Three Ukrainian cities will sign the Declaration of Cologne at the Child Friendly Cities Summit

18 October 2019. COLOGNE/KYIV.  Three Ukrainian cities -  Lviv, Novoukrainka and Bilozirka - will sign the Declaration of Cologne at the first international Child Friendly Cities Summit in Cologne, to accelerate progress towards improving the lives, opportunities and well-being of children in urban areas. Representatives of Ukrainian cities will sign the Declaration among other more than 100 mayors from 40 countries such as the mayors of Cologne, Germany; Recife, Brazil; Lima, Peru; Surabaya, Indonesia; Kollet, Guinea; and Montpellier, France.

These three Ukrainian cities are nominees for “Child-friendly cities” that are consistently improving the well-being of children.

With this Declaration, the mayors will commit to demonstrating concrete, sustainable and measurable results for children; advancing meaningful and inclusive child participation; and eliminating discrimination against children and young people in policies and actions.

“Our action at local government level has a huge influence on children’s lives and well-being. However many local politicians and leaders are unaware that they too can and must help ensure that children’s rights, wishes and needs are respected and taken into account. Today we are sending a strong message to cities and communities around the world that we can make a difference to the lives of children and young people,” said Henriette Reker, Mayor of Cologne.

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The commitment announced today is built on a manifesto entitled: “Our cities. Our lives. Our future” that was presented at the summit by children and young people. The manifesto defines how cities can bring children to the forefront and accelerate progress towards the children-related goals of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

“For several months we have been preparing ourselves for an important event – creating a Manifesto, which was presented at the global summit. We came from completely different countries. We are all very different, but the most amazing thing is that we all think almost the same way. We are not just participants, we are the creators of the Manifesto, which will help to make the voice of children and young people heard everywhere in the world. To be continued,” comments 16-year-old Tymofiy Bilokiz, a young activist from Novoukrainka.

1. The Declaration of Cologne entails the following goals for a child-friendly city:
2. Every child and young person is valued, respected and treated fairly within their communities and by local authorities;
3. Every child and young person has their voice, needs and priorities heard and considered in public laws, policies, budgets and decisions affecting them;
4. Every child and young person has access to quality essential services (including health care, education, nutrition support, early childhood development, justice and family support);
5. Every child and young person lives in a safe, healthy and clean environment;
6. Every child and young person has opportunities to enjoy family life, play and leisure.

Notes to Editors:

The Child Friendly Cities Summit brings together more than 550 Mayors, local leaders, technical experts, children and young people from over 60 countries worldwide to discuss innovative approaches to enhance child rights at the local level.

It takes place against the backdrop of global trends like urbanization, digitalization, environmental change and mass migration increasingly affecting children and young people in their everyday lives.

Today, nearly a third of the 4 billion people living in cities are children. It is estimated that by 2050, almost 7 in 10 of the world’s children will live in cities – large, medium and small.

Since 1996 UNICEF’s Child Friendly Cities Initiative supports cities and communities worldwide to advance child rights at the local level. Today, the initiative reaches approximately 30 million children in 40 countries worldwide.

Existing Child Friendly Cities: https://childfriendlycities.org/initiatives/