The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Ukraine together with the Office of the President, Adviser - President's Commissioner for Children's Rights and Children's Rehabilitation, and the Ministry of Social Policy are launching a nationwide information campaign "Leave no Child Alone: Instructions for Care" on April 21.
The goal of the campaign is to draw public attention to the violation of children's rights during the war and to provide comprehensive information on how to solve these problems. In particular, it concerns the rights of children left without parental care due to the war and in need of care and a temporary home. The campaign will provide information on how to properly support and protect the rights of children left without parental care, as well as provide instructions on the temporary shelter for children in the family.
“Today, the number of children deprived of parental care and being at risk is growing. First, these are children from regions where active hostilities and bombing of residential areas are taking place. The chat bot @dytyna_ne_sama_bot (“Child not alone”) is a tool which can help people give a temporary shelter in their family to a child who got lost or is left without parental care,” said Maryna Lazebna, Minister of Social Policy in Ukraine.
The campaign will scale-up access to the Telegram chatbot ‘@dytyna_ne_sama_bot’ (Leave no Child Alone), which provides opportunities for Ukrainian families and international organizations to submit an application to children’s services to provide temporary care for children in need. Over 15,000 Ukrainian families and more than 500 organizations from abroad have already submitted their applications through the chatbot. The chatbot also contains instructions for those who have lost or found a child.
"Even before the war, nearly 17,000 children in Ukraine were up for adoption. Orphans and children deprived of parental care need to grow up in a home and family environment instead of upbringing in institutional care facilities. With each bombing, the number of these children is increasing. We are planning to improve the adoption process and will digitize some of its components, which will be launched immediately after the war. Currently a large number of families are able and willing to help these children - they need additional information and latest updates on the process," said Dariya Herasymchuk, Advisor to the President of Ukraine on the Rights of the Child and Child Rehabilitation.
The Ministry of Social Policy will launch a new webpage with specific guidance on the protection of child rights during wartime. UNICEF is providing technical support for the content development and management of the page.
“Every child in Ukraine needs assistance, as this horrific war continues, but children without parental care are particularly at risk of exploitation and abuse,” said UNICEF Ukraine Representative Murat Sahin.
“This campaign unites all our efforts to best protect children across the country,” Sahin added.
The three-month campaign integrates digital content and outdoor advertising, as well as national and international media engagement. The campaign also features prominent Ukrainians and opinion leaders.