Advancing Children’s Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina
ESTABLISHMENT OF AN ONLINE COORDINATION PLATFORM
SARAJEVO, July 14, 2021 – A strategic planning meeting was concluded today in Sarajevo, aimed at establishing an online platform to coordinate the activities and initiatives undertaken by state institutions and the non-governmental sector to advance children’s rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The goal of the platform is to create a mechanism that will improve coordination between governmental and non-governmental organizations and institutions, while also providing tools that will allow children’s voices and opinions to be heard on matters and decisions that concern them.
The online platform will be established within the framework of a project funded by the European Union and implemented by the World Vision BH Foundation and the Association “Naša djeca” Sarajevo, in cooperation with the Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In an innovative and efficient way, the platform will enable children to participate in consultations with their peers and government representatives, and offer them an opportunity to advocate for solutions to issues they identify in their local communities—such as the lack of spaces for leisure activities, insufficient opportunities for counseling in schools to support mental health, and the realization of the right to education for all children, especially the most vulnerable.
“Connecting through the internet responds to the systemic need for data on the state of children’s rights in BiH and will accelerate the flow of information between institutions, governmental and non-governmental organizations, and the most important link in this chain—boys and girls in BiH,” said Larisa Klepac, Director of the World Vision BH Foundation.
“Recognizing the importance of children’s and young people’s opinions in the decision- making process, we are working on education and advocacy for children’s rights. Within local communities, we will organize activities and ensure that the needs identified by children and youth reach the right address—the Council for Children of BiH and other bodies and institutions that use the Platform,” stated Berina Ceribašić, Director of the Association “Naša djeca” Sarajevo.
The meeting was attended by the primary users of the Platform, including representatives of the Council for Children of BiH, institutions at the state, entity, cantonal, and local levels, international agencies, civil society organizations, the academic community, and representatives of independent monitoring bodies active in the field of children’s rights.
