Children Become Part of Decision-Making: New Steps to Strengthen the Advisory Board of Children (ABC)

With the support of UNICEF, 35 coordinators of the Advisory Board of Children (ABC) from Territorial Social Assistance Agencies (ATAS) participated, on March 17–18, in a training session aimed at strengthening their skills in working with child members of the ABC.

The activity is part of an ongoing professional development process for ABC coordinators, launched in 2025, and contributes to strengthening the mechanisms through which children are involved in decisions that affect them. The workshop was organized within the UNICEF project “Better Care for Children,” implemented by “Partnerships for Every Child,” with financial support from the Government of Sweden, in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Republic of Moldova.

During the training, participants explored practical methods for facilitating children’s participation and practiced activities that they can later apply with ABC members. These tools support the development of children’s abilities to express their views, analyze issues that concern them, and engage in monitoring and improving social services.

Present at the opening of the event, Viorica Dumbrăveanu, UNICEF Child Protection Officer, emphasized UNICEF’s commitment to supporting meaningful and genuine child participation.

“We support the development of these essential platforms for engaging children in decision-making processes that affect them, including within the child protection system. We consider it important to integrate, at all levels, the principle of inclusive and informed child participation. We will contribute to the institutionalization of the Council, including at the national level, so that it represents local structures, ensuring that children’s voices are not only heard at the local level but are also meaningfully reflected in all decision-making processes.”

Natalia Semeniuc, Child Participation Consultant at “Partnerships for Every Child” (P4EC), highlighted the role of these trainings in strengthening specialists’ capacities.

“We are continuing the capacity-building process for coordinators of the Advisory Board of Children, initiated last year, by equipping them with practical tools and methods for working with children. During the training, specialists practiced participatory activities that they can later apply in their work with ABC members, ensuring that children are prepared and encouraged to express their views and actively engage in processes that affect them.”

Through these trainings, specialists are supported in creating a framework where children’s participation becomes a consistent practice in the development and monitoring of social services.

The Advisory Board of Children (ABC) serves as a platform through which children benefiting from social services can express their ideas and opinions, contributing to the adaptation and improvement of existing services, as well as to the development of new services that better respond to their needs.