On 30 November 2021, the final conference of the Council of Europe Project "Combating violence against children in Ukraine, Phase II" was held. The international conference was held in an online format and brought together more than 80 participants, and was also broadcasted live on Facebook.

The main purpose of the conference was to summarise the results of the Project achievements and discuss problematic issues and areas that need further support in promoting the rights of children in Ukraine to protection from violence.

The conference was opened by Mr Steen Nørlov, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine, and Ms Regina Jensdottir, Head of the Children's Rights Division and Coordinator of the Council of Europe for the rights of the child. In their welcoming speeches, the representatives of the Council of Europe emphasized the organisation's proactive approach to combating all forms of violence against children, which is enshrined in the Council of Europe's Strategy on the Rights of the Child (2016-2021).

 «Protection of the rights and interests of children victims of violence, in particular sexual exploitation and abuse, as well as development of a child-friendly justice system are among the key aspects targeted by the Council of Europe Project "Combating violence against children in Ukraine, phase II", which was aimed at supporting representatives of state authorities and civil society professionals, and is being implemented under the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine for 2018-2022.», - noted in his welcoming speech Mr. Steen Nørlov, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine.

"Recently, on the 18^th of November, the European Day on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse was celebrated, on which occasion the Secretary General of the Council of Europe has called on the states to step up their efforts to ensure that children’s “circle of trust” is made as safe as possible",- marked in her congratulatory speech Ms. Regina Jensdottir, Head of the Children's Rights Division and Coordinator of the Council of Europe for the rights of the child.

National partners of the project also addressed the participants with welcoming remarks. In particular, Mr Igor Mustetsa, Deputy Prosecutor General of Ukraine, Ms Ekaterina Pavlichenko, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, and Ms Aksana Filipishina, Representative of the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for human rights for the observance of the rights of the child and family.

The conference was held in the format of two sessions on the following issues:

• Increasing capacities to implement relevant Council of Europe standards to prevent and protect children from violence, including in the digital environment;
• Capacity building for professionals working for and with children and educational initiatives.

During the Conference sessions, the main achievements of the project "Combating violence against children in Ukraine, Phase II" were reviewed in the main areas of activity, including strengthening interdepartmental cooperation, bringing the legislative and political framework in line with international standards, training personnel and building capacity, raising awareness and preventing sexual abuse of children. In particular, international and national experts and partners of the Project presented the project achievements on the following activities:

• Legislative initiatives, policies and practices in order to determine compliance with the provisions of the Lanzarote Convention;
• Ensuring rights of the child: presentation of the Study “Analysis of the System of Justice for Children in conflict with the law in Ukraine”;
• Implementation of Barnahus multidisciplinary interagency response model to child sexual exploitation and abuse;
• Specialised training on OCSEA for judges, law enforcement, prosecutors;
• Training for educators Kiko and the Hand. Protective teachers, protected children. Preventing child sexual abuse in kindergarten;
• Building skills of professionals online HELP courses supported within the project;
• Raising awareness on violence against children, etc.

During the conference, the Project received a high appraisal and gratitude from the national partners, and also expectations for continuing cooperation in the future.

The Final Conference was followed by the Final meeting of the Project Steering Committee, aimed at summarising the results achieved and identifying aspects in which the Council of Europe can support Ukraine in combating violence against children in the future.

During the Steering Committee meeting, partners and stakeholders were given the floor to receive their feedback, as well as to outline the needs and priorities for the possible continuation of the project in 2022, including aspects to be considered in view of the COVID-19 restrictions.