Azerbaijan to further protect vulnerable children
By Amina Nazarli
A new project aimed to protect legal rights of children from vulnerable groups will be launched in Azerbaijan. The presentation of the project, held on January 21 was co-organized by EU and UNICEF offices in Azerbaijan and the Ombudsman’s office.
To this end, legal, social and psychological assistance for children in difficult situations will be increased. The project will reach children who have been sexually abused, fallen victims to trafficking, children with disabilities and children from migrant families.
Nafisa Shafig, UNICEF’s Deputy in the country noted that the project will be another step towards improving the juvenile system in Azerbaijan. It will help create a more-friendly environment for children from vulnerable groups.
The project aims to improve specialists involved in several fields of children protection and promote current coordination between them.
Ramiz Behbutov, Head of the Department of UNICEF for child protection said the project aims to increase the number of employees and psychologists in law enforcement institutions.
Behbutov said that over the last eight years, the number of convicted children decreased by 50 percent and the number of those involved in the pre-trial proceedings decreased by 30 percent. The number of children, educated in rehabilitation centers has increased by 25 percent.
The project will be held in Azerbaijan’s 10 regions. It will cover more than 3,000 children. Some 300 specialists from different fields will participate on training, which will improve their professional standards.
Aydin Safikhanli, Azerbaijan Ombudsman Office official assured that his department may ensure training with experts and specialists.
For EU, which provides a financial support to the project, development of friendship system for children is a priority, said Malena Mard, EU Ambassador in the country.
She underlined that a number of initiatives to develop and improve the juvenile system have already been realized in the country by the EU. UNICEF and EU as well as Azerbaijan’s state institutions have been actively cooperating since 2007.