Georgian parliament adopts Child Rights’ Code, UNICEF calls the achievement ‘groundbreaking’

The Georgian parliament has adopted the Code on the Rights of the Child which UNICEF has called a ‘groundbreaking achievement’ and an important landmark for every child in Georgia.

• Code on the Rights of the Child drafted for higher protection of Georgian children

UNICEF says that the code which was developed by the Human Rights and Civil Integration Committee of the Georgian parliament with their technical support will have a long-lasting effect on the lives of children in Georgia.

The adoption of the Child Rights’ Code is an important landmark for every child in Georgia, and I congratulate children on this historic development”, said Ghassan Khalil, UNICEF Representative in Georgia. 

UNICEF says that the Child Rights’ Code reinforces the state system that ensures the welfare and protection of every child. 

The code is a special law which introduces legal grounds, safeguards and guarantees the realisation of rights and freedoms for children.Photo: UNICEF Georgia press office.

The code is an umbrella document, a special law which unites all main principles that are crucial for a child’s wellbeing. It will guide all state agencies, local governments, other administrative bodies, the common courts, public and private organisations, and individuals, when working with and making decisions about children,” UNICEF reports. 

All the existing laws and policies will have to come into compliance with this document and relevant implementation mechanisms will have to be created and improved.

The code also creates greater guarantees to promote and ensure the participation of children in the decision making on all matters that concern them.