Berlin, Germany – The German Children’s Fund (Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk) presented its ‘Children’s Rights Index 2025’ in Berlin yesterday, highlighting considerable room for improvement in the implementation of children’s rights across Germany. The index assesses how individual federal states are progressing with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, an international agreement with 54 articles that legally binds signatory states to uphold children’s rights, ranging from education and protection from violence to freedom of expression.
Analysis of Various Rights Implementation
The index focused on several key rights: the right to participation, protection, health, an adequate standard of living, education, and the right to rest, leisure, play, recreation, and participation in cultural and artistic life. The study considered factors such as state and municipal spending on childcare, the availability of pediatricians, and the extent to which children have opportunities for co-determination in local communities, schools, and associations.
State Comparison Reveals Disparities
According to the findings, Berlin, Brandenburg, Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein, and Thuringia performed above average. Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Bremen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, and Saxony were rated as average. Conversely, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, and Saxony-Anhalt received below-average overall scores.
Implementation: A Matter of Political Will
Anne Lütkes, Vice-President of the German Children’s Fund, acknowledged progress in several areas in recent years. However, she emphasized that the opportunities for young people in Germany are unevenly distributed, not only due to their family background but also regionally. She stated that there could be no talk of equivalent living conditions when considering children’s rights. Lütkes stressed that implementation is not solely a question of financial resources but rather one of political will.
The German Children’s Fund continues to advocate for stronger commitment from all federal states to ensure that the rights of every child are fully realized, regardless of their place of residence. The organization calls for a nationwide effort to address the identified shortcomings and to ensure that the principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child are consistently applied across Germany.
The report underscores the ongoing need for vigilance and concerted action to safeguard and promote the well-being and development of all children in the country.
Source: https://www.news.de/politik/859183762/bei-kinderrechten-in-deutschland-noch-luft-nach-oben-berlin-news-der-dpa-aktuell-zu-kindern-und-gesellschaft/1/
