Iran renews Child Friendly Cities agreement with UNICEF

Iran has renewed a partnership agreement with UNICEF to develop and implement the Child-Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) national program.

Isfahan is the first CFCI candidate city, after which the scheme will piloted in 12 cities including Bandar Abbas, Ahvaz, Gorgan, Hamedan, Kerman, Mashhad, Rasht, Semnan, Shiraz, Tabriz, Tehran, and Yazd.

Mapping, developing, and conducting child-centered emergency preparedness and response protocols at the national and provincial level, and supporting the emergency response to COVID-19 are among the programs, reports The Tehran Times.

The new joint cooperation, which will continue until December 2022, was signed by Mandeep O’Brien, UNICEF Iran Representative, and Rahim Saki, Deputy Minister, Head of Center for Public Relations and International Affairs of the Ministry of Interior.

A Child-Friendly City is defined by UNICEF as a city or a local community where the voices, needs, priorities, and rights of children are an integral part of public policies, programs, and decisions.

The vision for the global CFCI program is that “every child and the young person enjoys their childhood and youth and reaches their full potential through the equal realization of their rights within their cities and communities”.

With the support of the local and national governments, NGOs, the private sector, media, and universities, and in collaboration with UNICEF, this initiative covers more than 30 million children in 3000 cities and local communities in over 40 countries.