A YEAR OF PROGRESS FOR CHILDREN IN CHINA AND BEYOND

Highlights

Building on over 40 years of cooperation with the Government of China, in 2023 UNICEF continued to work towards realizing the rights of the world’s second largest child population, who make up approximately 13 per cent of the world’s children. UNICEF worked with 25 partners in 217 counties or districts across 31 provinces, autonomous regions or municipalities to achieve results for children, especially the most vulnerable.

To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for children in China and beyond, UNICEF continued with its ‘pilots to policy to scale’ approach: UNICEF brings innovation and international expertise; the Government of China brings resources. Meeting the SDGs in China is essential if the world is to achieve these goals.

UNICEF made progress across child health and development, education, child protection, social policy, and South-South cooperation. To name just a few examples, UNICEF and its partners:

• Trained almost 748,000 health professionals in early essential newborn care.
• Trained more than 95,000 community health workers in early childhood services, and over 290,000 community health workers in infant and young child feeding (IYCF).
• Reached more than 1.1 million children and over 74,000 teachers with higher quality, more accessible, and more equitable education.
• Published data on children affected by migration to inform the government’s action plan.
• Supported the development of the Law on Building Barrier Free Environments.
• Helped regulators keep children safe online.
• Advocated for policies that expand childcare services, particularly for rural areas.
• Developed an industry standard for the design and use of AI relating to children.
• Drafted standard operating procedures for police and prosecutors for taking a victim-centred approach to child victim support.
• Developed a Nutrient Profiling Model to regulate unhealthy food marketing to children in China.
• Developed an interactive platform for sharing and visualizing child environmental health indicators.

UNICEF also continued to work with partners in China to accelerate the progress of other developing countries towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals through South-South cooperation.

There is much work still to be done if we are to reach the most vulnerable children in China, including children in less developed regions, children with disabilities, and children affected by migration. Join us to realize the rights of every child.