Conclusions on Assessment tool – Italy 2010

1. It was stressed that assessment and evaluation are essential components for the design of Child Friendly Cities. Assessment shows the impact achieved by the actions undertaken towards the fulfilment of child rights and should also track and value progress made. It is hoped that in doing this, city authorities should feel encouraged to continue towards the goals undertaken.

2. For this reason, there is a need for a global set with minimum indicators, easily adaptable to the local context that can guide the cities in their efforts. The assessment approaches used should be of different types and should focus on obtaining numerical data, but also on the possibility of integrating the views of children and citizens. Indicators should thus be simple and be both quantitative and qualitative.

3. Furthermore, the methods used should be creative and should provide for a genuine, democratic representation, involving all groups of children.

4. Finally, it should be underlined that assessment is a necessary process which requires a certain level of political commitment. This may ultimately contribute to creating a culture of child rights reflecting political motivation.

Dora Giusti, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre ^IT