Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen adopts declaration on protection of children's rights

This was reported by the initiator of the event, Ukrainian president’s spouse Olena Zelenska, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"The result of today's summit is a joint declaration. The declaration agrees on the key priorities for the future – protecting children’s rights and guaranteeing a safe future, ensuring the safety of the child in a family, at school, in cyberspace, and amid armed conflicts," said Zelenska.

She noted that the document refers to the need to focus on the implementation of projects in such areas as finding and returning abducted children, medical assistance to children and their rehabilitation, providing children with comprehensive psychological and social assistance, evacuating minors from war zones, ensuring the right of every child to being raised in a family.

"In today's world, there is no threat that does not affect everyone. If children die somewhere, if they are abducted or tortured somewhere, this is a challenge to the entire legal system of child protection, all principles, and numerous agreements. Unfortunately, many of these international arrangements, well-intentioned constructs, have proved unprepared to respond appropriately to real-life tragedies. However, Ukraine has experience in responding. It is dramatic, painful, but it exists and allows us to develop effective mechanisms that can be used by any country around the world," the First Lady noted.

In her opinion, the joint declaration will become one of such mechanisms.

"This is an important joint agreement on the prioritization of children's policy at all levels – both at the national level and in joining efforts in the international arena," the president's spouse said.

As reported, the main topic of the Fourth Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen, which took place today in Kyiv, was children’s safety.

The core dimension was children’s safety amid war. Issues of children's safety in a family, at school, and in cyberspace were also discussed.

The Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen is an annual international event initiated by Olena Zelenska in 2021. It is a global platform that has rallied first ladies and gentlemen to address global challenges.