Building dreams for China's most vulnerable children

Beijing, 7 June 2013 On the eve of National Children's day, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), China's Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA), the National Working Committee on Children and Women under the State Council (NWCCW) and Beijing Normal University jointly launched the 4th National Child Welfare Week.

Child Welfare Week was established four years ago in order to engage government agencies, civil society, the media and children themselves in raising awareness of the need to establish a comprehensive child welfare system in China. This year, the theme of the Child Welfare Week is ‘Building dreams for children'.

The annual advocacy event is closely linked to MCA's Child Welfare Demonstration Project supported by UNICEF and other donors. The project aims to establish pilot child welfare systems in 120 villages in rural areas of Sichuan, Henan, Xinjiang, Yunnan and Shanxi provinces. Each community-based pilot is run by one child welfare director, who helps to register and monitor vulnerable children and families.

Travelling from the mountains of southwest China's Liangshan Yi Ethnic Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province, a young girl named Wuga arrived in Beijing only one day prior to the launch. During the event Wuga shared two of her dreams, “I hope I can afford junior high school. I also hope my grandmother will stay healthy; she toils from day to night taking care of the five of us.”

In response to the girl's dreams, Wang Zhenyao, Beijing Normal University professor commented, “The dream of the nation will only be realized after the dreams of children are realized”. The former official from the Ministry of Civil Affairs called for efforts to establish a Child Welfare Law for China.

Mr. Xu Jianzhong, Deputy Director-General of the Social Welfare and Charity Promotion Department, Ministry of Civil Affairs spoke highly of the pilot projects, “We appreciate UNICEF's technical support and its important role in introducing best practice to China. In the future, experience we gain from the 120 pilot projects will be absorbed into the national child welfare development agenda.”

In 2012, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Ministry of Finance allocated up to RMB 3.6 billion (US$ 586 million) for the provision of allowances and goods to vulnerable children. In addition, in a highly important new social welfare policy initiative, another RMB 200 million (US$ 32.5 million) has been allocated to support delivery of social services by civil society organizations. This new approach will greatly enhance government efforts to assist the most vulnerable children and families.

“We could never have imagined that pilot projects to assist children affected by HIV and AIDS started 11 years ago in Yunnan and Henan would become a trigger for far-reaching child welfare system development at both central and local government levels,” said Gillian Mellsop, UNICEF's Representative to China. “As child welfare policies to support the most vulnerable children were reinforced, local government finance plans were endorsed, again benefiting tens of thousands vulnerable children.”

Children, academics, government partners, celebrities and media participated in the launch. Representatives from Yunnan, Henan and Sichuan Provinces also shared the latest innovations in bringing services and social protection subsidies for vulnerable children.

Wuga timidly ventured her third dream: “I also hope the child welfare director in our village is not a temporary post, he can stay on and continue to look after us.”