psychological. They cover risks that can emerge under numerous circumstances: If programmes are planned or implemented without proper engagement or agreement from communities. If they’re delivered in unsafe environments, or by poorly trained staff. If risk assessments are inadequate.

That’s why, across each area of our work, UNICEF’s safeguarding policy lays out expected practices and prohibited actions applicable to all staff and complementary personnel, including partners, suppliers and vendors. Whether recruiting personnel, communicating with children and their families, or carrying out operations, everyone has a responsibility to make UNICEF a safe organization for the communities we exist to serve. 

Report any concern, anywhere

UNICEF takes every concern over safeguarding seriously. Please don’t wait to report suspected threats or wrongdoing against any child or adult who's been reached by our work, including possible incidents of sexual exploitation or abuse. If you're employed by or affiliated with UNICEF, you have a duty to report.

Our teams offer anonymous and confidential reporting mechanisms, so the information you choose to provide is shared only with those who need it to process the matter.