Children’s participation in decision-making strengthened through training of ABC coordinators

With the support of UNICEF, 35 coordinators of the Advisory Board of Children (ABC) from territorial social assistance structures are participating, 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 capacity-building process for ABC coordinators, initiated and supported throughout 2025.

During the training, participants will deepen their understanding of practical methods for facilitating children’s participation and will practice activities they can later implement with ABC members. These exercises are designed to develop children’s abilities to express their views, analyze issues that affect them, and engage in monitoring and improving social services intended for them.

Present at the opening of the event, Viorica Dumbrăveanu, UNICEF Child Protection Officer, emphasized UNICEF’s commitment to supporting initiatives that promote children’s participation, as well as ensuring every child’s right to freely express their views in all matters affecting them, with those views given due weight in accordance with the child’s age and maturity. “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, and we will contribute to institutionalizing the council at the national level so that it represents local structures, ensuring that children’s voices are not only heard locally, but are also meaningfully reflected in all decision-making processes.”

Natalia Semeniuc, Child Participation Consultant at Partnerships for Every Child (P4EC), highlighted that this training process aims to strengthen the role of specialists coordinating ABC activities: “We are continuing the capacity-building process for ABC coordinators, launched last year, by equipping them with practical tools and methods for working with children. During the training, specialists will practice participatory activities that they can later apply in their work with ABC members, so that children are prepared and encouraged to express their views and actively engage in processes that affect them.”

Through these training sessions, 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 serve as a platform through which children express their ideas and opinions regarding social services, contribute to improving existing services, and support the development of new ones to better meet their needs and enhance their well-being. The mission of the ABC is to ensure that children’s voices are heard—including those in alternative care—and to help their peers understand their rights.

The workshop is 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.